Europe’s first Nicklaus joint venture golf course – Machynys Peninsula Golf Club, near Llanelli in Wales – is to receive £525,000 funding from the Wales Tourist Board towards the construction of a world-class clubhouse for visitors.
With the Nicklaus championship golf course set to open next summer, work is about to begin on the two-storey clubhouse incorporating a spa with sauna, jacuzzi, gymnasium and treatment rooms. It will also boast conference facilities, together with a first-class 75-seat restaurant and bar which overlooks the golf course and Carmarthen Bay beyond.
The clubhouse was originally planned to cost around £500,000 but the WTB support funding has acted as the catalyst for a further investment of £600,000 from the Machynys Peninsula Golf Club shareholders. “The additional financial input represents a huge total investment in the project and is an indication of our commitment to both the golf course and the region,” said director Ray Wilson.
The original plan was for a typical golf clubhouse but the new multi-purpose facility will provide amenities for the golfer and non-golfer alike, not available elsewhere in the region.
Construction of the Nicklaus-designed Machynys Peninsula Golf Course, situated in the Millennium Coastal Park, overlooking The Gower and Carmarthen Bay, was recently completed and seeded and will be ‘grown in‘ during the spring and summer of 2004, with the opening scheduled for late summer.
Nicklaus Joint Venture managing director Jim Anderson said, “We are delighted – the golf course has exceeded everyone’s best expectations and with the support from the Wales Tourist Board, we are now developing a clubhouse to complement a magnificent golf course, providing a golfing and leisure destination unrivalled in west Wales.”
Gary Nicklaus – son of legendary player Jack – is leading the design team at Machynys and visited the course earlier this year to put the finishing touches to the plans.
The 7,000-yard, par-72 championship course is being developed as Wales gears up to host the 2010 Ryder Cup with an ambitious programme of major tournaments representing a substantial investment in golf development and tourism.
Former Welsh rugby captain and WTB board member Ieuan Evans said, “Winning the right to host the Ryder Cup in 2010 has given golf in Wales a huge opportunity and the Wales Tourist Board intends to make sure that it uses the event as a catalyst for growing golf tourism throughout the country.
“We are determined to see the Ryder Cup success bring real economic benefits to the whole of Wales and the Machynys project contributes to the aims and objectives of the WTB’s ‘Golf Tourism in Wales Strategy‘ by providing a world-class, quality attraction.”
The Nicklaus Joint Venture partnership comprises Nicklaus Design, established by legendary player Jack Nicklaus, the development and project management group, Sawtrees Ltd, and Southern Golf, Europe’s largest golf construction company.
Nicklaus Design www.Nicklaus.com
Southern Golf www.southerngolf.co.uk
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