Golf Course Redesign and Remodelling at
Craddockstown Golf Club, Co Kildare, Ireland - A Case Study | May 2003 What about disruption, we want to be able to keep playing the course while the work is in progress? Golf course architect Roger Jones profiles the human side of a remodelling project at Craddockstown Golf Club in Co Kildare, Ireland, providing an insight into the planning and attention required, and how when done properly, such a project can run very smoothly and without disruption. Background It was February 1999 and on a cold damp morning, over coffee in the clubhouse, an outline of the problems and areas of concern was given by Donal O'Keefe, the Club Captain. A walk of the course followed and the preliminaries of the design process had begun. In March of this year construction work finally got under way and will be finished at the end of June. The intervening four years have seen a variety of design solution drawings, cost estimates, development committee meetings, more costings, deliberations over phased construction or all at one time, questions and answers, Annual General Meetings and Extraordinary General Meetings - all part and parcel of the workings and politics of undoubtedly a typical member-owned golf club. There was a strong desire to redesign, remodel, reconstruct and generally upgrade the golf course on the part of a number of club officials and members. Getting the necessary democratic approval for, and being able to finance such a plan, was a task for another day. There were some club officials and members who could see no need or no potential benefit in such a project and felt the club couldn't afford it anyway. Hence four years have elapsed since Roger Jones of Roger Jones Golf Design was first asked to visit the course to meet Donal O'Keefe and others. Club Captains and committees have changed but the people with the ambition and drive to see the project come to fruition have remained, the aforementioned Mr O'Keefe being at the head of that list. Mention must also go the lady members of the development committee. At every stage their contribution was very constructive and very helpful to the architect, particularly in relation to the siting of tees and other features that would impact on the lady members' play on the golf course.  But the maturing members of Craddockstown - maturing in golf terms that is - had come to recognise these deficiencies and wanted to do something about it. Coincidentally, if further proof of their proactive, get up and go approach was needed, in 1999 they built a brand new clubhouse at a cost of over IR£1 million. Project Brief So back to 1999 and the 'brief' that was given to Roger Jones on that February day. The 13th hole was highlighted as being 'uninteresting and unnecessarily long', other holes were described as 'featureless', the par 3's were described as too long and too similar in character, the course had no fairway bunkers, the ponds did not really come into play, there were drainage problems in a number of areas and a gravel layer that had been put into all the greenside bunkers when they were constructed was now coming to the surface and causing damage to maintenance machinery and members golf clubs. Another factor to be considered was that the town of Naas was growing rapidly and new residential development was getting ever closer to the golf course boundaries - to avoid potential dangers in the future it may be necessary to relocate some teeing areas. After taking these primary issues into account Roger Jones was given a free hand, within reason, to come up with other ideas that could add to the strategy, playability and overall appearance of the golf course. After a number of design proposals and variations, some arising out of new problems emerging, and variations because of cost implications, the scheme agreed between Roger Jones and club officials comprised some new greens, new tees, over 3 acres of additional lakes, new fairway bunkers, fairway mounding, the reshaping and reconstruction of all existing greenside bunkers, reshaping of existing open drain and hundreds of metres of new pipe drainage. Discussion, deliberation, cogitation, and sometimes procrastination was finally brought to a head by the 2002 Club Captain and chairman of the club's development committee Brendan Byrne. Brendan decided that during his term of office it was time for the club to either 'put up or shut up' or 'pee or get off the pot'. Exactly which phrase was used or in how strong a terms cannot be remembered but everyone knew what was meant!. In September an EGM of the club was held and thankfully the required majority voted in favour of the scheme. After three and a half years it was now all systems go and go quickly. Roger Jones began producing the detailed drawings and contract documentation to be able to go to tender, appoint a contractor and allow construction to start in March 2003. It had previously been decided that the earlier in the year the work could start the better for the club. Tenders were out early December 2002 and in just before Christmas. The club and Roger Jones met early in January 2003 and after careful consideration the contract was awarded to Contour Golf Ltd. Disruption and Damage At every stage of the process, in every discussion, the Club were very adamant about their need to be able to continue playing the golf course and expressed their apprehensions about disruption and damage. Craddockstown Golf Club has a large active playing membership, a full competition diary and a full diary of golf societies and corporate visitors. Understandably the revenue and reputation gained from these was too important to lose. In spite of the meticulous planning that was going into the construction programme, reassurances by Roger Jones that disruption would be minimal were rarely sufficient to appease. Only time and the actualities of the construction programme were going to prove it, or not, as the case may be. Construction As soon as topsoil stripping began in the areas to be worked the real extent of what was about to happen in the coming weeks could be seen by officials and members alike. To some it was very exciting, to others it no doubt brought alarm and disbelief. A six week period of dry weather in March and April enabled earthworks to progress quicker than expected and put the contractors ahead of schedule. With over 30,000m3 of material being excavated, carted and shaped elsewhere around the course the potential for disruption and damage to the golf course was always there. However, the detailed planning and regular supervision by Roger Jones and the careful but highly productive approach taken by Contour Golf has ensured that this has not happened. The members of Craddockstown Golf Club and the fee paying visitors and golf societies have continued to play the golf course on a daily basis. At no time has the club had to endure more than 2 temporary greens in the entire 18 holes and when work in any area has been completed, play to the permanent green has been resumed.  A good example of this has been on the 10th hole where a new lake has been excavated on the approach to and around the green. No sooner was the main excavation completed, the flag was replaced in the green and golfers played over the then empty lake. The greenkeeping staff even placed the required red hazard markers around the perimeter and the new hazard was immediately in play. The next day the course was host to a golfing society with more than 150 players and there were no complaints to be heard. The overall effect of this approach has been to generate very positive feedback from members and visitors, all of whom have been able to experience the features of the new-look golf course even though they are not yet completed. Similarly, new fairway bunkers have been shaped and although still to be finally finished, drained and sanded are giving golfers more to think about as they plot their way around the Co. Kildare course. The majority opinion has been that they eagerly look forward to seeing everything grassed and grown and in its new-found splendour. Bringing each feature of the course back into play in the earliest possible time frame was always a consideration. In this regard, the reshaping and reconstruction of existing greenside bunkers and the addition of some new ones has been carried out very efficiently. The excavation and shaping has been immediately followed by the turfing of the bunker surrounds. During the work the temporary green created by the Club is in put into use. Immediately upon completion (within the same day) the flag is replaced in the permanent green, the bunkers roped off and treated as ground under repair for play purposes. The next golfers to that green are confronted by a different aspect to the hole than they had previously been used to. At this stage it is fair to say that golfers are now noticing bunkers that they probably didn't realise every existed before. All mention of disruption and damage to the course has now disappeared. The reassurances that Roger Jones gave about minimal disruption are now being believed. Communication Communication has played a vital role in ensuring that the needs of all parties are met and that progress is smooth and without duress. Lines of communication were quickly established between Roger Jones, the contractors site representative Liam Cotter, the golf course superintendent Kevin Byrne and the club's General Manager Gay Nolan. The current club captain, Pat Corrigan, has also played a pivotal role in this. Pat has been at the club most days and as well as being a keen golfer found on the course at every opportunity, has ensured that the contractors are aware of events happening on the course and conversely finds out where work is to carried out in the forthcoming days and what temporary variations to the course are needed, if any, for the clubs next competition or visiting group. This approach, a very good lesson in relationship management, is paying dividends for all concerned. Progress Although the Irish climate has taken back some some of the time gains given to the contractor in the early weeks of the construction, the project is on course for completion at the end of June. At the time of writing all major earthworks and shaping have been completed, reshaping of the greenside bunkers on 13 holes has been completed and topsoiling and drainage is underway. Specification Having experienced the problems arising from some of the 'less than well constructed' elements of the original golf course, in spite of budgetary constraints, the club have been keen to ensure that the specification of the upgrade works is not compromised. Industry standards recommended by Roger Jones have been taken on board by the club and these are the standards being worked to by the team from Contour Golf. The Benefits At the early stages of any project the golf course architect can visualise the finished product and the composite elements of it. For a client this is much more difficult and in some cases impossible to appreciate until after completion. The club knew that they didn't want elements of what they had, but they weren't necessarily able to visualise what they would have. The benefits are now becoming fully apparent to them - namely some new greens that offer different challenges to what they are used to, new tees that lengthen some holes and offer a different aspect to others, fairway bunkers that add new character and strategy to holes, reshaped and reconstructed greenside bunkers that are completely different than the existing and in most cases give a very different look and feel to each green complex. Probably the greatest impact will come from the way in which the new lakes are brought into play. Not only do these look good and change the character of the respective holes immeasurably but in some areas they are a major factor in the improved drainage in that area. New pathways and bridges tie in a lot of these new elements. When all of the new golf course features have grown-in and are open for play the result will be a golf course that is vastly differently. A golf course that is more challenging and more rewarding. A golf course that can compete with the best of its neighbours in the region. A golf course that will be more sought after and desirable than previously. In years gone by Craddockstown Golf Club was a well maintained parkland golf course but was always regarded as being easy and a bit featureless. The same will not be said in the future. Return on Investment By the end of the project the club will have invested in excess of half a million euro, not a huge amount but also not small for a members club that is not totally 'commercial'. Potential return on investment can be significant and the investment will undoubtedly be repaid in a very short space of time. The club already has a long waiting list for membership and entrance fees have increased. Green fee rates can be increased more than would otherwise have been the case because the 'product' offered by the club will now be of a much higher standard. The reputation of the club will be further enhanced which in turn can generate higher levels of business. The club is already aware of a number of new opportunities which will be presented to it with an upgraded course, one of which is the potential spin-off from the Ryder Cup Matches 2006 being hosted at the nearby K Club. Lessons to be learnt Other clubs around the golfing world considering similar upgrade projects can learn a lot from the Craddockstown example. First and foremost the importance of hiring a professional golf course architect who will prepare proper drawings and accurate cost estimates, secondly contracting the works to a specialist golf course contractor, especially one that has a good reputation for the standard of their finishing work and one that has proven they can carry out such works without damaging an existing course. Next is planning, planning every element in fine detail to avoid disruption and last but certainly not least communication, making sure the lines of communication are transparent and get used properly. Day to day communication between the parties directly involved is much more important than a whole series of after dark meetings and written reports. Other clubs either thinking about, or about to embark on similar project should take note, and take reassurance from the fact that it is perfectly possible to undertake such a project without disruption to the daily run of play on the course and without damage to other areas of it. |
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