Construction company chief Zane DeSilva could be set to tee off a bid for the now-closed Riddell’s Bay Golf and Country Club, The Royal Gazette can reveal.

Mr DeSilva, head of Island Construction, said he had designs on the course, Bermuda’s oldest, and a plan to bring it back to profitable operation.

He added: “I had some conversations with them late last year and early this year, but nothing was formalised. It’s interesting times.”

Mr DeSilva, a member at the club for more than 20 years and also a PLP MP, was speaking only days after the club’s management announced the closure of the near 100-year-old course.

Mr DeSilva, who has been off the island, said: “I would expect me and my team would take a good look at it in the next few days.”

He added: “I think the club was tired and it didn’t have the energy and enthusiasm that a club needs in order to be successful.

“I was looking at totally revamping the club itself, which is old and tired — maybe demolition and rebuilding a new clubhouse in a new area and generating new membership.”

Mr DeSilva said: “The club lost an opportunity with the whole crash ... the management didn’t take on that.

“You can survive, but you have to be hands-on. The truth with Riddell’s Bay was that they didn’t have enough people that were hands-on with the club.

“It became a dying club, therefore it died.”

It was announced last Thursday that the Warwick club would close and that professional services firm PwC had been appointed as liquidators.

PwC said that club had “limited and insufficient cash” to meet its operational costs and that “there is no prospect of the necessary funding becoming available in the immediate future”.

Mr DeSilva said: “Obviously, they have some financial issues that need to be dealt with, but the course is one that has a lot of deep history in Bermuda.

“I certainly believe if we lose Riddell’s as a golf course, it’s a great loss to Bermuda.

“With the closure of St George’s golf club a couple of years back, if we lose Riddell’s it’ll be a shame for Bermuda. It would be another opportunity lost for tourists to participate in when they come here.”

Mr DeSilva added: “The golf world would seem to be on a little bit of an uptick and with the world economy having a recovery, golf looks good in my eyes.”

The grim news was broken to staff at the club, said by a member to number around 30, at a meeting last Thursday.

Members were told to clear out their lockers, while pre-booked parties and events at the club were cancelled.

PwC said that it would be speaking to employees, creditors and club members.

And the firm added that, in a petition to the Supreme Court, the club’s board had said that they had been struggling financially for some years and that “their efforts to seek a buyer or investor had not been successful”.