Royal Liverpool submits bid to save local golf club

Open Championship host Royal Liverpool has submitted a bid to take over one of two municipal golf clubs that closed in April due to their council’s budgeting crisis.

Hoylake Municipal, along with Brackenwood Golf Club, closed at the beginning of April after councillors voted in favour of a £20 million cuts plan.

It has since emerged that Ian Woosnam’s brother is helping to maintain Brackenwood for free, to keep it viable as it seeks a new operator.

It has now transpired that Royal Liverpool Golf Club wants to take over Hoylake Municipal. It states the venue plays a key role in the club hosting the Open Championship, and it can be transformed to serve the local community in a better way than it has.

The golf club has submitted a bid to Wirral Council that, if accepted, would see it manage the venue, which includes a nine-hole course and driving range.

Royal Liverpool Golf Club. Image from Facebook

Royal Liverpool would use Hoylake Municipal’s clubhouse for a golf shop, while wildlife habitats and nature trails accessible would also be created at the venue for the benefit of the local community.

Royal Liverpool says Hoylake Municipal is a key part of The Open Championship infrastructure, providing practice facilities and the ‘tented village’ among other things, and that without it the venue cannot stage this global event in the town.

The tournament is worth approximately £100 million to the economy of Wirral. The golf club’s plan is not the only one on the table, according to reports, but it is the most likely one to be approved.

Royal Liverpool has hosted the Open Championship 12 times and is one of a very few to have hosted it in all three centuries. The two winners from this century have been Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy, and the club is set to host the event next in 2023.