Golf Course Architecture - Issue 62: October 2020

29 TEE BOX Jakub Cervenka of CZGDA is under way with the redesign of four holes at Golf Club Podeˇbrady, 35 miles east of Prague in the Czech Republic. He is creating new first, second, third and eighteenth holes and developing new practice facilities. Construction began in August 2020, with work on greens, bunkers, tees and irrigation all complete. Seeding is to be finished this autumn with the opening of the new holes and golf academy planned for May 2021. “We decided to redesign the course with a new, strategic, aesthetically different coat,” said Cervenka. “Earth movement will be minimal. There are open greens, as well as clearly visible bunkers with an attractive, uniform design of grass banks, which create a strategic situation for players.” The opening three holes are now a short par- four, followed by a par three and then a dog leg par-four. Cervenka has also proposed some renumbering of holes for smoother transitions in the routing. The architect says the redesigned third and eighteenth holes complete a gradual introduction of a ‘new Podeˇbrady,’ style. His work is designed to encourage all levels of player and includes opening views from the back tees as well as shaping both sides of the fairway to help retain shots. Four holes redesigned at Podeˇbrady Written by Neil Crafter and John Green, Discovering Alex Russell: The Man and His Legacy , is a biography that includes a wide range of material including detailed text, archival photographs, maps and plans. “It traces his life from birth as the son of a wealthy Victorian grazier, to his education at Geelong Grammar and Cambridge University, and his service as an artillery officer in the British Army during World War I,” says Crafter. “The book also examines Russell’s political life and his subsequent service in World War II where he oversaw the repatriation of prisoners of war for the Australian Red Cross, together with his family life and the grazing property ‘Mawallok’ in Victoria.” Russell served as a partner of Alister MacKenzie in the design and construction of the West course at Royal Melbourne, and was responsible for the design of Yarra Yarra, Royal Melbourne’s East course, Lake Karrinyup, and Paraparaumu Beach. He was also a champion golfer, winning the 1924 Australian Open as an amateur, among numerous other national and state titles. Ryan Publishing, $79.95 (hardback) Available from www.ryanpub.com Discovering Alex Russell GOOD READ Photo: Golf Club Poděbrady archives Image: CZGDA