The Tama Hills Golf Course in western Tokyo, seen here March 31, 2023, is near the end of a nine-month clubhouse renovation. (Kelly Agee/Stars and Stripes)
TAMA HILLS RECREATION AREA, Japan - American military golfers in the Japanese capital may return to their clubhouse soon, following a nine-month, $1.5 million renovation project.
Tama Hills Golf Course, operated by the U.S. Air Force, has been run from temporary buildings in a car park during the renovations that started last summer. Management hopes to reopen the clubhouse by April 21.
The project should put an end to strange sounds that staff heard in the clubhouse while they worked alone after dark, club manager Patrick Bowman said at the course Friday.
“If you’re there at night and there are no people there are a lot of noises,” he said.
No apparitions have been reported in the facility, he said.
Tama Hills opened Dec. 24, 1969, on a World War II-era Japanese ammunition depot, just over 12 miles from Shinjuku’s glittering skyscrapers.
The 6,600-yard course has hosted PGA legends like Jack Nicklaus, Arnold Palmer and Chi-Chi Rodriguez and plenty of other celebrities, from sumo wrestlers to baseball players.
The sounds in the old clubhouse, according to Bowman, were caused by a half-century-old heating and air conditioning system that has been out of service in recent years.
The building also had leaks that caused damage to walls and ceilings, he said.
The renovations have replaced the heating and air conditioning, repaired the leaks and interior and added new bathrooms and carpet.
Cherry blossoms were in bloom at the Tama Hills Golf Club in western Tokyo on March 31, 2023. (Kelly Agee/Stars and Stripes)
Boxes filled with gear from Callaway, Titleist, FootJoy and Puma are stacked in Bowman’s temporary office, ready to be displayed in the renovated pro shop.
The restored clubhouse won’t be as luxurious as the one at Augusta National Golf Club, Ga., where The Masters professional tournament will tee off Thursday. However, Tama’s facility, which includes an upstairs restaurant and patio with panoramic views of the course, has a fantastic layout and is “usefully functional,” Bowman said.
Tama members were preparing to tee off Saturday in in their own Masters Tournament, two days amid the course’s blooming cherry trees.
Tama Hills tweaked a few other details on the course, which was recently inspected by the U.S. Golf Association, Bowman said.
Some of the tee boxes for high-handicap golfers are being moved closer to greens to make holes a little less challenging. And some new, black tee boxes will make a few holes longer and challenge high-skill players, he said.
There’s also a plan to install a golf simulator at the clubhouse, Bowman said.
The Yokota Golf Center at nearby Yokota Air Base, home of U.S. Forces Japan in western Tokyo, installed a $50,000 Trackman 4 simulator in December 2019.
That system includes sensors and projected images of fairways that allow golfers, hitting real balls against a screen, to imagine they’re playing on any of 50 courses to include the likes of PGA National in Florida, Albany Golf Course in the Bahamas and Saint Andrews famous links in Scotland.
The machine and similar devices at Misawa Air Base in northeastern Japan and Kadena Air Base, Okinawa, has allowed the Air Force to hold virtual golf tournaments involving airmen from the facilities. Installing one at Tama clubhouse would allow players to compete in virtual events from there, Bowman said.
