Waterlogged lawns and short staffing meant a later opening for the town’s grass courts and putting and bowling greens.
New gardener Graham Trude said: “Ever since I arrived we’ve been trying to get things together - flat out.”
Head gardener Barry Miller was on his own for six months. A previous colleague transferred to Connaught Gardens and Graham was on paternity leave. Graham’s wife Kirsty, who works as an HR manager at The Donkey Sanctuary, gave birth to their first child, Iris, last year.
Annabel Gosling, in the kiosk, said: “It was all a bit waterlogged. We opened at Easter but then shut again. Hopefully, we’ll get more sun now.”
John and Sue Peters from Dorset were among the first on the reopened course. “It’s beautifully manicured,” said Peter, 82, who has mobility and sight problems.
“We always think we amuse the bus queue,” said Sue, 69. The couple plan to return next year when they celebrate their golden wedding anniversary.
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