Golf Course Architecture - Issue 63, January 2021

50 From an agronomic standpoint, the River Maigue and the lakes play a crucial function as drainage outlets. Particularly with our climate, we can be exposed to wet conditions, so the water features are critical for course management and maintenance programmes. How did the redesign impact this relationship between course and river? Did it change significantly? The Maigue has always played a significant role in the golf course and while Tom Fazio’s redesign was sympathetic to the original Robert Trent Jones Sr design, Tom recognised the river’s full potential in regard to the layout and strategy of the course, further emphasising its presence. The greens next to the river are undoubtedly more elevated with much steeper slopes and inclines that present a real test of short game skill. The fifteenth and eighteenth greens have been brought closer to the water following the redesign. This, coupled with the low cut turf of our runoffs and little rough, means that the water is arguably more in play than ever before. The Maigue neighbours the whole of the driveable par-four fifteenth, tucking in very close on the right-hand side, creating a real risk and reward, whereby well struck drives could find birdie or even eagle opportunities, but offer little forgiveness for misguided shots. Equally, the eighteenth green is now only one foot from the water, posing questions to golfers who are looking to be aggressive and reach the closing par five in two, whilst also demanding a fine wedge in to hold the green and crucially avoid frustration so close to the finish. A retaining wall was introduced here during the redevelopment that acts as a very definitive boundary of being in play or not, but also acts as a hard engineering defence to potential erosion problems that we used to experience in this location. From your perspective as superintendent, what maintenance challenges does the river present? It’s certainly no small feat to care for and protect a river. At just under 40 miles long with a catchment area of approximately 1,000 square kilometres, the Maigue carries a lot of weight to it. The length of the river running through Adare Manor is just over three kilometres which, in total, means we have six kilometres of riverbanks that we have a duty to preserve, protect and ultimately sustain for future generations. Much like any river running through a course, the Maigue brings its own unique maintenance challenges and obstacles. The river here is tidal up as far as the manor house so, during the spring tides or storm surges from the Atlantic, it does present us with challenges – but normally such challenges ease as quickly as the tide turns. Because of this, the river has At the driveable par-four fifteenth, the river presents a risk-and-reward challenge. Right, the bunkerless par-three eleventh Photo: Larry Lambrecht/Adare Manor