World-class golf course planned for Close House Hotel

Mar 5 2009 by Alastair Craig, The Journal

A WORLD-CLASS championship standard golf course will be created at a Northumberland hotel after planners gave the ambitious scheme the go-ahead.

The £7.5m project will transform Close House Hotel, near Heddon-on-the-Wall, and bosses hope to land a top tournament once the work is completed in 2011.

The hotel, which already has one golf course, is owned by Sage co-founder Graham Wylie, entrepreneur, property developer and one of the North East’s wealthiest men.

A planning application had been lodged with Castle Morpeth Borough Council for a new £2m "futuristic" club house and a separate application for the course itself.

Work will start immediately on the course and club house with panoramic views over the Tyne Valley, a 60-seat restaurant and conference facilities, a golf academy headed up by ex-England golfer Jonathan Lupton and a driving range.

Mr Wylie and his team at Close House have hired renowned golf course designer Scott McPherson to put together the 18 holes of what will be known as the Colt course, after famous golf course architect Harry Colt. Alan Graham, a director of Close House, said: "We are very excited by the new developments. This is part of a 10-year plan to make Close House one of the finest places in the North East.

"These are exciting times for us as this is one of many projects we are working on."

Mr Graham said the management team at Close House hoped to host a significant tournament on the new championship-standard course.

He added that the intention was to demolish an existing 1960s changing block, built by Newcastle University, and replace it with a state-of-the-art clubhouse.

"At present, the golf at Close House is run from what used to be a cricket pavilion, but we are going to move the operation closer to the house," he said.

"This will be a championship standard golf course.

"It will be of a much higher standard than the existing course which will attract a competition at some time in the future, if we can get the right tournament."

Mr Wylie has been steadily buying up around 200 acres of land from farmers to the north and west of the existing golf course to provide space to create the new facility.

John Glendinning, golf operations manager at the club, said: "The future is very exciting for this magnificent hotel and golf club.

"To bring the existing course up to this standard is very exciting.

"We are looking forward to welcoming new members and, of course, anyone who would just like to have a look around.

"This will bring a great deal of interest into the region and will compliment what we currently offer."

Close House has already seen massive investment since it was acquired from Newcastle University in the summer of 2004.

At that time, the 18th-Century building stood in grounds stretching to 179 acres, but the main house had been neglected.

Mr Wylie upgraded the accommodation, as well as ploughing around £1m into the existing golf course. He said when he took over Close House that he wanted to turn the golf club into ‘one of the leading courses in the region’.