One of the UK’s oldest golf clubs is facing a dark and uncertain future as it could disappear into the sea.
Alnmouth Village Golf Club on the Northumberland coast could lose its honour as the oldest nine hole course in the country as the sea continues to encroach with 10 metres of land already washed away.
Classed as an area of natural outstanding beauty the historic golf club has stood on the site for more than 150 years but this could soon all change.
Built in 1869 the course was designed by the famous Scottish golfer Mungo Park, winner of the 1874 Open Championship at Musselburgh.
Climate change and increasing tidal surges caused by storms have put the course and other parts of the village under threat.
Earlier this year Steve Lockley, from the club, told ITV Tyne Tees that sea has already snatched “half of the fifth tee”.
He added: “So we’re literally a metre away from losing that entire green if we got another wind and flood of that level again, intensity.
“So it’s pretty existential for a golf course. Because we’re a nine hole golf course, we don’t want to be an eight hole golf course.”
The community, however, are fighting back and trying to save their beloved golf club.
Timber sea defences are being restored and repaired in order to collect sand to form a barrier against the waves.
These wooden groynes are built to limit the movement of sediment and help slow down erosion.
It is hoped this will allow sand to build back up and form a defensive barrier against the sea. Ian Garrett, from the golf club, said: “It will buy time in terms of the impact of the coastal erosion.”
However, there are increasingy fears that this won’t provide enough protection into the future.