Brum golf course to be closed; EXCLUSIVE: Golf club faces axe to save cash.

Byline: Gregg Evans 

ONE of Birmingham's seven public golf courses is facing closure within weeks, it emerged today.

The city's leisure boss, Coun Martin Mullaney, confirmed Hilltop in Handsworth was facing the axe in a bid to protect the authority's remaining golf facilities.

"Hilltop will be closing in weeks because half of ourmoney is lost through this course," he said.

"It's in a weird location with Handsworth and Sandwell Golf Clubs providing extremely tough competition.

"Not enough golfers use the course so if it can be sacrificed to help keep the others open it will be worth it."

Hilltop's long-term future will be reviewed in the New Year as part of a concerted push to attract outside investment for all the city's municipal courses.

Coun Mullaney said the seven courses were losing a combined pounds 900,000-a-year and changes had to be made.

"We cannot continue funding them, so we need to find some sort of way of keeping them going," he said.

"We need to upgrade the clubhouses to make them more like private courses because we have not moved with the times. "Golf needs to be seen as a full day out where families can play, get showered and changed, meet for dinner, have a drink and then go home. Upgrading our clubhouses will help this happen.

"We will be offering two options, one where investors can build new clubhouses and run them as they see fit, while paying us rent, and the other where they take on the clubhouse and the course." Coun Mullaney also confirmed council plans to build new six-hole and nine-hole golf courses had been scrapped. Hilltop's PGA golf professional Kevin Highfield said he could not comment on the closure threat but a source at another council-run club in Birmingham spoke of his fears for the future. "We're really worried about our jobs because private investors may want to come in and employ their own staff," he said. "Golfers should be worried about the future because who knows what private owners might want to build?"

Last month green fees were cut in a last-ditch attempt to reduce the massive funding deficit. Now a three-month programme, starting in January, will weigh up the interest of any potential suitors. The council has repeatedly been accused by golfers of failing to invest in courses over many years, while still raising prices. Recent initiatives have been launched to widen the game's appeal to women, ethnic minorities and young people after it emerged the vast majority of players were still middle-aged or retired white men. What do you think? Email letters@birminghammail. net

CAPTION(S):

Threatened: Hill Top's clubhouse.