By Design – Issue 53, Summer 2021

20 plan smaller footprints or even not leave a footprint at all… rethink the water, the materials, the labor, the resources we use to build and maintain a golf course.” Less demand for sand Bunkers are often among the first features to be rethought when considering a club’s operational efficiency. Some clubs are rejecting a flashy, sprawling style – sometimes employed to provide eye-catching visuals – in favor of a more functional style that defines playing strategy but is more economical. In Asbury, Iowa, for example, Kevin Norby, ASGCA, has reduced the overall bunker square footage at The Meadows Golf Club by nearly 50 percent. “The city was looking to reduce the time required to maintain their bunkers after a rainstorm,” says Norby. “With an average annual rainfall of 36 inches, the maintenance staff were spending a lot of time and resources pulling sand back up on faces and pumping bunkers out. They also wanted to improve pace of play as many bunkers no longer came into play for the low handicap golfer but instead penalized the shorter hitter and high handicap golfer.” Those poorly positioned bunkers were eliminated or relocated, while some new ones were added to enhance the course strategy. Norby also reduced the size of existing bunkers to make the course more playable and easier to maintain. “The elimination of those bunkers that seemed to only affect the higher handicap player dramatically improved our pace of play,” says general manager Jeremy Hawkins. “We experienced an average of a 45-minute decrease in pace of play for 18 holes last season – all while the course was full of players due to the increase in play from COVID-19. “The labor required to maintain our bunkers has also been greatly reduced, which allows our crew to focus on areas that they normally wouldn’t have had time to give their full attention to – especially after rain events.” Hawkins adds that the club’s golf- related revenues for 2020 are up nine percent year in comparison to 2019. “We were doing pretty well in 2019,” he said. “But we had 4,739 more rounds in 2020, roughly a 20 percent increase. That’s not too bad considering we were closed in parts of March and April, and at one point in April and May were mandated to 15-minute tee time intervals, and people could only play with members of their own household” Like The Meadows, Westlake Golf & Country Club in Jackson, New Photo: Brett Hochstein Bunkers at Teton Pines in Wyoming, are being reworked as part of a renovation led by Thad Layton, ASGCA LESS IS MORE