Prestigious golf club set to close for TWO YEARS

The iconic Stoke Park Golf Club is to close later this summer for two years, with many staff being made redundant as a result.

The Telegraph is reporting that the famous Buckinghamshire venue will shut its doors on August 2, with the golf club and estate following suit on October 18, as its new owners prepare to make a major investment in the facilities.

Indian tycoon Mukesh Ambani bought the five-star hotel and golf club last month in a deal believed to worth £57million.

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According to a club spokesperson, Ambani – the richest person in Asia and tenth richest man in the world – is closing Stoke Park with the intention of “future proofing” the business.

The spokesperson added that Amani is “committed to preserving Stoke Park’s rich heritage”.
It is believed it will re-open in the summer of 2023.

However, the decision to shut the club is said to have angered many of its 2,500 members, who have been unable to get full value from their membership for most of the last year as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The club’s 160-strong staff will also be ‘scaled down’ as a result of the temporary closure.

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Stoke Park’s 27-hole golf offering encircles the 300-acre parkland estate and dates back to 1908 when it was laid out by the acclaimed Harry Colt.

It staged the first edition of the PGA Matchplay tournament in 1910 but is arguably most famous as the host venue for James Bond’s epic duel with the nefarious Auric Goldfinger in the 1964 classic ‘Goldfinger’.