Machrihanish Dunes to Undergo Course Enhancements Prior..

[Kintyre Forum News]

Machrihanish Dunes to Undergo Course Enhancements Prior to 2010 Spring Season

Machrihanish, Scotland – November 18, 2009 - Southworth Development, owners of Machrihanish Dunes, the celebrated new championship links golf course on the west coast of Scotland’s Mull of Kintyre, announced today that the it will be undertaking a series of routine course modificstions over the winter months aimed at further enhancing the experience for visiting golfers in 2010.

The course, which opened to wide acclaim in July, 2009, was the creation of Scottish golf course architect David McLay Kidd and was built on a site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSi). Working hand-in-hand with Scottish National Heritage, Kidd and the course’s developers carefully created Machrihanish Dunes in a way that would have the least possible impact on the beautiful natural environment. Machrihanish Dunes was built without machinery and in a way that harkened back to the way courses were designed at the turn of the 20th Century, when Old Tom Morris was at work next door at Machrihanish Golf Club designing the famed links course there. Now, with a half season of play having taken place, the opportunity arose to enhance the course.

“We have received overwhelmingly positive feedback on the golf course but we will always continue to look for ways to enhance it,” said Greg Sherwood, President of Southworth Golf. “There were a couple areas that we felt we could change in order to make the course even more enjoyable for the average player. Working with Scottish National heritage and our environmental consultant, Carol Crawford , we came up with a plan that will allow us to provide a better experience to all future golfers.”

Specifically, the course’s 8th green will be moved closer to the fairway, shortening the hole and reducing the carry required to reach the green. That change will also allow the location of the second tee to be shifted inland, a point from which the fairway will be more visible from the tee. The 9th fairway will also be widened a bit, which will help both on tee shots as well as making the approach to the green more straightforward. Finally, work will also be done to reduce the severity of specific areas of the secondary rough.

In order to complete the work with the least impact on course availability possible, Southworth has decided to close the course for a period of time, which is expected to commence after the first of the year and conclude by the end of March.

“Closing the course for any period of time is not an easy decision to make,” Sherwood said. “But it’s consistent with the kind of experience we want to provide visiting golfers. It’s typical for new courses to undergo slight changes in the months after they open, based on what we learn about how the course plays in its first season. We’re glad to be in a position to be able to effect these changes in such a timely way, because we know that in the end, visitors to this course will enjoy it all the more as a result.”

For more information contact Nancy Powers at npowers@southworthdevelopment.com or call 617.584.4045.