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Canterbury golf club keeping positive after flooding devastates course - 'There's people worse off'

June 1, 2021

Greendale Golf Club greenkeeper Mick Brickwood said it will take plenty of "man hours" before the course can open again.

A Canterbury golf course will likely be closed for weeks thanks to the damage caused by this week's flooding but its members are staying positive as the clean up begins.

Greendale Golf Club, located in central Canterbury between Darfield and Dunsandel, has been forced to close its course this week after most of its holes were left underwater due to the severe flooding.

While some holes have since re-surfaced, others still aren't accessible due to the damage.

The flooding has been severe at the club due to the two rivers beside it - the Hawkins River and Selwyn River - which both washed waste onto the course.

Greenkeeper Mick Brickwood said it's the worst flooding he's seen in his 20 years at the club.

"One other was bad but it was mainly out the back," Brickwood told 1 NEWS.

"But yesterday all of this was covered in water."

Brickwood said he expects the clean-up operation to take more than two weeks to get the course up and running again although he won't be certain until they can get access to the holes at the back to see what damage has been done there.

When the operation starts though, finances won't be an issue.

"Man hours," Brickwood said when asked what the clean-up would cost.

"Man hours at this stage until we get out back and see what happens."

Greendale Golf Club president Ian Gaunson told 1 NEWS there's been offers of help from the community already but hopes volunteers and other members will pitch in as well.

"We'll start tomorrow close to the clubhouse," Gaunson said.

"We'll rack up those fairways and clean up greens. We've had offers of machinery to come in not this coming weekend but the following weekend to remove some of the silt.

"The silt is quite bad in some places."

Despite the big task ahead, Brickwood said the club is keeping things in perspective.

"This is probably my fourth flood but there's not much you can do about it - the water will go where it wants to go," he said.

"There's people worse off than we are.

"We'll just take our time, plod on and get the work done."

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