50 eastern, central and southern Europe, he has worked in Algeria, Egypt – he designed the Mirage City course in the late 1990s and has since built four more projects – Morocco, Kuwait, India and even Iran, though that project fell afoul of the 2008 financial crisis and was never finished. But, when asked the most outlandish place he has worked, the answer is quick to come. “Sudan is the most extravagant place I ever built a golf course,” he says. He built the nine-hole Fenti course outside Khartoum in 2008. “Actually, it was quite easy,” he continues. “We worked for a very big company that has a lot of experience in the country – and we got paid on time. They have their own terminal at the airport. The course is very successful. The usual uninformed reporters said that we were taking water from the Nile which was not true – we had some wells. It was next to a very densely populated, quite poor area. But I never felt threatened – in fact I’ve never felt threatened anywhere. I feel more threatened at the main railway station in Milan.” And his design influences (apart from his dad, obviously!)? Peter says that he has a particular admiration for Robert Trent Jones Sr, and especially his course at Valderrama in Spain. “I think Jones is the father of modern golf course architecture,” he says. “His detailed designs, specifications and tender documents gave the contractor a clear idea of what he should be quoting for and building. My own philosophy of design might be summarised as ‘easy to play, difficult to score’. Golf designers should never forget that the people who pay our fees are principally the 24-54 handicappers, not the professionals and scratch or better amateurs. There are too many ‘Championship’ courses, but not enough ‘champions’ to keep them busy! And it is quite easy to transform a ‘normal’ course to host a championship if you need to. Golf must be fun, not a drudgery, if it is to prosper.” “ My own philosophy of design might be summarised as ‘easy to play, difficult to score’” Harradine’s Abu Dhabi course hosted the European Tour’s Abu Dhabi Championship from 2006 to 2021 PETER HARRADINE Photo: Kevin Murray
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