By Gareth James
Golfers in Wales will soon be able to improve at a state-of-the-art, fully inclusive Short Game Academy, that is all-weather and floodlit, after work has just started on the exciting new project.
The Inclusive Short Game Academy will be at Parc Golf Club between Cardiff and Newport and has been funded by the Sport Wales, R&A, Wales Golf and Parc itself.
The flagship facility will cater for all abilities from high performance training through to inclusive coaching, with work expected to be finished at the end of March, producing an industry leading inclusive facility which be used by anyone, ensuring that golf remains a sport for all.
It will include two driving nets, an all-weather synthetic surface green with several surrounding chipping pods, as well as a bunker with targets, with the project being delivered by South West Greens.
The area is designed so all golf shots can be taken from multiple locations with different scenarios, as well as being an area to conduct group sessions safely, comfortably and socially distanced for people of all abilities, all year round.
Playing surfaces, and surrounding areas will be fully accessible to all people, including those using a variety of mobility aids, including sticks and wheelchairs. The area will also have a shallow bunker entrance, rest areas and netting for safety and storage for adapted equipment.
To cater for the elite players in Wales there will be chipping pods of both fairway and rough grade, contouring of the greens, contouring of the bunker to allow for pot bunker practice, a wedge practice area for 40-100 yard shots and an indoor putting green for all weather training.
The highest quality synthetic surfaces will allow year-round coaching programmes for all players, while the design features will adhere to COVID-19 social distancing as well as making it a centre for the promotion of golf at all levels and abilities in Wales from grass roots to high performance.
There is an equivalent planned for North Wales and the plans can be shared as a good practice model for the development of future golf practice facilities around Wales. Wales Golf would welcome expressions of interest in following suit.
“This is the first project of its kind in Wales and we would like to thank all our partners for making this possible, the Sport Wales, the R&A and of course Parc Golf Club who have fully embraced the vision of this project” said Wales Golf Director of Performance Gillian O’Leary.
“It will be accessible to a whole range of golfers and should be something that is in place for many years to come, not only for high performance players but also as an inclusive facility for all abilities.
“We can’t change the weather in Wales, but we can change the facilities so people can practice in a top quality environment all the year round and not just during daylight hours.”