Evening Telegraph (First Edition)
Golf club closure was ‘inevitable’
PAST and present members of Letham Grange Golf Club have admitted they were not surprised to hear both courses at the historic club are at risk of closure.
The Tele revealed yesterday that an emergency meeting is to be held later this month to discuss the future of the club.
The committee is recommending that both courses should close and the entire club should be wound up.
The news comes following a 15-year legal battle over the ownership of the golf resort that finally came to an end last year.
After the long litigation, golf club members learned a settlement had been reached between the liquidator of Letham Grange Development Company, which collapsed in 2002, the company’s former Taiwanese owner Peter Liu and current owners PI Ltd.
The move saw Mr Liu regain control of the assets through another of his companies.
Members of the club, who had been maintaining and operating the courses since 2011 under a Licence to Occupy issued by PI Ltd, had hoped the club would continue to operate as normal.
One member, who asked not to be named, said he understood the club had a lease until next March .
He said: “There have been rumours recently. These were finally stood up this week when members received an email inviting them to attend an extraordinary general meeting on September 24.
“It’s a bit of a surprise but not entirely unexpected. There has been a downturn in members gradually for years now.”
The member confirmed that Peter Liu was still the owner of the resort and the club.
He said: “We don’t see much of him but I believe he was round visiting the club last week.”
A former member told the Tele it would cost millions to get the club up and running profitably again.
He said: “There has been no money put in for years, club members and volunteers have been keeping it going. Many of the club members are older and the numbers have been dwindling.
“Many people who have left the club said they would rejoin if money was spent on it to bring it back up to scratch, but that hasn’t happened.
“It is disappointing but probably inevitable.”
The Tele made several attempts to contact Mr Liu.