News

In August, Rick Robbins will join with fellow ASGCA member Lester George to address the relationship between the golf course builders and the golf architects. This event will take place as part of the Golf Course Builders annual meeting which is being held this year at the World Golf Village in historic St. Augustine, Florida.

“I have always felt that there is a special relationship between the guys who build the courses and those who design them” says Rick. “Sometimes it is an adversarial relationship just because of the nature of the business but most of the time we all know we depend on each other to create great golf courses and neither can do it without the other”.

In November, Rick Robbins, ASGCA Vice President will be a co-presenter with Bill Love, ASGCA at a seminar entitled “Golf’s Use of Water – Its Challenges and Opportunities” which is being conducted by the United States Golf Association. This symposium will bring together experts from government, business, science, academia and golf to identify and discuss the most challenging issues regarding golf’s use of water.

Rick Robbins and Bill Love have both been active in the discussion and promotion of environmentally sustainable golf over their almost 40 year careers and they realize that water is fast becoming the most critical issue with golf around the world.

After very positive reviews by the membership of Echo Valley of the renovation last fall of The Vale Nine, an evaluation of the construction bid is currently under way to decide the final scope of work to be performed and the best date to start. The Creek Nine will represent a larger project in scope than was needed for the Vale as there are more holes that are subject to flooding on this nine. Earthworks to change some lake shapes, deepen others and to create wetland/marsh flood control areas will be more extensive than were required on the Vale.

As proposed, all bunkers will be rebuilt with shaping, liner, drainage and new sand. A major revision to hole #4 will be made that will create a two-level fairway that will provide very different strategic options for play. A new stream channel will be constructed along the right side of hole #6 that will alter the strategy here, especially the tee shot. Other parts of holes will be reshaped so that flood water will drain away as soon as the water returns to within the stream banks instead of forming pools on the fairways.

This 27-hole golf course within a 2,000 acre master planned community has been working through several issues related to wetlands definitions because rules for what defines wetland areas have changed since the project started development 6 years ago. The project has been reviewed and wetland boundaries set by the EPA. This has allowed us to work with the owner recently to make all necessary revisions to the golf course that will set the final routing. Rick Robbins visited the site in June with Bert Exum, the developer, and together they walked the centerlines for all the holes that remained to be set.

The golf course will be designed in the style of those in Pinehurst because of the very similar features of the land. The existing terrain features elevation changes that total almost 70’ from high to low in any area very near the coast. The soils are sandy with pine trees, scrub oak and wax myrtle. Much of the area within the course will be left in its natural state and planted in native grass to reduce water usage and retain wildlife habitat. Both the golf course and community will be certified as an Audubon Gold level facility.

Real estate sales and community development activities have been going at a good pace with several different neighborhoods offering a variety of styles and price range homes having already been developed. The community amenity center has been completed and offers a wide range of activities for residents. Now it looks as if the main amenity of golf should be a reality in the near future.

The classic style, parkland course that will resemble the designs of Dr. Alistair McKenzie has been under construction since last summer and the progress has been very good. As of January, 2012, the entire course earthworks have been completed by a combination of Forward Golf Management and Pan China Golf, acting as contractors and construction managers. All holes on the 1st nine holes have been shaped and shaping is progressing well on the back nine. It is expected that the course will be planted beginning in May of this year with an opening sometime in the late summer or early fall.

The golf clubhouse and community center buildings are also well under way. The golf and community center buildings are located adjacent to each other, separated by the main entry boulevard but connected by a walk bridge for pedestrians and a tunnel for golf carts. Both facilities are located at higher elevations on the site, giving them panoramic views of many golf holes in the valley to the south. In addition, extensive work is being done on the first areas of housing development. This project is moving very quickly but is being built with a high degree of quality.