AN elderly Lytham man was feeling distinctly under par this week as traffic from the Open Golf Championship was set to bring noise and disruption to his home.

Jimmy Carolan, aged 79, of Waddington Road, was furious that the gap between his house and his neighbour's was to be used as the entrance to a car park -- normally a playing field -- for Open visitors.

Mr Carolan said he was worried about the amount of noise and exhaust fumes that he and his wife, aged 81, would have to suffer.

"If they are going to be bringing cars in and out of this 20-foot gap the petrol fumes will be enough to annihilate anyone.

"And at the other end of the field there's a gap of a couple of hundred feet that could be used as an entrance.

"They didn't notify us they were doing it. They just stuck up a sign on the lamp post outside saying 'entrance to car park'.

"I'm 79 and my wife is 81. All our neighbours are elderly. And the chaps next door and across the road have to have carers.

"Considering the rates we pay it's a bit strong that this is how we are treated."

Fylde Council's tourism officer Paul Morris said: "The police and council have looked at all possible options and the one causing least risk to members of the public from vehicles going on to the site was the one next to Mr Carolan's house.

"Because the other access crosses a footpath it has implications for the safety of pedestrians. The police have decided that this access is the lesser of two evils.

"We have spoken to Mr Carolan about it on numerous occasions and our director and the police involved have explained it very much in depth to him. Wherever possible we do try to mitigate any problems that arise."

In a letter to Mr Carolan this week Dave Joy, Fylde director of tourism and leisure, said : "I acknowledge your concerns regarding the traffic movement adjacent to your property and I apologise for any inconvenience that this may cause.

"However the assessment of risk, and the experiences of previous events, make the existing vehicle access to the site the logical and safest option."

Mr Carolan said: "I thought Lytham was a civilised community. At my age it's probably the last Open Golf championship in the area that I will see but I'm not looking forward to it."