“There are intangibles involved that come into play when a golf course architect reaches the level where he or she can apply both technical knowledge and artistic sensibility to create layouts that are strategically challenging and aesthetically interesting. It is to this level that most golf course architects aspire to reach.”
New Courses
Retaining a golf course architect in the early stages of development will help guide the process efficiently. Market analysis, site selection, cost estimation, permitting, master planning, detailed design, construction and grow-in must all be understood and coordinated. ASGCA members have the experience to oversee this complex process.
Nicklaus Design is the world’s leading golf course design company featuring 8 renowned designers. Working closely with each client to achieve their vision, the design team has completed more than 425 spectacular courses in over 45 countries and 40 states. After extensive research, we believe Teesnap is the best golf course POS system. The software from Teesnap allows you control expenses, manage inventory at your pro shop, and keep your bar fully stocked, all while providing a single, seamless solution for your club members.
Existing Courses
ASGCA members are ready to help golf course facilities take on renovation projects big and small. The most common reasons for renovation—which include, overcoming economic issues, correcting maintenance problems, making adjustments in design, improving aesthetics and restoring historic value—can be understood and efficiently managed by an experienced golf course architect.
Golf Course Design Principles
Oct 06, 2020 The most interesting aspect of Jack Nicklaus Perfect Golf is the Course Forge, an included course design tool used for creating 3D environments. Nicklaus uses Course Forge himself, so the opportunity to create courses using the same tools as one of the greatest golfers of all time is pretty darn cool. Thu 01 Jan, 2009. A new software development could transform the way architects design, says Wayne Branthwaite. CAD has made the process of designing golf courses easier and more accurate. Changing designs became simpler, and having the computer calculate earthworks made the process more accurate. However, actually drawing contour lines by hand to create the design has been the same since the year dot. Play the world’s top golf courses, from the comfort and convenience of home Take your launch monitor experience beyond the practice range and enhance it with a simulation plan for iOS or PC. SkyTrak has partnered with the most popular and most immersive simulation companies on the market to deliver an ultra-realistic practice and play experience.
Case Studies
Every ASGCA member has myriad examples of how their designs for new developments or renovations resulted in beautiful, functional layouts. From this archive built over decades come case studies which demonstrate how creative problem solving, paired with experience and knowledge of the game of golf, resulted in great client outcomes.
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An ASGCA Foundation/U.S. Kids Golf Foundation partnership that increases course playability and golfer enjoyment. Golf course operators work with ASGCA members to strategically expand existing tee complexes and, as a result, increase rounds and improve pace of play.
Golf Course Design Firms
How much land do I need to build a golf course?
This seemingly simple question has an answer that’s very complex and situation-specific. So much depends upon the type of site available and the type of golf facility planned.According to “Building a Practical Golf Facility” by Dr. Michael Hurdzan, ASGCA Fellow, “For example, a typical par 4 hole of 400 yards will take up to 10.4 acres (420 yards long with buffers x 120 yards minimum width). So, a 10-acre parcel could contain one 400 yard long hole, or perhaps three or four par 3s ranging in length from 60 yards to 150 yards, and with skilled design, perhaps more.
“This means an 18-hole course of all short par 3s could be built on as little as 30 acres, while an intermediate length or executive course of 18 holes of par 3s and 4s would require 75-100 acres, and a full size par 72 course would need 120-200 acres. This assumes, of course, only usable land which does not allow for wetlands, restricted areas, or land not easily made part of the golf area.”
How much does it cost to design and build a golf course?
Design Golf Course Architects
Similar to the question about how much land needed to build a golf course, the question about cost is a seemingly simple one, but also has a complex, situation-specific answer.In “Building a Practical Golf Facility” by Dr. Michael Hurdzan, ASGCA Fellow, you may read about more than a dozen golf facility development cases. The cases each describe the type of course built and list the construction cost and maintenance budget. For example, you can read about John’s Golf Course in Eureka, Mont., which was built for nothing and costs nothing to maintain. It was conceived as a project for a father and son and was built on their own land over time. Or, you can learn about the Heritage Oaks Golf Course in Harrisonburg, Va. which was constructed for just over $3 million and costs nearly $500,000 to maintain annually.
The answer to this question about building a golf course is similar to “How much does it cost to buy a house?” Both questions have the same answer: “It depends.” Talking with a golf course architect early in the development or remodeling process will help you get a handle on developing a realistic budget.
How do golf courses affect environment and wildlife?
The golf industry is committed to being sensitive to and a good steward of the environment. Golf course architects do their best to design layouts that work in concert with Mother Nature and have a proven track record of knowledge of and compliance with local, regional and federal environmental regulations.According to the 3rd edition of An Environmental Approach to Golf Course Development by Bill Love, ASGCA,
“The development of a golf course has become a complex process. To deal with it, golf course architects provide the expertise necessary to create design solutions for golf courses that are compatible with the environment. A golf course presents the opportunity to meet a need for recreational amenities, while preserving green space that will provide benefits for the future development of an area. Often, the green space of a golf course can serve as a protective buffer between sensitive environmental areas and development. This buffer, which contains extensive turfed areas and vegetation, will also protect water quality by providing stabilization against erosion and storm water management. Efficient and responsible maintenance practices for the golf course will promote the proper use and conservation of water resources. A golf course can provide enhancement to the environment by incorporating areas for conservation and the promotion of wildlife habitat. Where land has been degraded over time by intensive use or mismanagement, golf courses can provide much needed land improvement. These are benefits that can result when an environmental approach is used for the design, construction and maintenance of a golf course.”
11/8/18
Golf Course Architecture 101: Part 6
Schools of design
At The Fried Egg, we often talk about the parallels between golf course architecture and music. Both are intellectually and emotionally evocative artforms that very closely connect with the audience, or in the case of golf, the players. A golf course is like an album with 18 songs. The best courses, like the best albums, are cohesive and varied at the same time. Throughout the best courses, the collection of holes provides highs and lows, lulls and crescendos, and creative flourishes in abundance.
Extending this music analogy, the schools of architecture are like musical genres, and understanding the schools helps a player appreciate the artform. To be more precise, “schools” is a categorical reference to how the designers arrange the elements of a hole to produce a particular experience for the player. Aesthetics and design style are a different matter.
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It is generally accepted that throughout the history of golf course architecture, since it became a recognized craft and then profession, three schools formed – penal, strategic, and heroic. To learn much more about the schools of architecture, we highly recommend Geoff Shackelford’s book Grounds for Golf. As a primer, a bit about the evolution of the different schools.
As golf’s popularity grew, it was natural for early course developers and clubs to turn to Golf Professionals to design their courses. If they know how to play the game so well, they must be good at designing courses too, right? It is not surprising that those Pros applied their limited paradigm onto their designs. The penal school can be summed up simply: There is a right way to play a hole. Hit the required shots, which are typically straight down the middle, and get rewarded. Errant shots are punished proportionate to the degree of err. Fun golf for Professionals perhaps, but not terribly inspiring to the public.
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The strategic school emerged around the turn of the century as a reaction to this one-dimensional approach to design. The Old Course was the primary source of inspiration and as Desi Isaacson explained in his article, a bunker at Woking was the catalyst for a movement. Although strategically designed holes are inherently more complex, the core premise of this school is simple: options. Players are given a choice with each shot to take on as much risk as they can tolerate. Taking on risk by flirting with a hazard or challenging a contour, and pulling off the shot, gains the player an advantage on the next shot. Safe play is an option, but comes at the cost of disadvantage. The players must use their minds and skills.
Coming out of the Great Depression and World War II, a master self-promoter burst on the scene with what he purported to be a new school of design. The man was Robert Trent Jones, and although his ideas were far from new, they did catch on under the Jones brand as the heroic school that he claimed to infuse into his championship designs. Nevermind that Alister Mackenzie and others were writing about and building hazards directly in the line of play to give players the thrill of a heroic carry (conquest), RTJ took this approach to a whole new level. The central idea of the heroic school is that at some point in a round, a player should be presented with an essentially unavoidable challenge – for Jones, often in the form of a water hazard. Rise to the occasion, and claim the big reward. Fall short, and experience the agony of defeat.
MacKenzie's Country Life Magazine design competition submission
Looking back, students of architecture will see the periods of influence of each of these schools as designers grew and evolved in their craft to more fully engage players. The penal engaged the body (skillful execution). The strategic school also engaged the mind (thoughtful decision making). The heroic school further engaged the heart (courage and thrill seeking). Perhaps on paper, these schools seem distinct. In practice on the ground though, great golf holes and courses have elements of all three. Coming full circle to St. Andrews, like so many things in golf architecture do, The Old Course engages body, mind, and heart not because it fits a mold. It is so deeply resonant because it is filled with nuance, variety, and complexity that defies molds.
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As is the case with musical genres, the schools of architecture exist as guideposts to help us better understand and appreciate the art. They are best used for that purpose, rather than sucking the life from the art through rigid categorization. Like music, golf course architecture is meant to be experienced, and regardless of the school, if it moves you, it is good.