Van der Vaart under way with project on Anderstein’s Valley nine

Spogard & VanderVaart is extending the Valley loop to 12 holes
The architects have already completed a renovation of the club’s Ridge and Heather nines
All three loops will have rugged, thatchy bunker edges
The Valley nine will have more width, while remaining challenging for the better player
The twelve hole loop is expected to open for play in summer 2020

By Richard Humphreys

Wed 08 Aug, 2018

Spogard & VanderVaart is working on a three-year project at Anderstein Golf Club in Maarsbergen, Netherlands, to extend its Valley loop to twelve holes.

The club’s Ridge and Heather nines are located on higher, sandy, heathland soil, while the oldest and shorter Valley loop is on lower, wetter land.

Golf course architect Michiel van der Vaart, said: “In my opinion this older loop always lacked the phenomenal character the two other loops have.”

The club asked Spogard & VanderVaart to prepare a master plan for the Valley nine – “built in a time when there was less knowledge of drainage,” says van der Vaart – following a project five years ago to renovate the Ridge and Heather loops.

“Together with the club we made a plan to not only renovate the nine holes but extend it to a 12-hole loop, incorporating a practice area of three holes that needed attention as well,” said van der Vaart. “The plan was generated by senior members that wanted to play more than nine, but less than 18 holes. Besides that, in winter there are just enough hours of sunlight to play a club competition on 12 holes!”

Van der Vaart said that previous work at the club has seen them gradually incorporate a naturalistic look and feel. “The rugged, thatchy bunker edges will eventually be on all the 30 holes,” he said. “On the 12-hole loop it is important that there is more room for the novice player, but it is still challenging for the better player. We’re creating wider fairways, opening up greens on one side and defending it on the other. We will move quite a lot of aprons towards the side instead of only in front of the green complexes, creating more strategic holes.”

Construction started in spring 2018, with the aim of having all work completed and the 12-hole loop open in summer 2020. Van der Vaart said: “The challenges are always to persuade the client to look for the best solutions and not only for the most convenient ones. It has to be an end result that can last yet another several decades!”

Construction work is being done by J. de Ridder and shaper Marin Overvest.