Steve Marnoch has overseen a second phase of bunker work at Matlock Golf Club in Derbyshire, England.

The Scottish architect is progressing through renovation on 26 bunkers on the 1906 Tom Williamson layout. Four holes were completed in a first phase that began in November 2022, and another four holes have been renovated over the winter of 2023-24.

Christian Goodman, club manager at Matlock, says that the project is to “upgrade the club and raise its profile”. He says that the bunkers were in dire need of being updated and did not fit with the club’s vision.

“As with many older courses, Matlock’s bunkers had lost their shape, their relevance and often penalise high handicap players rather than offer a varied playing strategy to challenge all levels of golfer,” said Marnoch.

“In an open, often windy setting, shallow bunkers do not function well, and sand can be lost. Our new bunker shapes are far more random with patches of heather here and there and shaped so that the internal sanded areas ‘hunker down’ and are protected from the wind, yet not being so deep to be unfair.

“Patches of heather were translocated to characterise new bunker banks and other areas to influence play. Where bunkers had become redundant, opportunities arose to relandscape these as wilder heather areas with some sand scrapes and heather patches, gorse and self-seeded pines. These give a far more natural appearance and offer a wide range of habitat benefits compared to just taking the old bunkers away and returfing.”

Lakeland Earthworks handled construction, with Bunkermat lining from Whitemoss Eco, sand from Banks Amenity and turf from Tillers, which is also helping with heather work.

For the first phase, work focused on the opening four holes. The first is a par four of 348 yards that plays parallel to Chesterfield Road. “Redundant bunkers were removed or reshaped as playable ‘remnant’ sand scrapes,” said Marnoch. “Wild areas of moorland species were translocated to influence play away from the road and define the new fairway shaping.

“I really wanted this first hole to introduce the moorland vision and bring that right back to the clubhouse. Where previous bunkers were flat and invisible, the new bunkers are seen from the tees and can direct play, giving players a clear opportunity to decide upon playing strategy.

“Around the green, trees were removed to bring light and air to the putting surface and allow heather to develop. It has been proposed that the large areas of bracken on the banks around the green will be treated to allow heather to re-establish. Heather plants were also transplanted against the dry-stone wall behind the green as a backdrop to frame the hole.”

The par-three second was rebunkered with patches of heather added around the hazards. Marnoch also introduced wide swales around the green to divert surface water away from playing surfaces. Swales have also been added to the 498-yard third so balls that miss the green have a chance of avoiding the deep rough. Marnoch says that patches of heather were planted onto visible ‘noses’ for definition and to add character around the green. And at the par-three fourth, renovation work has seen the surrounds to the left of the green reshaped with hollows and swales to divert surface water that comes down from the upper moorland.

“Seeing the first phase of work on the ground has really shown the members what these improvements will look like, play like and how the course can receive a huge facelift,” said Goodman. “Across the board, we have had nothing but praise for the works and the design ideas put forward by Steve and all the hard work on site with the contractors, Darren Coop [course manager] and his staff.”

The second phase focused on holes seven, eight, fourteen and fifteen. Marnoch notes that there wasn’t a lot of space between the seventh green and the eighth and fifteenth tees. So, to introduce more playing strategy on the seventh, and to offer some protection for those teeing off on the eighth and fifteenth tees, a bunker on the right side of the fairway has been added to give a strong visual reference for tee shots on the seventh. Heather around the bunker further strengthens the appearance.

“The 149-yard par-three eighth had flat, featureless bunkers and very sharp green surrounds,” said Marnoch. “We have reshaped the bunkers into swales with new bunkers built to influence the playability of the hole. With shaped bunker banks, the sand now sits high enough to be easily seen, yet low enough within the bunker structure to protect it from the wind.”

The fourteenth is an uphill short par four of 255 yards. Again, safety was an issue with the eighth and fifteenth tees close by on the right side. “The existing – but not visible from the tee – bunker on the right side of the fourteenth has been made more dominant, to provide separation from the other holes and to add more strategy to this reachable par four,” said Marnoch. “The new heather-clad fairway bunker better defines the hole and closes off the green from a running approach from the high side. A new approach bunker on the left also closes the approach and will save a ball from running downhill into the woods. Although reaching the green through the bunkers is definitely possible, the thinking golfer may play up short and pitch onto the small green rather than risking the bunkers and heather patches.”

At the fifteenth, a 180-yard par three over a valley and a brook, Marnoch’s focus was to expand the green. “There were hardly any pin positions due to its size and sloping surface,” he said. “To the left are some sharp overgrown ridges running towards a flat bunker, but they were barely visible from the tee.

“I was eager to incorporate those ridges into the playing strategy and extend them further left before turning them into a wide playable swale to collect and divert surface water. The green has been enlarged, mainly back and left, thus bringing these new features into play. A new greenside bunker to the right has been beautifully built with random edges sitting naturally against the side of the rebuilt green. The swale also runs around the back, separating the area between the playing surface and dry-stone wall that will soon be rebuilt.”

Marnoch’s heather plan – part of an initiative to rewild the site – also includes tree removal to open up the moorland property and enable the heather to thrive, as well as eradicating large areas of bracken.

“Heather is commonly recognised as a vital habitat for wildlife and an enjoyable feature when playing a round of golf,” said Marnoch. “Heather is an asset that should be protected and developed as much as possible throughout the golf course. Where it is suspected to be in the ground as dormant seed, this hidden gold should be exposed and brought back to its former glory. The original site must have been covered in heather – it is visible in paintings in the clubhouse. However, years of unmanaged planting has gradually transformed Matlock from open moorland to more of a parkland layout. Extensive maintenance has also suppressed heather from developing properly.

“The rewilding plan for Matlock intends to turn this situation around. Tree clearance, particularly between holes twelve to seventeen, of undesirable species will help with the heather development and improve the health of the grasses around the playing surfaces. This will also help to open the site in the higher areas, defining these as moorland again, whilst the land alongside Bentley Brook, which runs through the course, can be managed as attractive woodland. Altering the mowing regimes around known heather areas to allow these to develop and flower in the autumn will also provide better definition and separate the fairways.

“We are also translocating mature heather and spreading a locally sourced mixed heather seed. And in areas suspected of containing dormant heather seed, such as between holes six, seven and eight, we are carrying out turf stripping down to the black layer to allow that heather to germinate.”