Ground has been broken the site of a new resort development in Australia, which will be home to a golf course designed by Greg Norman Golf Course Design (GNGCD).

The new Silkari Resort is to be developed on the site of the former Huntley Colliery in Avondale – about 20km south-west of Wollongong, New South Wales. Developer Visionary Investment Group is investing more than a billion Australian Dollars in the project.

Construction work is now underway on some of the course’s holes, with GNGCD providing both design and build services for the course.

“I fell in love with the site immediately,” said Greg Norman. “The diversification of topography and the environment, with its variety of vegetation from hardwoods to ferns and palms, is magnificent and the golf course will be unique.”

The site overlooks the nearby Lake Illawarra and the South Pacific Ocean is visible in the distance.

A new Greg Norman Golf Academy will also open at the resort, based on similar academies Norman has set up in the US.

The construction of the course is expected to be completed in late 2019.