Operations Manager at Brighton Lakes Recreation & Golf Club - Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
Head Golf Professional | Brighton Lakes Recreation & Golf Club
In the late 1920s, a group of golfers created the North Brighton Golf Club on the opposite side of the Cooks River to Sydney Airport, using a tin shed on the course as a clubhouse and paying two shillings in rent to the landowner for their 18 holes.The rapid growth of international air transport after WWII meant major runway extensions that eventually forced the Club to find a new home, and in 1950 a new site in Milperra was found, and the New Brighton Golf Club was formed.In 1979, the Club had part of the course resumed to make way for the building of the M5 Motorway. Construction of four new replacement golf holes commenced in June 1980, with players teeing off from 1982. The necessary redesign of the layout enabled New Brighton to attain Group One status.This course was played successfully until 2015 when six holes and a practice fairway were lost to build the Brighton Lakes housing estate. Fortunately, the club had previously purchased part of the old Greenwood Golf Course which was on the other side of the M5 and had been closed since the early 70s. This provided the opportunity to restore an 18-hole layout.Golf Architect Bob Harrison who did the initial re-design to accommodate the M5 resumptions, was brought in again to design seven new holes and re-design four others.Construction began in 2016 on a new clubhouse, and the end result is a modern golf clubhouse with bars, lounges, bistro and dining room, plus a 300-seat function centre with stunning, panoramic views overlooking the course.Reopening in August 2019 to an 18-hole facility, the course and Club is thriving once again.