GOLFERS could soon be enjoying teeing off, chipping and putting at one of Barrow's most popular golf courses.

As lockdown measures began to ease, golf courses are among the first wave of leisure activities that could reopen.

Furness Golf Club, based on Walney, have been working hard behind the scenes to prepare for when they could return. They are set to make a decision on reopening the course today. However, they still face a financial struggle due to their clubhouse not looking likely to open until July at the earliest.

Jon Clarke, greens chair at Furness Gold Club, said: “We are going off the guidelines that have been issued to us by England Golf.

“There is still more information to come on this soon. As long as it is managed properly it could be likely that players can come on Wednesday.We have had a great team working behind the scenes preparing for this as the safety of our members is paramount.

“We will be introducing an online booking system for tee times and we are waiting on the guidance from England Golf as to how many people can be on the course at one time.

“In terms of the golf itself there are so many variables to consider so the onus is on the members in a way as it is an open course and we cannot control everything they do on it.

“In a perfect world and if all the advice stacks up, we will be open on Wednesday.

“We are right in the public eye in terms of our location, so we have to get it right. As golfers we have been put in a tough but privileged position.”

Everything is not back to normal for the club though as their clubhouse is still not allowed to be open and competitions seem to be unlikely.

John Woodhouse, captain at Furness Golf Club, said: “At the beginning of the coronavirus outbreak we set up a steering group and we have discussed competitions and agreed that we would not restart them initially until we get clearer guidance. So it would just be social golf that would be returning.

“We may be able to do some competitions later on but for now it does not seem right to do it whilst many are still in lockdown.

“Even playing golf does not increase our income though. our clubhouse is our main source of income through our bar and function hire. Even if we get to reopen in July, there probably won’t be many people looking to have functions straight awaY.

"One thing we would like to mention as well is our support of the NHS though, and if any worker fancies a game at all, just give us a call and we can sort something out."