Murrayshall House Hotel is on course to move its driving range and house a golf academy after councillors gave it the go-ahead.
The owners of the luxury Perthshire hotel teed up a planning application that went before councillors this week.
Stellar Asset Management took over the Scone hotel six years ago and have invested heavily in the hotel ever since.
The owners spent £2.5 million in the first phase of plans improving the hotel and golf courses. A separate application for planning permission in principle for the £15 million second phase - which would also see a brand new spa and leisure facility, outdoor pursuits area, indoor games room, luxury glamping units and lodges, and refurbishment of the staff accommodation - was recently withdrawn.
When PKC's Planning and Placemaking Committee met on July 6 it was asked to consider the plans for the relocation of driving range, a new golf academy building and shop, car park and part diversion of the core path on its own merits and separately from the withdrawn submission.
General manager Gary Silcock told the committee: "Currently the driving range is probably in the worst position you can position a driving range from the hotel and the golf course.
"It's probably a five-minute drive from the pro shop which means you have to come out of the estate, drive around the estate to go to the driving range to then get back in your car to go back to the pro shop to then play your golf."
He also said it currently gave a lot of light pollution in its position - sitting at the top of a hill overlooking Scone - and involved golfers "hitting out into no man's land".
The committee was told the move would make the facility better with "more staff, more members, longer hours and a busier hotel".
Councillors were told the development would result in four new full-time members of staff in addition to the hotel's current 87 members of staff.
The plans attracted 41 letters of representation which included concerns about the loss of trees, road safety, noise pollution and the impact on a core path.
The core path would be rediverted around the driving range.
Councillors raised locals' concerns about this and were told by the hotel's representatives there would be new surfaces, fencing, beech hedging planted and signage "to ensure people don't stray onto the outfield".
Cllr Bob Brawn asked about the volume of traffic.
He was told the council's transport team calculated there would be "up to potentially seven vehicles at peak hours".
The diversion of the core path will result in the loss of one tree due to ash dieback and three other trees for health and safety reasons. Planning conditions were added to ensure tree mitigation measures are met and compensatory trees are planted.
The report of handling addressed concerns about noise and the impact on residents saying the new driving range would be further away from houses than the existing range. Environmental health considered the impact as "low" but conditions were added including a measure to ensure construction noise "is controlled to appropriate levels".
Conservative councillor David Illingworth moved the plans for approval.
It was seconded by local Strathmore Conservative councillor Hugh Anderson who said: "The element of light pollution when the first driving range was constructed attracted major comment in Scone. The new location removes that.
"In essence I am very happy with this proposal. The one concern I had - which has been addressed today - was the moving of the core path."
