17 the role of vegetation in golf design, too. “I was blown away as a young designer by the natural vegetation, the beauty of the heather, gorse and fescue. It’s magical,” says Hearn. “The relationship between that gnarly-ness, the different vegetation and the contrast of the fairways, approaches, runoffs and greens, it really is a world that is in logical order. You’ll be looking at your shot angle and options and then glance to the side and see an untamed paradise.” Hearn has sought to achieve similar in the US. “I have pushed that envelope with my clients,” he says. “I have contrasted that unruliness with manicured fairways and greens at White Lake and the Donald Ross Memorial course in Michigan and at New Jersey’s Metedeconk National.” Hearn was able to push a links aesthetic even further at Mistwood in Chicago. He and the late owner Jim McWethy decided to build some vertical-faced pot bunkers and introduce fescue throughout the course. “Some people don’t have the chance to go to Scotland or Ireland, so I gave them a little bit of a taste and they love it,” says Hearn. “Since the renovation in 2013, the club has become one of the most financially successful public golf facility in the Midwest, and I give thanks to that little touch of Scotland and Ireland.” At Florida’s Santa Rosa Golf & Beach Club, sandy terrain made links features a natural choice for Bergin. “We made excellent use of the site’s sandy dunes and natural vegetation,” he says. “We also incorporated closely mown areas with gentle slopes on firm ground, allowing balls to feed to interesting chipping areas – from those positions, a wide variety of recovery shots can be hit.” “To remain relevant, golf in America must take on its competition,” says Liddy. “Golf can offer solitude and natural elegance against the crass modern society, a private experience instead of mass media. But we need to stop building artificial golf courses, with cart paths, range finders and yardage markers. If we drive our golf cart and play to yardages all day, why not just play to targets on a range? What is the difference? To compete in today’s society, golf needs to offer the antithesis of today’s society, not a reflection of it. Links golf courses provide the natural, sustainable model for a healthy outdoor exercise.” • Photo: Raymond Hearn, ASGCA At Mistwood in Chicago, Raymond Hearn created a links aesthetic by incorporating fescue throughout the course and building some vertical-faced pot bunkers
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy NzQ1NTk=