Pro Shop

I arrived at Castletown Golf Links and took up my post as Head Professional on March 1st last year and have enjoyed my time on the Island. There was 3 inches of snow covering the course this time last year which led to us being closed for two days only. With the salt content in the sea air the snow rarely settles for long, so we then had uninterrupted play throughout the year till the August when a freak rainstorm swamped the course forcing us to halt and reschedule the Saturday competition. Being Scottish has hardened me against these harsh conditions!

The course itself has improved greatly within the last 12 months. There is less damage to the turf created by the salt in the sea air which can turn the colour of the course in a matter of hours from a strong, lush green to a weak, pallid beige. So as i look out onto the course i see green everywhere and huge craters where the new bunkers have been placed. In fact, I'm sure I saw one of our members taking shelter from a storm the other day, haven't seen him since - he may not have escaped it's clutches yet.

The greens are much improved to that of last year and this is down to the continued hard work of our Head Greenkeeper, Mark Kitching, and his team. There has been spraying, cutting, verticutting, more verticutting and a bit of luck with the weather which has helped the greens maintain a relatively smooth surface throughout winter. Our Members will be releived to note that it will now be impossible for the ball to bounce out of bounds on the 5th. While putting.

The rough for 2007 will be slightly different as we want to get away from shortish, thick rough to a more traditional long and wispy rough. This will help define the fairways and send out a message that says "under no circumstances do you want to mess with me - there's only one winner! Take an iron and try and hit the fairway."

We hope that when you visit Castletown Golf Links the ten foot deep bunkers, the knee high rough or the tighter fairways won't spoil what is undoubtedly one of the most charming and scenic courses in the U.K. There are very few places I have visited that equal Castletown for the beautiful scenery and abundance of wildlife that encompasses this historic golf course.

Come and see what were excited about!!

Contact Michael Brooks, Head Professional, on 01624 822211
or
Derek Vaughan, Hotel Manager, on 01624 822201