Or, State Government planners said, the 18-hole Marrickville course could be cut to just nine holes to create more community open space.

But club officials have vowed to fight the proposals, saying that even reducing the size of the course, on the banks of the Cooks River, will end up “killing” it.

The idea to transform the course, on parcels of land owned by the Inner West Council and the Government, is contained in the Department of Planning’s draft Sydenham to Bankstown Urban Renewal Corridor Strategy.

As part of the strategy about 8500 new homes would be built around new Sydney Metro stations at Marrickville and Dulwich Hill, leading to a population surge over the next 20 years.

The renewal strategy said the “future of Marrickville Golf Course should be considered by the Inner West Council as a potential source of additional open space”.

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