Golf Course Architecture - Issue 65, July 2021

27 point, with the first nine in the lower part of the property and the second nine in the upper part, with great views and challenges. The lower part of the property, holes one to three, is a wetland that will mostly be kept in its actual size and shape with golf holes bordering the environmentally sensitive site, therefore, allowing the wetland to keep its character and natural value. One hole I am excited about is the fourth, which is one of two par fives that border the southern edge of the property. Another great hole will be the sixteenth, which has one of the best views of the property: looking downhill from the most elevated point of the site. How are you incorporating sustainable design in practice for this project? The landscape in which the golf course is set was studied during the first phase of the project. We read documents regarding the type of vegetation and fauna of the area, with the main source being Professor Daniele Zanini’s ‘ Alberi Cartografati sulla Rocca di Garda ’ from the University of Siena. The site was merely agricultural land and vineyards, and the vegetation I want to include is coming from the surroundings and that’s where this publication helped. While golf holes will be irrigated, we have left the long rough outside the playing areas unirrigated. Also, the lower part of the site, which is partly a wetland, has been incorporated in the design, while keeping the boundaries. How does this project compare with your others? My biggest projects so far have been the 18-hole Golf Taormina, which was completed in 2016, and the restoration of the Golf Des Iles Borromées. The biggest challenge with this 18-hole project at Poiano is the size of the site at just 38 hectares. This made routing returning nines quite difficult to achieve. Construction of two holes is complete with construction suspended during the summer months due to the resort opening to guests. Work will restart in autumn. Pierfrancesco De Simone’s new golf course is being built on rolling land overlooking Lake Garda in northern Italy Photo: De Simone Golf Design