Foxhills invests £3m in irrigation for Longcross and Bernard Hunt, with 3,500 new sprinkler heads

Foxhills puts £3 million underground: an irrigation overhaul for two championship courses

Foxhills Club & Resort in Surrey, England, has announced a £3 million infrastructure investment affecting its two 18-hole championship layouts, Longcross and Bernard Hunt. Rather than a dramatic rerouting or a newly announced course, the project targets a less visible part of golf architecture: the systems that determine how consistently greens, approaches and surrounding turf can be maintained.

The resort announced the programme on 7 October 2026. Foxhills is located at Stonehill Road, Ottershaw, Surrey, KT16 0EL, United Kingdom, near Chertsey.

What is being installed?

The official plan calls for more than 3,500 new sprinkler heads across both courses, compared with approximately 1,800 in the existing coverage. Pump stations, reservoirs, storage tanks and rainwater-harvesting capacity will also be upgraded. Supplier Rain Bird will provide technology including CirrusPRO and IC System, giving greenkeepers more granular control over watering.

Foxhills expects irrigation efficiency to improve by about 20%. That figure is a project forecast, not a verified 20% reduction in total water consumption. Actual results will depend on weather, course conditions and operating practices. The intended benefit is to apply water where it is needed, rather than treating large areas uniformly, helping dry patches, approaches and semi-rough without unnecessary irrigation. The programme also aims to make greater use of stored and harvested rainwater across the approximately 400-acre estate.

Construction schedule and visitor access

The first phase is due to begin off-course during winter 2026–27, with reservoir, tank and pumping-station work. Construction on the championship layouts is scheduled to start in October 2027 and proceed over two winters. The club says it intends to affect only one or two holes at a time, using a mole-plough method for much of the pipework to reduce disruptive trenching.

This is not an announcement that both courses will shut for an extended period. Still, future hole-by-hole restrictions and tee-time availability should be confirmed directly with the club. Foxhills offers a visitor golf-booking route on its official website; this article does not confirm specific bookable tee times.

A longer architectural story

The irrigation project follows a course-improvement masterplan begun in 2023. Longcross underwent significant work in 2023–24, led by European Golf Design, encompassing bunkers, greens, drainage, tees and playing strategy; its 16th hole became a signature par three. Bernard Hunt received substantial drainage improvements in 2025. The new investment is intended to support the performance of those earlier design changes over the longer term.

Why golfers should care: irrigation infrastructure rarely features in a course photograph, yet it can influence putting consistency, the firmness of approach areas and whether a course can remain playable during hot, dry periods. Foxhills is prioritising precision and resilience rather than just visible redesign.

Source: Foxhills official announcement, 7 October 2026: https://www.foxhills.co.uk/news/foxhills-invests-3m-in-industry-leading-irrigation-to-future-proof-its-championship-courses. Image: illustrative photograph of another Surrey golf course, Cranleigh School, April 2025; it does not depict Foxhills or the renovation. Photographer Mertbiol, Wikimedia Commons, CC0 1.0: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Golf_course,_Cranleigh_School,_Cranleigh,Surrey-_April_2025.jpg.