Government?s signature golf course, Port Royal, could be closed down for up to nine months to undergo an extensive and much-needed facelift, has learned.

The 6,700-yard course, once heralded as the best municipal 18 holes in the world when it opened in the early 1970s, has in many people?s eyes been in a gradual state of decline for over a decade ? with a lack of investment and insufficient maintenance leaving the facility a shadow of its former self.

A 2003 report by Department of Tourism consultants, IMG, into the quality of the the Island?s ?golfing product? recommended a complete overhaul of Port Royal, and since then rumours of some movement on the issue have been rife.

Now sources close to the situation have indicated that closure is not far off ? maybe even before the end of the year ? while initial plans for the course reportedly include the addition of several water features, the resurfacing of all greens and a small increase in the yardage.

When contacted for comment yesterday, chairman of the Port Royal trustees Wendell Brown confirmed that closure plans were under discussion, but he insisted no decision would be taken until late in the year.

He was also prepared to confirm that the reported length of time the course would be out of action for was ?certainly in the ball park? ? though he was reluctant to go on the record with any further specifics.

?We?re not in a position at this time to comment on the matter and will not be until around December,? said Brown, soon after rejecting rumours that the plan was to close Port Royal in the immediate aftermath of the Bermuda Open which begins a week today.

Golfer Graham Strange, who has been a member of Port Royal for ten years, said yesterday that in his opinion the course was in the best shape it had been in since he first started playing there.

He conceded, however, that the quality of the the Island?s private courses was still higher and that in the winter the greens at Port Royal tended ?to suffer quite badly?.

?The quality of the bunkers is not as consistent as it is on courses like Mid Ocean and Tucker?s Point as well,? he added.

?Some bunkers have plenty of sand, while others have very little so it can be a bit of a lottery sometimes when you go into one.

?If I?m being honest, though, I?ve been happy with the state of the course for the past couple of years. I don?t know how much it is going to cost, but if any improvements they are planning to make ultimately result in the course being in the sort of condition it is now for the entire year then it probably would be worth it.?

The Department of Tourism took over the running of Port Royal ? together with Bermuda?s two other public courses, St. George?s and Ocean View, earlier this year from the Ministry of Works and Engineering.

The 2003 golf course report was written by IMG?s Roddy Carr, who wrote at the time that Bermuda would fall behind in the cut-throat world of golf tourism if it did not spruce up all local courses, with Port Royal in particular deemed by Carr to be in need of an ?urgent upgrade.?

The installation of a new irrigation system at the course in 2000 has not proved the success that many at the time hoped it would be, as access to a sufficient water supply has not been possible ? rendering the one million dollar investment virtually obsolete.