Richard Humphreys

A new reversible short course by Robert Trent Jones II (RTJ II) has opened at Al Badia Golf Club in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.The project came about as the driving range was being repurposed for another use. This led RTJ II to explore alternative locations for the facility, ultimately landing on a 11-acre barren parcel of land near the golf course.“The site provided a blank canvas for our vision,” said Mike Gorman, senior architect at RTJ II. “The brief was...

Rees Jones and Steve Weisser have completed a renovation of the 27 holes at Addison Reserve Country Club in Delray Beach, Florida.The club’s three nines – Redemption, Salvation and Trepidation – were originally designed by Arthur Hills and built in the late 1990s.The $24 million renovation was undertaken in two phases, with work on the practice facilities and Trepidation nine taking place in 2023, then the Redemption and Salvation nines following in...

A new six-hole par-three course designed by Jim Nagle will open in summer 2025 at Chester Valley Golf Club in Malvern, Pennsylvania.Plans for a short course have been in the works for nearly 30 years, since Forse Design developed a masterplan for the club. A par-three layout was proposed for an area previously occupied by two holes from Chester Valley’s original course routing.In 2024, the club approved an updated design by Jim Nagle of Nagle Design Works, comprising six holes...

Hanse Golf Course Design will begin a renovation of The Links at Spanish Bay in Pebble Beach, California, in March 2026.Pebble Beach Company unveiled the timeline for the renovation that will see the course reopen in spring 2027, a few months before the US Open is held at Pebble Beach Golf Links.Gil Hanse and Jim Wagner will lead the project and are planning to transform Spanish Bay from an 1980s-era, Scottish-inspired links to a modern California coastal layout. The project will be...

Manufacturing organisations have been forced to contend with various sector-specific and cross-industry challenges in recent years. Many have been impacted by labour shortages, driven by an ageing workforce and a lack of tech-savvy employees. Other challenges include global inflation, geopolitical tensions, natural disasters, cyberthreats and the lingering effects of the Covid pandemic, as well as supply chain disruptions caused by incidents like the Baltimore bridge collapse and the Red Sea...

Renaissance Golf Design has completed a restoration-inspired renovation of Commonwealth Golf Club in Melbourne, Australia.Tom Doak and Brian Slawnik created a concept plan for the club, with Slawnik leading the work.A first phase of work was completed in 2022, covering greens two to five, thirteen to eighteen and the chipping green, all within the northern portion of the property, as well as some fairway expansion, new bunkers and tee reorientation.“The second...

Grassing is nearly complete on the Palms course at Chhun On Golf Resort, located north of Phnom Penh, Cambodia. The new course joins the Lakes, which opened in January 2024, with both layouts created by Curley-Wagner Golf Design.The resort, which will soon be more easily accessed via a new highway, sits on a former floodplain with both courses created through substantial earthmoving – huge lakes over 10 metres deep were formed to generate the fill to elevate holes and...

Brandon Johnson Golf Course Design and Turfgrass are collaborating on a renovation at Jeremy Ranch Golf and Country Club in Park City, Utah.“Since 1981, Jeremy Ranch has sat virtually untouched,” said Johnson. “Now, the club and its membership realise it is time to reinvest back into the course for continued growth and success for the next 40 years.”The architect has developed a masterplan that focuses on a complete renovation of green complexes,...

Woodhall Spa Golf Club in Lincolnshire, England, has appointed golf consultancy Turfgrass to implement a multi-year agronomy programme for its Hotchkin and Bracken courses.The club’s Hotchkin course began as nine holes laid out by Harry Vardon, was extended to 18 by Harry Colt and then redesigned in the 1920s by club owner Colonel SV Hotchkin. The Bracken course was added by Donald Steel in 1998, and Renaissance Golf Design completed a renovation of the Hotchkin course in...

The January 2025 issue of Golf Course Architecture is out now!Our latest issue features Golf Club Föhr, photographed by Stefan von Stengel, on the cover. Adam Lawrence reports on a visit to the far north of Germany where architect Christian Althaus has completely rebuilt the 27-hole course over the last 15 years.For our main feature in this issue, we ask: is the aesthetic appeal of bunker design overshadowing functionality? Golf architects Bill Coore, Kyle Franz, Robin Hiseman, Jay...