Golf Course Risk Assessments

Golf Course Risk Assessments: Design, Operation and Accident Investigation

Golf course risk assessments are an essential part of managing safety on a golf course. They are also potentially important evidence when investigating an accident, personal injury claim, property damage claim or allegation of negligence.

Under Regulation 3 of the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999, an employer must make a suitable and sufficient assessment of risks to the health and safety of employees and of people who are not employees but may be affected by the conduct of the business. The assessment must be reviewed if there is reason to suspect that it is no longer valid or where there has been a significant change in the matters to which it relates.

For a golf course, that obligation extends beyond employees. It can encompass members, visitors, guests, contractors, spectators and other people who may be affected by the operation of the course.

A risk assessment should therefore be more than a generic health and safety document. It should reflect the actual design, physical characteristics, use and operation of the particular golf course.

What is a golf course risk assessment?

There is no single statutory document prescribed as a “golf course risk assessment”. In practice, however, a comprehensive assessment will normally need to consider two closely related areas:

Design risks – whether the physical layout and design of the golf course create foreseeable risks; and

Operational risks – whether the way the golf course is operated, maintained and used creates or increases risks.

The two cannot always be separated. A potentially hazardous feature of the design may be capable of being controlled operationally, while an operational problem may reveal an underlying design deficiency.

For that reason, an effective assessment should consider the course as it actually exists and is actually used, rather than simply completing a generic checklist.

Golf course design and safety

Golf course design is particularly important because some risks cannot be satisfactorily controlled once a course has been constructed.

The starting point when assessing the safety of a course should therefore be its physical layout. Relevant factors can include the land available, topography, surrounding property, the likely standard of golfers using the course, the relationship between individual holes, public rights of way, roads, water features, buildings and maintenance operations.

There is no single golf course area that automatically makes an 18-hole golf course safe. Each course has to be considered in its own circumstances.

Industry guidance can nevertheless be highly relevant when considering whether a design was reasonably safe. The Golf Course Design – Safety Guidelines, commissioned and published on behalf of the PGA of Great Britain and Ireland, have been used as a reference point in golf safety work and litigation. EIGCA has also undertaken research into golf course safety and design, although its research has not generally been published as a public set of guidelines.

For solicitors investigating an accident, this distinction is important. The question is not simply whether a course complies with a particular measurement. The relevant issue is whether, considering the circumstances as a whole, reasonable measures were taken to identify and control the foreseeable risk.

Boundary sensitivity and errant golf balls

The relationship between a golf course and its boundaries is one of the most important design considerations.

Historically, many golf courses were constructed in rural locations surrounded by agricultural land. An errant golf ball crossing the boundary might have had little or no significant consequence.

Modern golf courses are often very different. Residential development, roads, railway lines, commercial property and public rights of way may now surround land that was once relatively isolated.

The consequences of an errant shot can therefore be considerably greater.

When assessing boundary safety, relevant questions include:

• How close are playing areas to the boundary?

• What lies beyond the boundary?

• Is the boundary residential, commercial, agricultural or public?

• What level of golfer uses the hole?

• Is the hole likely to produce shots travelling towards the boundary?

• Is there a significant difference in elevation?

• Does the design of the hole encourage or permit shots towards the boundary?

• Are there trees, vegetation, earthworks, fencing or other features that affect the risk?

• Are additional protective measures reasonably required?

The presence of out-of-bounds markers does not necessarily solve the problem. Out of bounds is principally a rule of golf. It does not physically prevent a golf ball from travelling beyond the boundary, and it may provide little protection against an errant shot from an inexperienced or high-handicap golfer.

The relationship between holes

The relationship between adjacent holes also requires careful assessment.

As golf has become more accessible to players of widely varying abilities, course designers and operators have had to consider the consequences of shots travelling outside the intended line of play.

Potential risks include but are not limited to:

• one fairway being exposed to shots from another;

• tees being positioned close to other playing areas;

• greens being exposed to approach shots from another hole;

• golfers waiting in areas exposed to neighbouring play;

• paths or walkways crossing potential ball-flight areas; and

• insufficient separation between holes.

The assessment should consider not only the intended direction of play but the range of reasonably foreseeable errant shots.

Public rights of way and roads

Many golf courses contain or adjoin public footpaths, bridleways, roads and other rights of way.

The presence of members of the public creates a particular risk because those people may not understand the dangers associated with golf.

Where a public right of way crosses or runs alongside a golf course, the risk assessment should consider:

•           the location and visibility of the route;

•           likely pedestrian and equestrian use;

•           golf-ball flight paths;

•           warning signs;

•           golfer instructions;

•           visibility between golfers and path users;

•           crossing points; and

•           whether additional physical or operational controls are necessary.

Some courses are also divided by public roads or byways, requiring golfers, buggies or maintenance vehicles to cross traffic routes. Warning signs may assist, but signage should be considered as one part of a wider control system rather than automatically treated as a complete solution.

Water hazards and drowning risks

Irrigation requirements have led many golf courses to construct or enlarge lakes, ponds and other water-storage facilities.

These can create risks not only to golfers but also to employees, contractors, children and members of the public.

A proper assessment should consider:

•         water depth;

•         steep or unstable banks;

•         access to the water;

•         visibility;

•         vegetation;

•         rescue arrangements;

•         lifesaving equipment;

•         warning signage;

•         fencing or other restrictions where appropriate; and

•         the use of treated or recycled water.

Modern design may incorporate safety shelves or other features intended to reduce the consequences of a person entering the water. However, the precise risks depend upon the individual water feature and how the course is used.

Slopes, bunkers, rock faces and other hazards

Topography is another important component of golf course safety.

Steep slopes may create slip and fall risks for golfers, spectators and employees. Similar risks can arise from slopes into bunkers, water hazards or areas between holes.

Other features requiring assessment can include:

•         bunkers;

•         exposed rock faces;

•         retaining structures;

•         trees;

•         protected environmental areas;

•         uneven ground;

•         bridges;

•         steps and paths; and

•         changes in level around greens and tees.

Topography must also be considered from a maintenance perspective. A slope that presents an acceptable challenge to a golfer may be unsuitable for machinery.

Maintenance and greenkeeping risks

The maintenance operation is an important part of the overall golf course risk assessment.

Grounds staff can be exposed to risks that are very different from those faced by golfers. These may include:

• machinery accidents;

• vehicle rollovers;

• exposure to chemicals;

• fertilisers and pesticides;

• manual handling;

• slips and falls;

• working at height;

• adverse weather;

• electrical equipment;

• maintenance near water;

• working near golfers; and

• being struck by golf balls.

A meaningful assessment of these risks requires an understanding of the actual work being undertaken, the machinery being used, the competence of employees and the procedures adopted by the operator.

A well formed assessment will also deal with the competency of staff to complete assigned tasks together with staff training

A generic risk assessment downloaded from the internet is unlikely to capture all of these course-specific issues.

Clubhouses, maintenance buildings and other facilities

The risk assessment should not stop at the course itself.

Clubhouses can contain many conventional workplace risks, including:

• slips, trips and falls;

• uneven surfaces;

• fire;

• electrical safety;

• temperature;

• manual handling;

• ergonomic risks;

• hazardous chemicals;

• food safety;

• noise; and

• lone working.

Maintenance buildings may involve additional risks associated with machinery, chemicals, electrical equipment, working at height and adverse weather.

The location of buildings is also relevant. Clubhouses, maintenance compounds, halfway houses and pump houses should be considered in relation to the course and potential golf-ball flight.

Car parks and internal roads can similarly be exposed to errant golf shots. Where possible, parking and pedestrian areas should be located and designed with the surrounding course risks in mind.

Practice facilities and driving ranges

Practice facilities should form part of the overall safety review, although they may require separate and more detailed risk assessments.

Driving ranges, practice grounds, putting areas and short-game facilities have their own hazards. These can include the direction and containment of golf balls, the relationship between different practice areas, access routes, machinery and the behaviour of users.

A risk assessment for the main golf course should therefore identify the interaction between the course and its practice facilities rather than treating them as entirely separate environments.

Why golf course risk assessments matter after an accident

A risk assessment can become an important piece of evidence following an accident.

For a solicitor investigating a golf-related claim, the relevant question is not simply, “Was there a risk assessment?”

The more important questions may be:

• Was it suitable and sufficient?

• Was it specific to this course?

• Was it actually implemented?

• Was it reviewed?

• Did staff understand it?

• Were the identified control measures followed?

• Had the course changed since the assessment was prepared?

A risk assessment that identifies a risk but is not implemented may provide little practical protection to an operator.

Conversely, the absence of a particular hazard from a risk assessment does not necessarily establish negligence. The assessment needs to be considered alongside the circumstances existing at the relevant time.

It is also important to establish when the assessment was prepared and whether circumstances had changed. The Regulations specifically require review where there is reason to suspect that an assessment is no longer valid or where there has been a significant change in the matters to which it relates.

Who should prepare a golf course risk assessment?

The person preparing a golf course risk assessment should have sufficient competence, knowledge and experience to understand the hazards being assessed.

The Management Regulations require employers to appoint competent persons to assist with health and safety arrangements.

Golf courses present specialist risks that may not be identified by a generic workplace safety assessment.

A competent assessment may therefore require input from people with combined knowledge of:

• golf course architecture;

• golf-ball flight;

• course operation;

• grounds maintenance;

• machinery;

• golfer behaviour;

• public access;

• water features;

• relevant health and safety requirements; and

• the particular circumstances of the course.

Frequently asked questions about golf course risk assessments

Is a golf course risk assessment required by law?

Yes, where the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999 apply, employers must undertake a suitable and sufficient assessment of relevant health and safety risks. The duty extends to risks to employees and to other people affected by the undertaking.

Does every golf club need a separate design and operational risk assessment?

The law does not prescribe those exact headings. However, considering design risks separately from operational risks is a useful and practical way of ensuring that both the physical layout of the course and the way it is operated are properly examined.

Can a golf course be unsafe even if it has a risk assessment?

Yes. A risk assessment is not a guarantee of safety. It must be suitable and sufficient, implemented in practice and reviewed when circumstances change.

Is signage enough to protect a golf club from liability?

Not necessarily. Signage is one potential control measure. Its effectiveness depends upon the particular hazard, the location and visibility of the sign, the behaviour it is intended to control and the other measures in place.

What should a solicitor obtain after a golf course accident?

Relevant material may include the current and previous risk assessments, course plans, design information, inspection and maintenance records, photographs, signage records, operating procedures, staff training records, incident reports, witness evidence and information about changes made to the course.

Why is specialist golf expertise important?

Golf-course safety involves risks that are not always apparent from a conventional inspection. Golf-ball flight, course design, golfer behaviour, the relationship between holes and surrounding property, and the interaction between golfers and maintenance operations can require specialist knowledge.

Further thoughts

A golf course risk assessment should be regarded as much more than a health and safety form.

For operators, it is a means of identifying foreseeable hazards, deciding upon appropriate control measures and demonstrating that safety is actively managed.

For solicitors and insurers, it can be an important part of understanding what risks were foreseeable, what precautions were considered, what precautions were actually implemented and whether the course was being operated as intended.

The strongest assessment is one based upon the actual course, its design, its surrounding environment and its operation—not a generic document produced without a detailed understanding of golf.

Where an accident occurs, the risk assessment should therefore be examined alongside the physical course, the relevant design guidance, inspection and maintenance arrangements, signage, operating procedures and the evidence of what actually happened.

In golf-course safety, the critical issue is rarely whether a document exists. The important question is whether the operator properly identified the risks and took reasonable and effective steps to control them.

Much better for all concerned to identify and address the risk than experience an accident.

This article is intended as general information and is not a substitute for legal advice on the circumstances of a particular accident or claim.