‘Disgusted’ victims

offer $1,000 reward
By Donna M. Perry
Staff Writer

CHESTERVILLE – Ethel Bardsley was mowing the greens Monday when she discovered 300 feet of safety netting was missing along hole No. 6.

Bardsley and her husband, Russell, owners of Sandy River Golf Course on the Farmington Falls line, are offering a $1,000 reward leading to the arrest and conviction of the person or persons responsible.

“I’m just disgusted,” she said. “It’s not the first vandalism.”

State Police are investigating the theft of the 12.5-foot tall green web netting with 1-inch openings. The netting was used as a barrier for safety purposes to prevent stray golf balls from going into George Thomas Road.

The netting is made of nylon and cotton material braided together to produce a heavy-duty net.

“It’s very strong,” Bardsley said. “It has to be to prevent a golf ball from going through it.”

Bardsley said replacement value of the netting is more than $900. The couple has bought new netting and cables to replace the stolen ones.

“The State Police’s theory is the netting is probably going to be used to camouflage marijuana fields,” she said. “My theory is somebody wants a home driving range.”

The couple bought the property in 1993 when it was a “little, rundown chip and putt.”

“We’ve made a golf course out of it,” she said of the nine-hole course with a full driving range.

Bardsley said about 100 customers a day visit the course.

“We’ve increased business by 30 percent to 35 percent a year since we owned it,” she said.

Bardsley’s sister Faye Chadbourne helps the couple run the place.

Anyone with information about the missing netting should phone trooper Mathew Casavant at 1-800-452-4664.

dperry@sunjournal.com