Uncertainty over English golf courses amid new lockdown measures

Golf courses in England are waiting anxiously to hear if they will be required to close as a result of new COVID-19 restrictions announced by the Prime Minister this evening.

A country-wide lockdown will come into effect in England on Thursday, November 5, and will last until December 2.

During this time, non-essential shops and hospitality will be forced to close, with restrictions on travel also being enforced. All household mixing has been banned, except for childcare and other support.

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It has been reported that outdoor exercise and recreation is being encouraged and is unlimited but only within your household or bubble, on your own or with one other person from a different household.

However, it is unclear where golf fits into that.

Despite courses and driving ranges being listed on the government website amongst the facilities that will be required to close, bunkered.co.uk understands that no such directive has been communicated to England Golf.

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Instead, the organisation remains hopeful that an agreement can be reached whereby the sport can continue, albeit with some restrictions over who can play with whom.

In a statement issued shortly after the Prime Minister’s address to the nation last night, England Golf CEO Jeremy Tomlinson said: “England Golf is working with the All-Party Parliamentary Group for Golf to study the detail, and to establish the exact restrictions on golf clubs and their facilities as the information becomes available.

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“We will communicate definitive guidance once received from government.”

Golf courses in Ireland and Wales are currently in the throes of their own retreats back into lockdown, heightening fears that courses in England could soon follow as a result of these new measures.

Golf courses in Scotland remain open.