Plan to stop golf club falling into the sea

The Royal North Devon Golf Club is England's oldest

Plans to stop England’s oldest golf club from falling into the sea are set to be driven forward.

The Royal North Devon Golf Club, near Westward Ho!, dates back to 1864, and is located on the Northam Burrows Country Park, right on the coastline.

But continued coastal erosion behind the 7th green and sea water flooding to the 8th green means that eventually the 7th & 8th greens will be lost.

Back in 2018 Storm Eleanor ripped 49ft of land away from behind the eighth tee and during the same winter, 20ft of sand dune beside the 7th green was also washed away.

The 7th green is now only about 35ft from the edge of the erosion, and as a result, the committee decided a redesign of the affected area of the course was urgently necessary to ensure they still had 18 Championship golf holes worthy of the title “The oldest Links in England”.

Torridge District Council planners next Thursday are recommended to approve the golf club’s plans for a replacement 8th hole, tee and green, new 9th hole tees, and amendments to the 7th hole green.

The plans would see:

• 7th Hole – Small-scale landscaping required to the north of a former now disused green to return it to a playable condition. Two bunkers are proposed, one to the south east and one to the south west of the green.
• 8th Hole – The proposed green is situated on the disused landfill site and it is proposed to be capped with between 0.5 – 1 metre of sand being applied to all playing areas.
• 9th Hole – The northern side of the green will be retained as existing, but some small-scale landscaping is required to the south east of the green to increase the green size. The existing bunker to the north of the green will be a grassy hollow and the eastern greenside bunker will be removed.
• A new bridge is proposed to allow easy access at times of coastal flooding. The bridge will accommodate golfers with trollies, grass cutting machinery and golf carts.

A statement submitted with the application says: “These changes are required due to the continued erosion behind the 7th green and salt water flooding to the 8th green. Independent advice suggests that this erosion will continue and eventually the 7th & 8th greens will be lost.

“It is imperative that RNDGC continues to be a high standard 18-hole course. The modification proposed, have been designed by MacKenzie & Ebert, International Golf Course Architects.

“Once the new holes are open and in play the old greens will be stripped of turf and landscaped to look natural. This work will be undertaken with the cooperative of the Northam Burrows ranger.”

The report to Torridge planners says: “The changes proposed to the golf course are required due to the impact that coastal erosion will have on the course. As the proposal relates to minimal works to an existing golf course at this location, they cannot reasonably located elsewhere and therefore the principle of the proposal is considered acceptable.

“In terms of the works proposed, these are of a relatively small scale and by their very nature being associated with the adjacent golf course, would be in accordance with the existing landscape and the back drop of the golf course.

“The proposal for the replacement 8th hole tee and green, new 9th hole tees, amendments to the 7th hole green, timber access bridge and associated new bunkers, is acceptable in principle. Furthermore, the proposal would not have a significant adverse impact on the landscape, SSSI or ecology.”

The report though does say the plans are likely to have a limited life, and further movement of holes and tees will be required in the future.

Advice from the Environment Agency as part of the report states: “We advise that all development is moved as far away from the coastline as possible. The new 8th Tees are offered some protection by the rock armour, but this is not guaranteed for any length of time. We also advise that the existing 7th Tees are moved inland where possible.

“There are significant erosion issues in this section at the moment. It is also worth noting that the proposed plan will only offer a temporary solution, and further movement will be required in perhaps five to ten years.”

Councillors being recommended that given the nature of the proposal, it is considered acceptable, despite the works potentially being subject to future coastal erosion.

The application has to come before the committee as the land is owned by Torridge District Council.

Royal North Devon Golf Club was founded in 1864 and is the oldest golf course in England. The course was designed by the Scottish golfer, Old Tom Morris, who won four Open Championships and still holds the record as the oldest winner of The Open Championship at 46.

The golf course in the country and is regarded as the St Andrews of the South, as tough as any of the UK’s more famous links layouts and has recently been placed in Golf World ‘s ‘Top 100 Courses in the World’ that a golfer must play.