Heartbreak over attack
Vandals destroy renovated green
A NORTH Queensland golf club has been left heartbroken after a newly renovated green became a target for vandals.
Greenkeepers arrived yesterday at the green to discover the damage left by what is believed to have been four-wheel drive tyres.
A video posted to social media on Wednesday showed the deep tread marks throughout the course where tyres had torn through grass and a sand trap.
Ayr Golf Club’s Dave Sexton said the club believed the damage was done in the early hours of the morning.
“I’ve been involved in the club for five years and we’ve never had anything done like this in that time,” Mr Sexton said.
The club had only recently invested $40,000 to renovate and improve greens, bringing two new greens into play right before the Ayr Men’s Open last year.
“You try and provide something for the community and it just gets damaged, it’s pretty frustrating and heartbreaking,” Mr Sexton said.
Speaking previously with News Corp, Mr Sexton told of plans for big tournaments in the upcoming year in a bid to bring more visitors to the small town club.
Mr Sexton said volunteers had spent hours working on maintaining the greens and bringing them up to a high standard.
Now volunteers would be left cleaning up the mess and repairing the greens.
“We can’t do a whole lot except replace the divots, there is not a whole lot you can do except replace it with sand and wait for (the grass) to grow over it,” Mr Sexton said.
Ayr Ladies golf president Rhonda O’brien said the fact the championship golf course was run by volunteers had left members more angry about the malicious act and protective of the green.
“They put so much into it, we’ve got one greenkeeper where other clubs this size have five,” she said.
The matter has reported to police. been