It has faced complaints about a sister venue
13:16, 20 Aug 2025Updated 16:37, 20 Aug 2025
Golfers on the patchy grass at Caerleon Golf Club(Image: John Myers/ WalesOnline)
A luxury hotel visible from the M4 has responded to complaints from “infuriated” golfers. The Celtic Manor is a familiar sight along the Welsh stretch of the motorway, and famously hosted world leaders for the NATO summit in 2014.
The high-end golf and spa resort also runs Caerleon Golf Course in Newport, having taken over from Newport City Council in 2015.
It is there that golfers are complaining of “unplayable” conditions, Wales Online reports, with greens that have been left to turn brown and cracked. Players also claim the fairways are frequently littered with rubbish and dog poo.
The golf course launched in 1976 as Wales’ first municipal course, with the hotel’s takeover intended to deliver “new investment and specialist management”.
Julian Jones, 55, has been playing at the venue since he was 18 and believes it provides a crucial space in Newport for young golfers to learn, alongside more seasoned players.
The Newport resident intends to stop his regular visits, however, as he claims the course is in such a state that “the greens are unplayable and there’s not a bit of grass on them at all”.
Julian told Wales Online: “It’s the worst course I’ve ever played by a country mile.
“Caerleon has been a municipal golf course since the late 70s and it was always a good place for people to start playing golf and for regular golf players too. It was always in good condition but since Celtic took over it’s just been dismissed, disregarded, it’s unkept and the greens are just not watered at all with no intention to upkeep that golf course.
“Yes we have had hot weather but golf courses account for that.” He said the situation was “infuriating”, adding: “I feel we’re doing an injustice to golf and to the younger generation as well.”
Celtic Manor stated that the exceptional drought conditions had depleted their natural irrigation supplies at the golf club, compounded by maintenance problems within the system. It acknowledged that it was difficult to stop “irresponsible dog walkers” from gaining access to the site and leaving mess behind.
A spokesperson for the Celtic Collection said: “Like all golf courses in the United Kingdom, Caerleon Golf Club is currently facing an acute challenge caused by the unprecedented drought weather this summer. So far this year, we have had less than 15 inches of total rainfall which equates to less than half the average rainfall that we have experienced in recent years to this point.
The parched grass at Caerleon Golf Club(Image: John Myers/ WalesOnline)
“These climate conditions have dried up the natural irrigation resource available at Caerleon Golf Club and the problem has been exacerbated by maintenance issues within the irrigation system installed before we acquired the lease to manage the facility.
“While the greenkeeping team are taking steps to address the current condition of the greens, the course is currently being played by dozens of golfers every day with minimal negative feedback from visitors.
“Caerleon Golf Club is not a public right of way but it is difficult to prevent irresponsible dog walkers from accessing parts of the course, particularly at night and early in the morning.”
Julian drew comparisons with Llanyrafon Golf Course, which he claimed had been in dreadful condition before new private investors took control and transformed the facility, meaning golfers now need to book ahead to secure a round.
He continued: “I’m not expecting a Championship course but it’s totally unplayable and it seems to be getting worse.” Julian also emphasised that the only alternative option in Newport was Celtic Manor itself, where a nine-hole round would cost considerably more.