75 Image: Kevin Hargrave greens,” says Hargrave. Their feel and look has, however, been changed significantly. He softened surface slopes on the eighth, tenth, twelfth, fifteenth and sixteenth, which were in areas considered unplayable. The eleventh hole was completely rebuilt. “That hole was one of the worst on the course, but our changes have made it, in my view, one of the best,” says Hargrave. The par-five twelfth required a different solution. “A previous contractor had built a stone wall around the pond, flanking the left side of the green,” says Hargrave. “The elevation of the wall as well as the water elevation were improperly set higher than the existing green surface. Due to cost limitations, the rebuilding of the wall was out of the question. Working within the parameters we had and to give the green complex more appeal and improve playability, we raised the front-right side of the green surface up 18 to 24 inches, expanded the front of the green and softened slopes throughout.” Darryl Bartlett, senior project manager for NMP Golf Construction, adds: “The elevation of this hole now feels vastly different. It feels like you’re playing uphill, even though you’re almost below water – it is a much better hole with a completely different visual.” The transformation of the twelfth didn’t end there, with work completed on a creek too. “It looked like a ditch and bit of a mistake,” says Bartlett. NMP installed liner and rocks transforming its appearance. “It looks like it belongs there now,” adds Bartlett. “There are waterfalls and pools of water, which is much more pleasing than a dry ditch. The water now runs down to a pond and then at the head of the stream, we put in an irrigation line so we could turn the water on and recirculate it to make it look like it is an active creek.” Hargrave’s masterplan included tree removal, fairway expansions, rebuilding five greens, reshaping and repositioning bunkers, new and better aligned tees, and a creek renovation “ The changes we’ve made give the course bigger scale, make it more appealing to the eye and gives it some much needed oomph!”
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