75 EYEBROW – NAME OF COURSE landscape, while on more central hazards emphasise visibility. You could pick out almost any hole on the updated course to illustrate the success of this strategy. From the tee of the par-five eighth, for example, a pair of bunkers asks to be hugged for the best line. As you approach the landing area, the artistry of their design, each trap cut into a semi-circular ground contour, reveals itself. The eye is then quickly drawn to the challenge that remains, as the hole sweeps left and golfers are dared to broach another imposing trap for a chance of reaching the bunkerless green. “Some of the best par fives in the world are where you really need to think about your second shot,” says Gorman. “So many times you play a par five and it’s a throwaway, mindless second shot. What we tried to do on number eight is make sure that that you’re really thinking about your second shot, whether different lay-up choices or, if you hit a good drive and you’re a higher calibre player, going for the green in two and what it means if you miss your shot, what your recovery options are going to be.” On the par-four fifteenth, three bunkers, all relatively central to the line of play, force you to plot a route to the skyline green. “We found this one subtle valley in the fairway on the left side and felt it was just a perfect bunker landform,” says Gorman. “And not only did it fit in well, but it also fit perfectly for the strategy of the golf hole. There was an original ‘lighthouse’ bunker that was probably about 350 yards off the tee. It looked good but from a strategic standpoint didn’t come into play except maybe for a second shot. So we really wanted to take the same sort of aesthetic approach, but turn it into a more strategic bunker that you’ve really got to think about off the tee.” The project’s second prong, restoring the greens to their original sizes, has had a marked impact on the perceived scale of the course. “Over time the green perimeters got really narrow and that’s something that, with Steve, Rich and John, we’ve all worked to get back,” says Gorman. Sorrell highlights the ninth, a long, rolling uphill par four with a green that he says appears to pitch in the opposite direction now the original edges have been restored, even though there has been no work at all on the internal contour of the putting surface. Such changes in character are down to green expansion combined with the attention paid to green surrounds. “There are all these great contours around the greens that were hidden in rough,” says Gorman. “For instance, number two is a short, powerful hole. If you play a forward tee it’s a great drivable par four and has one of the more spectacular rock formations with a natural waterfall during the winter. V IDAUBAN Three imposing bunkers on the par-four fifteenth force golfers to plot their route to the green Photo: ©Patrick Jantet/Switzerland
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