A golf club in Bristol has signed up 140 new members in the last two months

One of Somerset’s leading golf clubs says it has brought in 140 new members since the lockdown ended – which it views partly as a reward for investing in the course in recent years.

Mendip Spring Golf & Country Club’s general manager, Scott Thompson, told the North Somerset Times that since the club reopened it has seen unprecedented demand. “It’s been incredible since we have returned to golf,” he said.

“Everyone seems to want to get involved in the game. We have people using our driving range that have never played before, people who have not hit a ball for years playing on our Lakeside Course. It is just brilliant to see.

“The buzz around the whole club has been brilliant. Even though we still have restrictions in place, the membership and visitors have abided by them admirably.

“It is so nice to see so many people enjoying the game. The club has seen a huge influx of new members – all keen to play the game and be involved in the club. I believe the strong presence of Mendip Spring and their team of PGA professionals on social media has led the way for golf clubs throughout and post-lockdown.

“The club kept people up to date every day with posts and the team of professionals were engaging and helping golfers with their games throughout.”

Head professional Will Hobbs was busy creating prize draws from his home and engaging with golfers as he created videos to show members and visitors how he had redesigned his shop to become compliant with the new regulations and how it would work post-lockdown.

Teaching professional Katie Rule was busy throughout giving online lessons, creating blogs and YouTube lessons, all helping to keep people busy improving their games at home. Both were used as examples by the PGA in national campaigns to help fellow professionals engage with their own members and Thompson said: “It was great to see all their hard work acknowledged by powers-that-be.”