When you spend a substantial amount of investment on a UK golf club and facilities that dates back almost 250 years, it takes some cojones to temporarily close it for three years.

But that’s exactly what the owner of Stoke Park, Reliance Industries Limited, did back in 2021 – and the then 27-hole venue, which was immortalised in the 1964 James Bond film Goldfinger, reopens temporarily this year with limited facilities.

If one’s role is as director of golf at such a venue, it would be understandable to be apprehensive about a three-year hiatus; but Stuart Collier has been at Stoke Park, in Buckinghamshire, since 1999; he’s seen ups and downs, previously, and he hasn’t been sat around doing nothing.

In fact, he believes he’s developed and honed new skills which will prove beneficial when the resort eventually opens fully, with the aim to establish itself as one of the country’s premier high-end, pay-and-play facilities and hotels.

He explained: “I think the job’s evolved massively. Obviously, our initial plan was to close for a couple of years as we were keen to get on with the works immediately, but we ran into stumbling blocks in terms of what we could start and how quickly we could do it.

“A lot of that was because we need to ensure we have a scheme that is acceptable to all the stakeholders. Ultimately, the decision was taken that everything had to go in for planning submission.

“It became an opportunity to take some self-reflection and ensure I’m the new version of myself, Stuart Collier 2.0, if you like when we reopen. While we’re moving the product forward you also want to move forward the people at the same time and I felt that this was my opportunity to develop.

“At the start of 2022, I became engaged with the CMAE and started on its MDP pathway. I’ve really thrown myself into that over the last two-and-a-half years. I’ve completed my CMDip, attended the World Conference in the US, and am now working towards completing my CCM, Certified Club Manager, qualifications.

“When you’re running a busy golf resort on a day-to-day basis it can be challenging to find the time to do that. Having this pause in normal operations has enabled me to expose myself to lots of new skills and experiences and invest in my own personal development and education.”

He continued: “I think there’s probably some regret that I didn’t do that previously. I’ve learned a huge amount over that period with the CMAE that will stand me in great stead when we reopen again. I’m keen to try to take what I have learned and start putting it into practice.

“It’s to my advantage, obviously, but also to the advantage of Stoke Park in the future. It’s been a great process; it’s a good organisation. You meet some great people on the MDPs.

“You’re talking to, and working with, like-minded individuals and are organically broadening your network of people, which can help through this phase, because we do move more from an operational role into a project management role.

“At that stage you’re working much closer with course architects and, with the master plan, the architect team for the entire estate.

“I’ve been involved in community programmes, stakeholder meetings, Parish Council meetings, and exhibitions – just learning a whole new set of skills; using things you’ve perhaps developed along the way in the past when dealing with members, clients, and committees, for example. Perhaps we don’t realise the skills we pick up along the way.”

In addition to the refurbishment of the nearly 250-year-old mansion and the Pavilion, plans for the golf course involve re-routing and making the best possible 18-hole course, in the 1,000-year-old estate and ‘Capability’ Brown landscape, with the help of Tom MacKenzie, from course architects Mackenzie & Ebert.

This will necessitate the construction of a purpose-built new clubhouse, as the golfers’ ingress will be through the East Gate, rather than the main entrance. In the meantime, the commercial decision was made to temporarily reopen 18 holes for pay-and-play this autumn – albeit without clubhouse or F&B facilities.

Relocating and finding another director of golf role following the closure was not an option for Collier. Where some might have seen a problem, he saw a massive opportunity and declared himself there for the long haul… though it’s turning out to be longer than he had perhaps initially envisaged.

Collier, 51, added: “This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to work with a product you know intimately, and where you can create a wish list of everything you would like to do.

“We have an owner, in Reliance, that says ‘we share that vision, we want to fulfil those ambitions with you’.

“I’m just desperately keen to deliver that because it’s not an opportunity that’s going to come along anywhere else. It’s a unique setting. It was always a stunning place, but we want to take it to a higher level.

“We want it to be one of the best hotel and golf resorts on the planet and we do have the financial support from the owner to enable us to deliver that. I think they’ll be as ambitious as you can with what we want to deliver.

“From a personal point of view, I’m very much invested in this because I’ve spent 22 years operationally here with another three to five years to deliver a huge refurbishment project. Again, it will broaden my skill set,” continued Collier.

“I’ll learn a lot more in that five-year period than I would have done in the previous ten, because we were just tweaking and making small changes. This is root and branch – heart surgery stuff.

“We’re now in a situation where the new owners want to accelerate the development over a much shorter period of time, and the financial resources are there. It’s a matter of us seeking and gaining permission and then getting it done and implementing it – and I’d like to get on with that. Why not?”

Collier hopes that many of his previous team, who he helped to build and nurture, will look to return when the venue reopens fully.

“From the golf team perspective, they all moved on to other employment pretty much immediately and were well looked after by our new owners – and to some good roles following the temporary closure.

“They’d gained great experience here – including twice winning 59club’s Ultimate Members Club award – and their CVs demonstrated their value as an asset to Stoke Park and to new businesses.

“We’ve retained good contact with the team, so hopefully some will look to return. And, in the time I’ve spent with CMAE I’ve realised there are some great young people out there coming into the golf industry; some ambitious people and people with fresh ideas as well.”

Chatting with Stuart Collier, his passion for the project at Stoke Park is palpable. And anybody who has worked with him previously or got to know him in the last 25 years in his role as director of golf will understand why Reliance were keen to retain his services.

And he’s not the only one: Nick Downie, the resort’s director of communications, and award-winning estate director Alex Millar have also remained in post throughout the closure. The Stoke Park family is still at home, and they hope, soon, to be able to get the full band back together.