Golf course architect Mike Gogel is leading a project in Lawrence, Kansas, which sees the conversion of the former 36-hole Alvamar Golf and Country Club into a new 27-hole private facility.

The new facility, which is named The Jawhawk Club, will continue to be home to the University of Kansas’s men’s and women’s golf programmes, as Alvamar was previously.

Significant changes are being made to the golf course and the site itself. Gogel is rerouting existing holes and creating a new 18-hole layout, which will measure just under 7,200 yards in length.

“Greens will average approximately 5,500 square feet and we will be introducing a significant amount of naturalised areas to reduce water use and maintenance cost,” Gogel told GCA. “We are currently working to finish the greens complexes by mid-October and we will fall back to finish the tee complexes and bunkers that are not near the greens through the winter.”

A 38 million gallon lake is being created to support irrigation and natural run off on the course. This will mean the Jayhawk Club will not be reliant on water from the city of Lawrence moving forward.

A new team building for the University of Kansas, featuring indoor chipping and putting facilities as well as four hitting bays, is also being developed on the site.

Furthermore, a new practice facility intended for use by the university teams is also being created.

Gogel added: “Our goal is to have the new 18 holes open in May 2018, which is the 50th anniversary of the original facility.”