LATEST NEWS
October 2011
NEW DEVELOPMENTS:
- Alcantara (Taormina Sicily) - Shaping and earthworks for all holes nearly completed. Seeding to start soon.
- Royal Olympic Golf resort (Romania) - Still waiting confirmation of start date.
- Cliftonhall School (Nr Edinburgh) - Awaiting confirmation of investment for this exciting project to develop a new centre for learning golf.
- Kuwait - New contract for private course. Master Plan being developed.
RE-MODELLING:
Scotland
- Kirkintilloch - Bunker work to be carried out this winter at holes 4, 6 and 8. Other upgrades to tees at hole 8.
- Harburn - Bunker work to be carried out this winter at holes 6, 11 and 17.
- Pitlochry - Planning approval received for development of new practice facilities, Academy Course and extension to existing course. phase 1 of this development should commence this year. I have also just completed an appraisal of the design features on the existing course. This has resulted in a number of exciting proposals for the Club to consider and hopefully introduce a 10 year plan for improvements.
Italy
- Golf Des Iles Borromees (Lake Maggiore) - Major re-modelling work on 18 hole course. Design appraisal accepted and decision on commencement date to be made soon.
Overseas projects are being developed with Italian Architect PierFrancesco De Simone
SCOTTISH ASSOCIATION OF GOLF COURSE ARCHITECTS
We now have 9 members and about to issue our 4th quarterly newsletter.
GOLF COURSE DESIGN AND EDUCATION;
Little progress on education of Golf Course Architecture.
INTRODUCTION
The golf course is a golf club's most important asset and the quality of the design and playing surfaces are major factors in attracting members and visitors. There is no doubt that embarking on a programme to upgrade a course design invariably sparks enthusiasm amongst the membership and is a springboard to encouraging more interest in the club.
Upgrading to a more memorable design can be relatively simple to achieve over perhaps 2 or 3 years. The monetary investment need not be large. Relatively simple improvements like the re-location of bunkers, such as those at the 18th hole at Kirkintilloch Golf Club, do not require a significant amount of investment. The improvements have been well-received by the membership.
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New 7th green at Lanark Golf Club |
Where more investment is required, for example to re-model a green like the new 7th at Lanark above, the amount involved is relatively insignificant when you consider the longer-term benefits of an exciting design and the prospect of year-round playing surface.
If you are considering upgrading your course please read my philosophy on design and improvements. If you are keen to learn more, I recommend that we have an initial discussion to firstly answer your questions and provide some guidance as to how you could proceed.
