N.S. golf club members rally to keep links amid uncertainty

The ownership of a Nova Scotia golf club appears in limbo, but members of the facility said they’re pulling together to keep the 18 hole course running until its fate becomes clear.

Sid Young, course superintendent at the Annapolis Royal Golf and Country Club, said he was shocked to find a letter from owners Harry and Jacqui Shepherd last week thanking him for his volunteer service.

“It didn’t take rocket science to read between the lines that they weren’t coming back,” Young said in an interview Saturday.

“I can only speculate, like most people, that at some point in they saw the end was near and they decided to leave.”

Young said he believes the Shepherds walked away from their business of 12 years to return to the United Kingdom, potentially putting about six staff members out of work.

Since the owners’ apparent departure, Young said he and a small group of volunteers have been maintaining the course, including an octogenarian who has been pitching in to make sure the course is groomed.

“The mood is fantastic around here. It’s the whole town backing us,” said Young. “

They realize we’re not being reimbursed for any of our work. We just love the game of golf, we love the golf course, and (intend to do) anything we could possibly do to keep it.”

Dale Hoyt, president of the Annapolis Royal Golfers Association, said there were signs that the business, which has less than 100 members, was under “financial strain.”