At least two golf clubs in Surrey have reported that motorbikes have ridden onto their venues causing damage, and at one venue a Swastika was carved onto a green.
This is also the second time a golf club in south-east England has had a Swastika made on its course in the last six months.
Thames Ditton and Esher Golf Club in Surrey, which is where the Nazi symbol was carved, has said its members have been left shocked and distressed by the incident.
According to The Standard, at least two other nearby facilities, Wimbledon Golf Club and the hockey club Old Cranleighans, have fallen victim to what appears to be the same group.
Mark Rodberd, general manager of Thames Ditton and Esher Golf Club, said: “It began last April. Over the summer, every now and then, we’d have problems with these dirt bikes going on the golf course and using it as a race track, making marks on the grass which appeared to be very deliberate.”
Since October, the site has been targeted around eight times and the trespassers appear to be escalating their activity, with a Nazi swastika carved into the green this month.
Rodbard said: “The Nazi symbol is completely different to what we’ve had before. It’s shored up a lot of interest on social media and it’s an accumulation of everything that’s been building up since last year.
“We have reported each and every incident to the police and council but generally speaking, it does always end up being the same type of response and the case closes after a couple of days.
“It’s difficult this time of year. There’s not a whole lot you can do to fix the damage because the grass isn’t growing. We tried to cover up the Nazi symbol with some soil but the next day it was very visible.”
The golf club resides on ancient common land, meaning it isn’t possible for the site to be monitored by CCTV or protected by fencing, unlike other privately run golf clubs.
Rodbard said: “It’s demoralising. We’re a community-based, non-profit club, and a lot of what we do is led by volunteers. You feel like it’s one step too much.
“The police have suggested trying to close off the routes to the green but of course it’s a community space on common land. Hopefully, someone knows who is doing this. We’re asking the public to help us put a stop to this.”
This is at least the third time this decade that a golf course has experienced an attack like this, and the second time in less than six months.
Stanley Park Golf Course in Blackpool found racist messages had been etched into the grass using weed killer in 2020 while large antisemitic messages were written in several bunkers at Hendon Golf Club, which is located in an area with a large Jewish population, last autumn.
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