Monday, February 25, 2013

Murray hopes his new hotel will be a smash hit

LONDON (Reuters) - Andy Murray will be keen to prove his business nous and hospitality skills are as good as his tennis after he purchased a luxury hotel in his Scottish hometown of Dunblane.

The British number one opted to buy the hotel where his brother Jamie, a Wimbledon mixed doubles champion, got married in 2010.

Andy Murray of Britain reacts during his men's singles final match against Novak Djokovic of Serbia at the Australian Open tennis tournament in Melbourne, January 27, 2013. REUTERS/David Gray

"I am pleased to have acquired Cromlix House and look forward to securing its future as a successful business," Murray said in a statement on his website (www.andymurray.com) on Monday.

"By re-establishing Cromlix as a leading luxury hotel at the heart of the Dunblane community we will be able to attract new visitors to the area, create a number of new jobs and focus on supporting other local businesses.

"I'm pleased to be able to give something back to the community I grew up in."

Apart from being the hometown of U.S. Open champion Murray, Dunblane is also known as the site of Britain's worst school massacre after 16 children and their teacher were gunned down in 1996 by a local misfit.

Murray, a survivor of the Dunblane Primary School atrocity, has brought plenty of cheer to the small Stirlingshire town in recent months as a gold postbox in the vicinity marks his singles triumph at the London Olympics.

He then became the first British man in 76 years to win a grand slam title with success at Flushing Meadows last September.

He plans to refurbish the hotel before re-opening it next year ahead of the 2014 Ryder Cup, which is being staged a short drive away at Gleneagles.

Local media reported Murray had purchased the hotel for 1.8 million pounds ($2.75 million).

(Reporting by Pritha Sarkar, editing by Mark Meadows)

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Monday, February 25, 2013

Murray hopes his new hotel will be a smash hit