The Close House hotel near Newcastle in the north-east of England has reopened its Filly course after a four month, £500,000 renovation led by architect Scott Macpherson. Macpherson also built the Colt course at the hotel, which opened four years ago.

Supervised by Macpherson, contractor MJ Abbott built two new greens, 19 new tees and 36 bunkers during the project. The new-look Filly course, which sits on flatter ground above the River Tyne, below the undulating Colt course, is now some 200 yards longer than before.

The course made its official debut the week after the Open Championship, with a visit from Close House’s attached touring professional, Lee Westwood.

“The Filly is a cracker with some fantastic views of the Tyne Valley,” Westwood told The Journal newspaper in Newcastle. “But golfers tend to be more interested in the course and it is a challenging test for all levels of ability. The bunkering is of a really high standard with some interesting cross bunkers, and they are all in the right places. There are lots of undulations on the greens and the two-tier seventh is tricky.”