By Design - Summer 2019

15 golf and tourism in Bulgaria and has also provided exposure to the local population while also creating economic benefits. Thracian Cliffs hosted the Volvo World Match Play while BlackSeaRama has held the Bulgarian Open on numerous occasions.” The number of registered golfers in Bulgaria has also increased by over 500 per cent between 2010 and 2018, according to data from KPMG’s latest Golf Participation Report for Europe . “Contribution, adaptability and sustainable benefits are key drivers when designing golf courses in emerging markets,” says Lawrence. “There are so many variables when venturing into the unknown. Listening to the client, understanding the culture and having an open mind are all creditable attributes when designing and implementing golf in new markets. “Limited resources, cultural differences, language barriers and the lack of experienced personnel are the biggest hurdles in delivering golf courses in new markets. Be assured, there will always be challenges when designing golf courses in developing markets, but it’s how you react and solve these challenges that makes the biggest difference. “We hope that every project we have undertaken provides a significant contribution to the game of golf and also benefits the local community. It is a privilege to design golf courses around the world and to expose the sport to people that know little about this great game.” Agile Golf & Country Club “During my three decades working as a professional golf architect as well as landscape architect around the globe, my firm’s golf courses have almost always impacted the direction and quality of development in each country and region in which we have worked in a positive manner,” says Mark Hollinger, ASGCA, of JMP Golf Design Group. “Not so much merely because it is the introduction of a recreational endeavor such as the game of golf, but because we—as land planners, landscape architects and golf designers all rolled into one—had the unique opportunity to create a new total natural environment for the places in which people live and work on a grand scale. We have been blessed to have the chance to create something on a massive piece of land which could be much improved over the typical urban and concrete sprawl which has gone before. “Most of our projects, which have provided the most impact for a specific region, have been planned residential commercial golf community developments, which have a golf course as the main recreational and view-oriented open space feature. The golf course provides recreational opportunity, but beyond it provides an open space for people to enjoy a new living, natural, green environment in which to live and work. One which attracts wildlife, with green grass, blue flowing water, trees and white sand.” Hollinger’s firm was responsible for one of the first residential golf communities in mainland China— Photo: JMP Golf Design Group Above: Agile Golf & Country Club in Zhongshan was the first residental golf community in China, with JMP Golf Design's Mark Hollinger, ASGCA, responsible for the design. Left: Jeff Lawrence, ASGCA, helped to create Thracian Cliffs in Bulgaria, one of the first 18-hole golf courses in the country.