RHYL Golf Club is preparing to welcome back members this week for the first time since 2022.
The club was forced into temporary closure from December 31, 2022 to accommodate a project which will see a nine-foot-tall sea defence be built on the boundaries of Prestatyn and Rhyl.
Funded by Welsh Government and Denbighshire County Council, the project is thought to have cost roughly £20million and protect about 2,100 properties.
Now, though, the club is almost ready to re-open, and while a “soft opening” yesterday (April 1) was called off due to adverse weather conditions, golfers should be back by the end of this week.
A new high earth bund has been built by the course, which will act as a containment area to hold rainwater runoff.
Mike Pritchard, marketing director and spokesperson at Rhyl Golf Club, said: “Our plan is to re-open at the end of this week, because we want to make sure the members have a course they can play on without getting too wet.
“The ground is so badly damp and sodden that it’s really affected everyone’s ability to play golf in the area.
“There has been about 120,000 tonnes of hardcore which have been moved into the area by Balfour Beatty to create a new bund around the course.
“For residents, it should give them comfort to know that any flooding will now be guided towards Rhyl Golf Club, and protect the couple of thousands of houses in the course’s vicinity.
“If we get severe flooding, the chances are that it could wipe the golf club out, but we’re aware of that and we know that’s the risk.”
Rhyl Golf Club, a nine-hole course which has been in existence since 1890, was previously earmarked as a potential flood plain.
The club is also progressing with its plans to build “the first proper carbon neutral clubhouse”, meanwhile.
Plans to demolish and replace much of its existing clubhouse were approved last year, with the aim of completing the project by early 2025.
Mike hopes it will help in Rhyl Golf Club’s efforts to become “the greenest golf club in Wales”.
He added: “We will be generating our own power from more than 40 solar panels on its roof.
“We’ll also be doing our own rainwater harvesting, which means we’ll be self-sufficient for water, as well.
“We were a little fearful that people would forget about us, but it’s been the complete opposite.
“We’ve had so many messages from people desperate to get back out there and test themselves on the remodelled course.
“We’ve had to reshape the course around the new bund, but it means it’s an even better challenge for golfers now.
“Hopefully, they’ll like the fact that we’ve built these new features into the club. It will be a uniquely-built golf club when you see the end result in 12 months’ time.”
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