Browse Sections

• Barlow's brief
• Education
• Special reports

Golf hole is a real uphill struggle

Alex Bell
13/ 8/2008

FORGET a hole-in-one – senior players at Macclesfield Golf Club need the 17th green like a hole in the head.

Because after a three hour slog round the ever-popular course, the last thing you want is a 200m climb before the final hole ...

But that’s just what MGC members have been doing for the last 16 years – much to the annoyance of their knees.

Indeed, many of the club’s 600 golf-nuts are finding the penultimate putting green such a tough nut to crack that they’ve been calling for it to be flattened – a prayer they hope could soon be answered.

The club’s committee is applying to Macclesfield Borough Council (MBC) to have the fairway lengthened and flattened out.

Martin Perry, 60, a senior at MGC, admitted he was known to tire towards the top.

"It’s a strain and I’m certainly not getting any younger," he said. "I have supported proposed changes to the dreaded 17th for ten years."

And Bob Littlewood, 52, the club’s secretary, said he often had to stop half-way – though that allowed him to enjoy a great view of Macclesfield.

"I tend to stop for a half-time break climbing the 17th," he said.

"The hill adds to the strain as the players have already played 16 holes and are tired.

"I think this change could attract more visitors and hopefully extend the playing life of some of our members."

But Bill Milligan, an MGC life member says the hole has been the way it is for almost 17 years and doesn’t see the problem.

"I’m 72 and yes you have to walk slowly up it but I tend to do okay," he said. "Nobody loves the walk but it isn’t getting steeper."

If given the go ahead by the planning committee, the 17th will change from a par three to a par four and be extended in length by approximately 180m.

The club wants to flatten out the area by removing 25,000 cubic metres of soil.

And Rob Higgins, 37, chair of the sub committee to extend the 17th hole, said: "Some of the older guys are struggling and the visiting societies only seem to remember the 17th as a killer, which is not what we want when they play our course."

Most recent 2 of 3 user comments