Golf courses lockdown: Will golf courses have to close in England under new lockdown?
Golf is a popular pastime for many people across the UK and beyond. When coming out of the first national lockdown in the summer, golf courses were among the first facilities to welcome people back in.
New restrictions were put in place, such as staggered tee times, limited group sizes and social distancing measures.
However, a second wave of the coronavirus has led the government announcing a new lockdown in England.
The lockdown will come into place from Thursday, November 5, and will last for four weeks.
This announcement has now left people wondering whether golf courses will reopen or if they’ll have to close.
Will golf courses have to close in England?
Golf courses in England will have to close under the new month-long lockdown.
The government announced certain businesses and venues will have to shut when the measures come into effect on Thursday.
Guidance issued on their website included a list these venues.
The guidance reads: “To reduce social contact, the government has ordered certain businesses and venues to close.
“These include: indoor and outdoor leisure facilities such as bowling alleys, leisure centres and gyms, sports facilities including swimming pools, golf courses and driving ranges, dance studios, stables and riding centres, soft play facilities, climbing walls and climbing centres, archery and shooting ranges, water and theme parks.”
This means as well as golf courses, driving ranges will also have to close.
England Golf released a statement following the announcement by Prime Minister Boris Johnson.
CEO Jeremy Tomlinson said: “England Golf is working with the All-Party Parliamentary Group for Golf to study the detail, and to establish the exact restrictions on golf clubs and their facilities as the information becomes available.
“We will communicate definitive guidance once received from government.”
The PGA and BIGGA also released similar statements.
People who enjoy the sport have since taken to social media to share their reactions that golf courses will have to close.
One wrote on Twitter: “For peoples health we must keep courses open.
“Surely playing in twos is as safe as going for a walk with someone from another household outside which is allowed.
“We are both often on opposite sides of the fairway anyway!”
Another wrote: “Golf courses to close. You book online. You drive to the course. You play in a field. You go home.
“Yes close the club house but to close golf courses is ridiculous.”
A third added: “There is absolutely no scientific evidence whatsoever that anyone has caught COVID when playing golf, especially taking cognisance of the new protocols, such as leaving the pin in.
“Please, please, stand your ground! When it comes to well-being, it’s clear that golf spans the ages.”
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