Take on the Old Course in miniature

GOLFERS travelling to St Andrews next summer will be able to practise taking on some of the Old Course’s famous landmarks.

The famous Swilcan bridge is just one of a number of features that will be replicated on an adventure golf course at Clayton Caravan Park, near St Andrews.

The £600,000 project has been given the green light by Fife Council.

The adventure golf course will feature the infamous 17th road hole bunker and a sloping 18th hole.

It will also encompass a number of landmarks from the town, including the university, cathedral and St Andrews Castle.

Clayton Caravan Park managing director Andrew Kennedy explained the design was inspired by a course in Lancashire.

“We had seen a similar course in Lancashire, which took references from Royal Lytham,” he said. “We thought the same could be done for St Andrews.”

Mr Kennedy is “delighted” to have secured planning permission from the local authority.

He said: “We believe this will be a unique attraction in North East Fife.

“We hope it will further enhance the leisure offering at Clayton.”

Mr Kennedy said the adventure golf course was the second phase of a redevelopment of the park, which began last year with a new £3.5 million leisure complex.

That included a new swimming pool, spa, sauna, gym and café.

Work, he said, will begin in the next couple of weeks, with the new course up and running by March next year.

Mr Kennedy added: “It was pretty important to tie in the golf theme.

“We’ve got the 150th Open coming up next year. The designers have built around the Old Course but also round some prominent landmarks in the town, which form part of the course.”

The five-star resort offers luxury holiday homes for sale and rent, as well as touring facilities and residential caravan living.

The caravan park currently has 40 employees, with staff recruited almost entirely from the local community.

The firm also has a number of seasonal, part-time employees.

It will also create “a few” new jobs – with up to five new positions likely once the course is open.

The 110-acre site now hosts more than 650 holiday and residential pitches, which the owners say makes it one of the largest in the country.

And the new adventure golf course will be available for public use as well as to customers of the holiday park.

Mr Kennedy, whose grandfather founded the business in 1966, hopes to take advantage of a bumper crowd for the 150th Open in St Andrews next summer.

He said: “It has been quite a tough year for businesses relying on international tourism.

“Let’s hope we can get a good amount of people into the Open.

“It’s going to be a big year for the area.” He hopes the adventure golf course will attract tourists to the area.

He said: “It will be quite a unique attraction for customers of the park, but also for the wider community and people who are visiting the town.

“We’re hoping it will attract people here.”