thoughts on course vandalism ?

patricks148

patricks148

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I regularly walk across a course local to me of an evening and it never ceases to amaze me the trouble kids will go to cause damage.

at this time of year flags and rakes start to go missing, bunkers get dug up and one occasion a rather large sand castle built. ive even witnessed a family playing football on the 18th green.

Last night i witnessed two boys on bikes doing skids on 3 greens, one after the other. They had to take a fair detour and make some effort to get to two of them, so its not like where just passing.

the course is not in the middle of a rough housing estate either its a bit out the way.

it's all minor damage , but must be very frustrating for the green staff.... all 2 of them.

thoughts?
 
at my old club they sacked a greenkeeper ,not sure of the reason but,he took it badly.
the following day our eighth green was looking like a ploughed field.the bugger had been doing handbrake turns in his car all over it.
he was charged with criminal damage and got himself a fine .the day after the court case the green was only fit for planting again as he repeated his efforts from the time before .i think he got six months at her majestys pleasure for that.
 
People that vandalise anything are morons. I was a kid once and did things that were moronic, so I can understand, but unless they are caught in the act and punished effectively, i.e. parents being forced to pay damages there isn't much that will change. The cycle will keep on and kids will continue to be kids.
 
We get kids roaming across the course especially during the summer holidays and occasionally a green/bunker will take a punishing. There no excuse for this and there has been much debate about the best way to limit there access to the course. I have to admit there was one occasion I couldn't help but laugh at what the little beggars had done. Our 3rd hole is a 322 yard S/I 15 Par 4 with a blind tee shot over a hill, up steps my PP he strokes a beautiful 3w straight down the middle. As we walk down the fairway he's waxing lyrical at how simple his next shot will be after such a great strike. When we get to his "ball" we discover it has been replaced with a bulb of garlic. Safe to say there where a few choice words shouted in the direction of the trees which by this point had broken out in fits of laughter. Now with tongues firmly in cheeks we insisted that he play the bulb as it lies.
 
patricks148 said:
I regularly walk across a course local to me of an evening and it never ceases to amaze me the trouble kids will go to cause damage.

at this time of year flags and rakes start to go missing, bunkers get dug up and one occasion a rather large sand castle built. ive even witnessed a family playing football on the 18th green.

Last night i witnessed two boys on bikes doing skids on 3 greens, one after the other. They had to take a fair detour and make some effort to get to two of them, so its not like where just passing.

the course is not in the middle of a rough housing estate either its a bit out the way.

it's all minor damage , but must be very frustrating for the green staff.... all 2 of them.

thoughts?
Click to expand...


What did they say about it when you asked them what they were doing?
 
Alex1975 said:
What did they say about it when you asked them what they were doing?
Click to expand...

patricks148 said:
didn't get near them, they were always 150 yards ahead.
Click to expand...

Alex I can see what your getting at.

To me Patrick this to me just seems a little stupid or maybe im being neive.

Do you really believe on a golfing forum people are going to come on and say vandalism is fine in fact I do a little myself.

If I was you I would have gone over or crept around and confronted them as that's what someone with concern would probably do.

If you don't want to get confrontational call the law im sure they would of had no problem picking the culprits up.
 
Stan Yarmez said:
We get kids roaming across the course especially during the summer holidays and occasionally a green/bunker will take a punishing. There no excuse for this and there has been much debate about the best way to limit there access to the course. I have to admit there was one occasion I couldn't help but laugh at what the little beggars had done. Our 3rd hole is a 322 yard S/I 15 Par 4 with a blind tee shot over a hill, up steps my PP he strokes a beautiful 3w straight down the middle. As we walk down the fairway he's waxing lyrical at how simple his next shot will be after such a great strike. When we get to his "ball" we discover it has been replaced with a bulb of garlic. Safe to say there where a few choice words shouted in the direction of the trees which by this point had broken out in fits of laughter. Now with tongues firmly in cheeks we insisted that he play the bulb as it lies.
Click to expand...

Tremendous!
 
pokerjoke said:
Alex I can see what your getting at.

To me Patrick this to me just seems a little stupid or maybe im being neive.

Do you really believe on a golfing forum people are going to come on and say vandalism is fine in fact I do a little myself.

If I was you I would have gone over or crept around and confronted them as that's what someone with concern would probably do.

If you don't want to get confrontational call the law im sure they would of had no problem picking the culprits up.
Click to expand...

not really able to sneak up o two kids on bikes while walking 2 dogs. Ive tried in the past they just leg it.

TBH the police are not interested, Ive reported stuff in the past and even talked to two officers sitting in a squad are around the corner.
I got the impression if they had been speeding they might have looked into it.

By the way, i just was asking opinion and what sort of things go on at other clubs
 
Had a lot to endure as a youngster playing Wimbledon Common, especially in the summer holidays. Flags would go missing, kids would ride out of the trees and nick the ball and we've had families having picnics on the green "because the grass is short and soft for the kids to play with their football". Have to be fair though and not too much damage ever caused to any greens. Fortunately we're tucked away where I am now and so the chances are pretty remote anyone would bother to try and get on and cause mayhem but never say never sadly
 
Been there and done that as a kid growing up with a Muni course nearby. 2nd hole green was a particular favourite of ours. Uphill par3 to an elevated green, where you could hide behind the green and wait..........happy days and nights in the long summer holidays.:whoo:
Bunker at the front of said green was cavernous with a huge lip from the green side sloping down, so we used to try and clear the bunker after getting up enough speed from riding down the green and launching ourselves off the lip and getting some good airtime.:clap:
Many, many times we were chased off by the "Parkie".:ears:
 
SwingsitlikeHogan said:
We've just got to accept vandalism to, and theft from, our courses as a fact of life. Basically there nothing we can do about it.
Click to expand...

I am often surprised by how lackadaisical clubs are with regards preventing, or limiting the opportunities for, vandalism. I have seen several where the only vehicular access onto the course is by the main gate but yet they don't elect to close the main gate overnight or when the course is closed. That seems foolish. I agree that you will always get the idiots who climb fences, burst through hedges and such but surely a simple precaution such as locking up at night should be taken.
 
Astraeus said:
I am often surprised by how lackadaisical clubs are with regards preventing, or limiting the opportunities for, vandalism. I have seen several where the only vehicular access onto the course is by the main gate but yet they don't elect to close the main gate overnight or when the course is closed. That seems foolish. I agree that you will always get the idiots who climb fences, burst through hedges and such but surely a simple precaution such as locking up at night should be taken.
Click to expand...

you are right, TBH the club does not help itself, more seems to happen over the winter. i would say prob all the flags that disappear do so over winter. the reason they have 36 flags out rather than the 18 over the summer, twice the temptation.

they do have some gates they could close, but don't chose to despite twice being invaded by travelers over the last 5 years.
 
Its a product of society now. We have brought this upon ourselves by going "soft".

Kids "no ma rights"!
 
Happens all over the country to various sports fields and been happening for years and years now

If someone wants to vandalise something then they will find a way to do it
 
When it snows people toboggan onto the 16th. It causes a real mess of the green, but you can't stop it. They just don't care. There's no signs up, or we've always done it, etc, etc.

We get flags stolen, rakes stolen, the usual.

Some idiot dug up a few greens a few times. I've yet to work out how he got any fun out of this, but it takes all sorts. It's no worse damage than badgers do I guess.

We've also had a burnt out Volkswagen Beetle on the 4th green. The green keepers did amazing work, and by the end of the day the damage was invisible.
 
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