Space Matters

For the past week I have been working on a routing for a new golf course. Nine of the holes are set. So I have been working out the final nine holes and amenities, such as the practice facility, parking and clubhouse circulation. It became apparent that we will need some more land – not a lot - but certainly more. I have tried over 50 – 75 routings and variations. This isn’t uncommon for me even when land is plentiful. But it is more difficult to make a course of distinction without sufficient land. It leads to the question, “How much land is needed for an 18 hole golf course?” That’s a question not always easy to answer. So much depends on what one is trying to achieve, as well as parcel configuration, topography, environmental issues (such as wetlands), existing vegetation, etc. In 1926, this is what the great Golf Architect Donald J. Ross had to say:

“Don’t make that most regrettable of mistakes, the selection of too small a tract. Don’t try to save money in that way. One hundred ten acres will do, but it’s bad to limit it to even that. One-hundred twenty five is a fair size, but one-hundred fifty is better. It is not necessary to use all the ground available for golf. By using less, the upkeep is kept down, a big item in this day of high prices. Under certain favorable conditions, a small piece of property, fortunately shaped, might work out admirably. Other times it would make a most unsatisfactory and decidedly uninteresting course.”

Keep in mind that he was working back in the day where a course of 6,500 yards was plenty for a championship course. (A length that is still plenty for the 95% of all golfers, but certainly too short for Men’s championships.) So to a certain extent, what your goals are will determine the amount of land you will need. At any rate, at the end of my week of routings, I decided to take in this past weeks PGA Tournament that was held at Atunyote, the Tom Fazio design at the Turning Stone Resort in Verona, NY. Saturday was a beautiful fall day and it was a pleasure to soak it in. I’m not here to critique the design, which by the way is very beautiful and very “Fazio”. I have played it before and it is a fun track, very playable even for a 9 handicap hacker like myself. But what struck me most about my visit in the midst of routing a course with limited land, is the expanse of the golf course proper. I literally could fit a very nice 9 holes on three of the holes out there. Give me the 12th, 18th and 9th holes, and I would have plenty to work with. This is mainly because the goal of the resort was to host a PGA Tour event, and they host their Turning Stone Resort Championship in fine fashion. The planning included space for bleachers, corporate tents, paved cart paths throughout, “spectator mounding”, etc. It’s a completely different design criteria.

So there is no definitive amount of land needed for 18 holes. Donald Ross’ answer is still a good one. But if we are to grow the game of golf, we need to create interesting courses nearer to urban populations where we can expose the game to the maximum number of people who have never tried it. This means designing courses on smaller pieces of land and will require more creativity from the architect. Certainly, it is a greater test of ones ability to design a fine shorter course with limited land than a longer course on an expansive remote piece of property. I think as an industry we should be headed into smaller urban parcels where potential players are abundant, even if the land is limited. Players will eventually travel to play golf in remote areas but we need to let “interesting golf” - and not necessarily "long golf" - get them hooked first.