Bikers cause £2k worth of damage to Bulwell golf course

A golf course in Nottingham was forced to close for a day after motorcyclists caused thousands of pounds worth of damage to its greens.

Steve Wells, course manager at Bulwell Forest Golf Club, said he discovered a number of the greens had been destroyed on Thursday morning.

He believes bikers caused about £2,000 worth of damage on Wednesday night.

The 40-year-old, who has been greenkeeping for 25 years, said: “It’s a real shame because we prepare the golf course immaculately and they’ve gone on with motorbikes and destroyed all that.”

The course was temporarily closed on Thursday as a result of the damage, causing the club to lose between £1,600 and £1,700 worth of business, Mr Wells said.

Mr Wells said anti-social behaviour on the course had “got worse and worse every month” since his arrival two years ago.

He added a biker once threatened to stab him with a machete and that one of the members was “badly beat up” for approaching another motorcyclist.

Mr Wells said he had also witnessed drug dealing “in broad daylight” on the public footpath that runs through the course.

“It’s worrying not just for members and those greenkeepers on the golf course working, it’s for people who use the path to take their kids to school,” he added.

Sgt Katie Taylor, of the Bulwell Neighbourhood Policing team, said Nottinghamshire Police received “a lot of feedback” about motorbikes “causing a nuisance” at the golf club.

“Tackling antisocial behaviour has long been one of our policing priorities, which is why we regularly conduct operations designed to target these offence,” she said.

“We regularly complete days of action as a team to try and cut out this behaviour.

“This will typically see us work with officers from the force’s off-road bike and drone teams to spot and take action against anyone speeding around the fields and causing problems.”

Mr Wells said members would not be able to play on the damaged greens and would have to use temporary greens for now.

“The greens won’t be repaired until they start growing next spring in April or May,” he added.

“Some people won’t want to return because of the damage that has been caused.

“We just want something to be done about it and something proactive to be done about it.”

Sgt Taylor said: “While we obviously can’t be on hand all the time to put a stop to these offences, the hope is these types of operations and the daily visible patrols we conduct provides a crime deterrent.”

She added reports of anti-social behaviour in Bulwell Forest had dropped by 24% over the past 12 months but said “we can still do more to crackdown on these offences and keep people safer”.

She said: “Anyone who acts in an antisocial manner – whether that be flying around on bikes, threatening people, or causing criminal damage – needs to know that this behaviour will not be tolerated.”