Golf Course Architecture - Issue 63, January 2021

31 Photo: Stirling/Martin Golf Course Architects Because of the high-end real estate, golf holes were located to maximise views and beauty from the home sites. With an emphasis on safety and stunning beauty, the layout evolved. Like a great book or movie, the beginning chapters – the opening three holes – immediately capture excitement for the golfers, drawing them in. In addition, the seventh, eighth and ninth holes on the front, and holes fifteen through eighteen on the back offer unequalled thrills and enjoyment for all levels of players and for spectators as well. What are the highlights of your design? MM: With holes going in different directions, the key to the entire layout was the tremendous variety, so that golfers are offered 18 unique and distinct experiences. Memorability of each hole is the foundation for the final layout. Our design has a generous amount of width, challenging golfers to approach greens from various angles. In addition, the generally larger greens have plenty of variety of pin positions, creating different ways to attack holes depending on the day. Secondly, we wanted to produce a fun, playable golf course that was enjoyable and full of distinct experiences. As golf architects, we want to make golf fun and help the game grow in popularity. Safety also played a key part in the strategy, as ample distance between holes and spacious room and views for spectators were considered. Circulation during the round played a major role as views, distances, and beauty were taken into account. The environmental aspect was also crucial. The course’s irrigation, the urban treated wastewater, and seeding with Pure Dynasty – from Pure Seed and Atlas Turf International – have all helped to create a natural landscape with autochthonous species. The first nine opened in 2019, the second nine will be fully seeded by May 2021, with work to continue on the third nine afterwards. The routing provides for plenty of space between the golf holes and surrounding high-end real estate Image: Stirling/Martin Golf Course Architects