AFTER almost 15 years of planning, Stage 1 of Maleny’s 18-hole community golf course has finally been completed with the first nine holes set to be declared officially open for play by members and visitors on 30 June.

Sunshine Coast Mayor Mark Jamieson, assisted by Club Patron Andrew Powell MP and local Councillor Jenny McKay, have been invited by the Maleny Golf Club committee to officiate and do the honours.

Up to 40 members of the Golf Course Superintendent’s Association of Queensland will also visit on the day to inspect the course prepared during the last 15 months under the direction of full-time superintendent Mick McCombe.

Club President Dr Max Whitten said Stage 1 of the course had been built largely by volunteers from the club’s 400-strong membership at a cost of about $750,000, including $450,000 from council’s Capital Works programme, plus donations of money and professional time.

“We’ve shown that building a golf course need not be an expensive exercise in a town like Maleny where the community is large enough to boast an abundance of natural talent, but small enough for residents to be able to help out and make a real difference,” Dr Whitten said.

“For many of our volunteers involvement in course construction has proved somewhat of a ‘soft landing’ into retirement after busy and successful careers.”

Dr Whitten said the club had also shown that development of a golf course could deliver positive environmental outcomes such as the rehabilitation and protection of wetlands, and native flora and fauna.

“We have essentially taken a neglected agricultural site and transformed it into a valuable council-owned asset which is already worth $3-4 million, and will well serve the community and local tourism for generations to come.”

Dr Whitten said the course designed by Graham Papworth had drawn much inspiration, for both economic and ecological reasons, from Scotland’s Machrihanish Dunes Golf Course www.machrihanishdunes.com and their motto: “Golf as it began”.

“We have taken full advantage of some excellent natural assets – gentle rolling hills, well drained volcanic soil, existing kikuyu pastures, pleasant climate, surrounding rainforest and some wetland,” he said.

In fact plans to build a golf course on the land date back to 2001, but progress accelerated in 2004 after council purchased the adjoining Porter’s farm to develop a Community Precinct on the amalgamated 126 hectare site.

Construction did not get underway though until March 2014 following extensive community consultation and debate, the incorporation of community views into the precinct’s plans and finalisation of the golf course lease.

Council simultaneously developed first class car parking and public toilet facilities to support course development. The club has established a temporary clubhouse, and cart sheds to house a small fleet of golf buggies for hire.

Dr Whitten said it was now vital that all necessary approvals for the final nine holes were expedited so that crucial momentum and the evident strong level of volunteer support within the community were maintained.

“I am very confident work will soon commence on Stage 2 now that we have demonstrated to council our capabilities and the enthusiastic level of support we have harnessed within the Maleny community to turn our vision into reality,” Dr Whitten said.

Editors additional background

During the 1930s Maleny did have a golf course on a parcel of land in Bunya Street where the State High School is now sited. Weekly competition results were published in The Courier-Mail and some familiar local names are well represented in sample reports retrieved from archives.

 Play was suspended during WWII. An attempt was made to reopen this course in 1952 but efforts to do so folded in 1954. The Club House was then donated to the CWA and relocated in the main street of town opposite the Maleny Community Centre. Until recently the building housed QML’s pathology services business.