Golf Course Architecture

We’re thrilled to share that Profile® Porous Ceramic Greens Grade™ was recently highlighted in Golf Course Architecture (GCA) for its role in the renovation of The Singapore Island Country Club (SICC). Our soil amendments helped bring their greens back to optimal condition, as the right soil mix is critical for healthy, sustainable greens. Greens Grade™ was specifically selected to enhance drainage and nutrient availability, boosting overall turf health. The GCA article not only covers the project’s success but also links to our in-depth case study, which provides valuable insights into the process and results. Check out the article and case study to see how our solutions could work for your course: https://bit.ly/41U2LI0 #PPC #GreensGrade

Richard Mandell continues his work at Darlington CC in South Carolina.   “Darlington is in the sandhills of South Carolina, and it was very much a ‘sleepy southern town country club’ when Tim and Nancy Huntley bought the club around six years ago,” says Mandell. “They have been breathing new life into the facility, and so a theme that we have tried to do, and will continue doing, is bringing the sandy soils to the surface. Previously, the club had no identity – it didn’t matter what soils it was on, or if it was located in South Carolina or New York. Now, we’re creating an identity, largely through eliminating rough and replacing it with sandy soils, although it is actually more like peeling the grass away and exposing those soils that are already there.”   Read more about the project: https://lnkd.in/eNKurWiG

Kinsale near Naples, Florida, opened for member play in November 2024. GCA spoke with Hanse Golf Design architect Jim Wagner and the club’s director of agronomy Rusty Mercer about the new course.   “Since the site was devoid of any natural features and dead flat – in some cases less than flat, if that is possible – we needed to create a design inspiration that would allow us start the creative process,” says Wagner. “Raynor and Macdonald have some great ‘flat courses’ so their philosophies became talking points. Our process was not to create template holes or copy specifics, rather use how they handled flat ground to create inspiration and our own twist.”   Read the full story: https://lnkd.in/e8b_DuPD

Thomas Himmel is leading a redesign of the Bad Ems course ahead of the German club celebrating its centenary in 2028.   The redesign will give the course a more open, parkland feel and other alterations to ensure the course is suitable for the modern game,” says the architect.   Read more about the changes, which include addressing “an almost unplayable cross slope” on the eleventh hole: https://lnkd.in/eVxhYhmg

‘Are bunkers getting too pretty for their own good?’ Adam Lawrence asks if the beauty of bunkering is being over-emphasised at the expense of its function, with insights from Ronald Forse, Robin Hiseman, Bill Coore, Jason Blasi, Jeff Mingay and Mike Cocking. Read more: https://lnkd.in/edE5UDQG Keep updated with the latest news on golf course design and development with 𝒂 𝒇𝒓𝒆𝒆 𝒅𝒊𝒈𝒊𝒕𝒂𝒍 𝒔𝒖𝒃𝒔𝒄𝒓𝒊𝒑𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏 by signing up here: https://lnkd.in/d_8y9qT

Thad Layton begins a five-hole project at Fox Hollow, a municipal facility near Denver. “Leveraging data gathered from the United States Golf Association (USGA)’s GPS loggers, we put together a long-range improvement plan to reposition features in a more strategic and impactful way based on the patterns evident, and the evolution of the game since the course was originally built,” says Layton.” Read more about the changes: https://lnkd.in/ddzpATNu

Chicago GC historian John Moran and former USGA director Rand Jerris share insight into ‘The Prairie Raynor’, which recently won the Herbert Warren Wind Award from the United States Golf Association (USGA). “The Prairie Raynor is the story of how the golf course at Chicago Golf Club evolved from its earliest days to Raynor’s initial plan, and how this plan evolved to his final creation,” write Moran and Jerris. “It is the story of the selfless members who personally underwrote much of the cost for the Raynor project, and the frugality that preserved Raynor’s original creation. And, lastly, it is the story of only seven superintendents who have cared for the course in its first one hundred years, and of how significant advances in agronomic science and practices have been employed to great effect.” Read more from the authors: https://lnkd.in/eWb3-yAp #SethRaynor #ChicagoGolfClub #USGA

‘New pearls for Vietnam’   The first of two Golfplan-designed courses at Vinpearl Golf Leman has opened for play – read our report on the North course, which includes exclusive insight from both David Dale and Kevin Ramsey: https://lnkd.in/eWcaCBnS   Keep updated with the latest news on golf course design and development with 𝒂 𝒇𝒓𝒆𝒆 𝒅𝒊𝒈𝒊𝒕𝒂𝒍 𝒔𝒖𝒃𝒔𝒄𝒓𝒊𝒑𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏 (our April issue is just around the corner 👀) by signing up here: https://lnkd.in/d_8y9qT

The Singapore Island Country Club is set to reopen Island course’s back nine following Nelson & Haworth renovation.   “Our work includes reducing steep fairway slopes and unwalkable areas, sandcapping to help the course cope with tropical rain events, new drainage, retaining playing corridors and mature trees, limited routing changes, improve views to Pierce Reservoir and to maintain the traditional look and feel of the course through new, push-up style greens and EcoBunker Ltd’s revetted bunkers,” says Brett Mogg.   The project team includes Chris Gray, Centaur Asia Pacific, The Toro Company, Profile Products, Sports Turf Solutions and Loksand Global.   Read more about the work completed on the back nine: https://lnkd.in/e7Enqny9

Atlanta Athletic Club appoints Andrew Green for Highlands renovation, which is expected to begin in 2028 👇