Sandiway Golf Club
Course Update & Winter Fairway Protection Measures (W/E/F 1st December 2025)
Friday 28th November 2025 – Members Update
Dear Member,
Course Update
Work has now concluded to the rear of the 16th Green. New turf has been placed on the specific area plus also to the reprofile path leading to the 17th tee.
All newly laid turf areas around the 16th green/17th tee are marked as ‘NO PLAY ZONES’.
Please DO NOT PLAY from such areas and also DO NOT WALK on the mentioned areas. We will try and place golf ball retrievers around the area to retrieve your golf ball from. Please refer to the club’s local rules regarding the rule to obtain relief from no play zones.
New 'NO PLAY ZONE' signs have been purchased and will be placed on respective temporary greens plus areas of the course that are undergoing turfing work.
As we head towards Christmas, we are to change the program of the winter work. Work to open the area left of the 17th green, leading up to the 18th tee will now commence first week into the new year. If we start work now the area will remain open and will not be completed before Christmas due to matters such as supply of new turf etc… We do not want to leave that specific area open over the Christmas and New Year period. When work is to start on the 17th hole in the new year, we will close the hole completely and direct all footfall from the 16th hole right of the 17th green to access the 18th tee whilst the work is being undertaken.
As mentioned, and as we lead up to Christmas, we will change the planned winter work to working on bunkers from the start of December which will involve rebuilding bunker walls, relaying new bunkers floors. Whilst the team work on the bunkers around the golf course i.e. the bunkers on the 18th green the hole will be closed to enable work to be undertaken. Also, the team will continue to tidy areas around the course from leaves which is part of the constant work program the team are working on over the winter season.
You will also come across, over the coming days the team trialling another manufacturer of robot mowers cutting the 2nd and 4th fairways. They will operate like the Husqvarna robots we used 10 or so days ago. It is part of our due diligence to see which products work best for the benefit of the golf course.
You will also have noticed that we have defined some new playing lines following the use of the Husqvarna robots. For example, the 7th fairway has been split with a lower and higher fairway with a band of semi rough between the bunkers. An area such as the semi rough between the fairway bunkers on the 7th hole is to be classed as rough and not closely mown.
Course Protection Measures
1/MATS – Closely Mown Areas from 1st December 2025.
From Monday 1st December 2025 all MAT zones are to be removed. Our compulsory winter fairway protection measures will be in place from Monday 1st December 2025.
During this period, all members, guests, and visitors are required to use mats in any part of the General Area cut to fairway height or less, e.g. fairways, green surrounds and grass paths if not using a putter for the stroke.
Spurk Mats (with or without a bag) can be purchased from the Professional shop.
2/Use of Mats in Club Competitions.
The use of mats is a condition of entry for all Club competitions during the winter fairway protection period, and a full explanation of the requirements and procedures appears below.
Thank you for your cooperation and continued support in helping us protect the course through the winter months.
3/ Fairway Protection Measures - Rules in Competition.
From Monday 1st December 2025 fairway protection measures will be in place.
This comprises the use of mats on the fairways ONLY as this will allow handicap qualifying scores to be completed through the winter period (other factors such as temporary greens or tees permitting).
4/Fairway Mats (Model Local Rule E-12 applies) - Effective 1st December 2025.
When a player’s ball lies in a part of the general area cut to fairway height or less and a putter is not being used for the stroke, the ball MUST be lifted, placed on and played from an Astroturf, or similar type of mat. The mat must be placed on the spot where the ball originally lay, and the ball must be placed on the mat. The ball may be cleaned when lifted. If a ball rolls off the mat when placed, the player must try to place it a second time. If the ball again does not stay on the mat, the mat must be moved to the nearest spot, not nearer the hole, where the ball will come to rest on the mat when placed. If the player accidentally causes the ball on the mat to move before a stroke is made, there is no penalty and the ball must be placed again on the mat. If a tee is used to secure the mat into the ground, the ball must not be placed on the tee.
Please note: The use of fairway mats is not allowed within the teeing area when playing in a qualifying competition as this would breach Rule 6.2b(2) and 6.2b(3). Penalty for breach of Rule 6.2b(2): First breach is the General Penalty a second breach results in disqualification. Also, if a local rule is introduced to allow Mats to be used throughout the golf course, i.e. in the rough the respective competition will become a non-qualifying competition.
The mats used should be plain and may not have lines which help with alignment as they would then be considered a training aid in breach of Rule 4.3a.
Penalty for breach of Rule 4.3a: First breach is the General Penalty a second breach results in disqualification. The R&A & USGA modified this Model Local Rule in January 2023 to the extent that if a player refuses, or fails, to play their ball from a mat where required they will have been deemed to have played from a Wrong Place under Rule 14.7a and as such would be subject to the General Penalty which is two strokes in Stroke play or Loss of Hole in Matchplay.
Thank you,
Richard Kilshaw
General Manager.
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