‘The golf course won’t be ready as soon as lockdown restrictions are lifted’

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A golf club manager has warned that his venue will have to introduce a phased return of tee times when the course reopens because it won’t be ready for heavy golfing traffic.

The UK golf industry went into lockdown just as winter was coming to an end and most clubs have since furloughed the vast majority of their greenkeeping staff – just when crucial work would normally go into golf courses to prepare them for the footfall from spring and summer golfers.

In addition, many golf clubs experienced a wetter than normal winter and have had walkers using their courses during the coronavirus lockdown.

Speaking to Largs & Millport Weekly News, Jim Callaghan, the manager of Largs Golf Club in North Ayrshire, warned that the course may not be immediately playable whenever lockdown restrictions are lifted.

He said: “It was a wet few months so we were hoping for a good spring to recover from the impact of that, although since we’ve been in lockdown the weather has been quite good.

“I would imagine it’ll take a period of time to get ready, the golf course won’t be open immediately, put it that way.

“It won’t be a free for all, it will be a phased return for tee offs and then hopefully competitions.”

Largs Golf Club. Image from Facebook

He added that Largs is “not in a good place” but is perhaps doing better than several other clubs that have launched emergency appeals for funds.

“It’s a bit early to tell the impact, our subscription year starts in January, so we’ve already taken in some money from those people,” he said.

“Looking at social media and what other clubs are doing, they’re asking people to support their organisation if they can through donations and such like, we’re no different in that.”

The club currently has around 700 members and Mr Callaghan hopes the annual fees will see them through.

He said: “We’re hoping that we’ll get back at some point and recoup some of that expenditure, but we don’t know.

“We’ve done a projection and it’s looking okay, because we’ve cut as much of our outgoings we can. We not in a good place but we’re perhaps in a better place than some others.”

Another golf club preparing for the return of golf is Altrincham Golf Course and Driving Range in Manchester. The company that runs it, Trafford Leisure, has written to local residents asking them to keep off the greens during the Covid-19 lockdown.

In the letter, spokesman Paul Murray said: “During these unprecedented times we welcome the local community to use the golf course for their daily exercise, be that walking the dog, taking a stroll or having a run, and Altrincham Golf Course is attracting a large number of people.

“It’s fantastic to see so many families enjoying the beautiful scenery, whilst adhering to government guidelines on social distancing.

“We ask you to help us look after this superb green space for the longer term and would like to remind everyone to respect the golf course and the staff who are carrying out essential work.”

The company insisted it wanted to avoid damage, both unintentional and intentional, to “vital areas” of the golf course.

It said: “It’s important the course is kept in good condition, ready for when we reopen for business, so we can make sure Altrincham still has a beautiful golf course for the public to enjoy.”

The company also added a list of things to remember while using the space, including staying off the greens, not removing sand from bunkers, being careful around water hazards, keeping pushchairs to the edge of the course and not playing any golf during the lockdown.