The Darebin City Council owned course has been at the centre of an almost two-year debate about its future and last week councillors announced their decision.

In essence, the course will remain nine holes while a little more than 5 hectares of space will return to community use.

While the bulk of what was decided satisfies the needs of golfers and non-golfers alike, a last-minute proposal to investigate closing the course to golf after 3pm has soured what seemed an otherwise sensible compromise.

According to a statement on their website: “Council also decided to call for a briefing on the terms and conditions of a new golf course management contract for the course, including options that might activate the course for golf prior to 3pm, with non-golf options after 3pm.”

"If you don’t like golf fine, don’t play it. But don’t try to take it away from others which is what this 3pm idea would do." - Rod Morri.

It’s important to note that while it has created plenty of headlines, the 3pm curfew has not yet been adopted.

And it is crucial that it not be because it would spell the death of the course.

A 3pm curfew for golf would actually mean a final tee time of 1pm, effectively more than halving the course’s availability.

It would discriminate against school kids and those who work and rob large sections of the community any opportunity to participate in the game.

In short, a 3pm curfew would make the enterprise completely unviable; an outcome Council says they are trying to avoid.

While this is an important battle for the people and golfers of Northcote there are broader implications for public golf to be considered as well.

It would be naïve to think groups who favour golf being removed from the public arena aren’t watching what happens at Northcote carefully.

The idea of a 3pm curfew might have been floated in good faith but if it were to become the norm it would all but ensure the disappearance of public golf from our suburbs.

There are numerous ways golf can share space and time with other activities and those all need to be explored.

However, closing a golf course at – effectively – 1pm isn’t one of them.

There is an old saying about hills worth dying on and while I try to remain as open as possible to alternative points of view the 3pm curfew is non-negotiable in my book.

Some in the world hate golf and they are entitled to that opinion. However, they are not entitled to campaign for golf to be removed as a legitimate and publicly accessible recreation.

If you don’t like golf fine, don’t play it. But don’t try to take it away from others which is what this 3pm idea would do.