Grey prospects for golf greens

The Grange, which hosted Bob Charles at the New Zealand Golf Open in 2004, faces an uncertain future. Photo / Kenny Rodger

As player numbers drop and the demand for housing increases, courses may become homes.

The soothing sound of golf putters on greens is set to be replaced by jackhammers and nail guns, as falling club membership coincides with heightened housing demand.

Golf courses around Auckland and the upper North Island have been in discussions with property developers who want to build subdivisions on the fairways.

The developers are attracted by the clear, open spaces in suburbs where housing is already at a premium.

According to New Zealand Golf, New Zealand has the highest number of golf courses per capita in the world.

But over the past five years, membership has dropped by almost 10,000 to 118,000 - and the average age of those remaining has crept up close to 60 years.

Last year, the Papakura District Council denied developers Paul Webb and Andrew Tauber's bid to construct a retirement village on a nine-hole golf course. The course's future is now uncertain. In neighbouring Takanini late last year, Fletcher Residential and Ross Reid Contractors offered to buy and subdivide Manukau Golf Club.

Club general manager Stewart Halligan said negotiations were continuing but refused to disclose details.

The Grange in Papatoetoe also has an uncertain future, according to the March newsletter for nearby Aviation Golf Club. There had been talk of the two clubs merging but the newsletter said options for The Grange included shutting down or moving.

At the top of the Coromandel Peninsula, The Dunes Golf Resort in Matarangi has gone into receivership.

"It's no secret that clubs have struggled with memberships throughout the recession," said Auckland Property Investors' Association president David Whitburn. He said councils liked having parks, which could be a barrier to development. "The council, generally, are the biggest bottle-neck."

The Auckland Council's infrastructure manager, David Clelland, said open spaces attracted people to a city - contributing to the projected need for 300,000 new dwellings in the next 30 years.

Whitburn said some of the city's public and private spaces, perhaps including a few golf courses, would have to be sacrificed at some point.

But the council says it is not contemplating selling any of the courses it owns, which include Chamberlain Park in Pt Chevalier, Takapuna, Waiheke Island and Great Barrier Island.