Golf Course Architecture - Issue 61, July 2020

52 T he year 2020 will certainly stay in our minds forever. Spending three months mostly inside our homes has given us a lot of time to think. During those days I have been reflecting on my 30-year career dedicated to designing and building golf courses and always fighting against public opinion to defend our work. Every new project is a test to repeat, once more, how good and healthy a golf course is for the environment, landscape, views, human health, relaxation, for creating greenbelts, and a million other reasons. However, every new project is like the first one, we have to battle to prove that a golf course is slightly different from a nuclear power station and slightly less contaminating than a petroleum factory. Joking aside, it is so frustrating that after doing our best to create a pure and natural environment, we do not explain our work properly to the public. Golf is a great place to be and an even better place to live. During the coronavirus pandemic, at least in Spain, my clients and I decided to keep going with construction. We have proceeded with a new nine-hole loop for Altaona Golf in Murcia, Spain. The builder implemented procedures to guarantee the safety of all workers (face masks, hydrogel, a maximum of one worker per car, and acquiring more accommodation so there are only INS IGHT MARCO MART IN Bringing the public closer Marco Martin says golf projects within residential developments offer the opportunity to bring the public closer to the sport Photos: Marco Martin