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Presidio Renovation Continues for Suny, Zokol Golf Design

 Presidio Golf Course

Hole #14

The Par 4, 346 yd 14th after bunker renovation and green expansion, temp green in foreground

The Presidio Renovation is going very well and this hole represents the halfway point with 9 holes completed and 9 to go. Our mission at Presidio was to create an Era-appropriate renovation. This golf course has been designed, redesigned and altered by so many hands from the greats, Fowler and Simpson to Palmer to various golfing Generals that had "ideas." So, unlike many great old courses, where golf architecture historians can identify a specific period of time when the golf course was deemed to be at its best, the Presidio was in constant flux. Dick and I, along with the folks at Presidio, felt that using Fowler and Simpson and in particular Simpson for our design cues and general concepts was in keeping with and enhancing the property's golf history.

Before

This was a typical look at the Presidio with no real story told from the tee or for the approach shot, We, Suny, Zokol Golf Design, tend to favor visuals to help tell the story or to help the golfer generally identify the strategy or better yet for them to develop their own unique strategy.

Take a look at the front bunker in the before and after pictures. The bunker in the before picture was a green-side bunker, in the after photo, that bunker is some 25 feet in front of the green. This is simply a depth perception manipulation that we used to create a subtle challenge to the golfer that knows the yardage but looks at what is perceived as a green-side bunker that is actually much closer. The green was enlarged by almost 1,500 square feet and extended to the players' right with some great pin placements. A false front was added to allow players to "see" the green from the fairway. Short grass is being added around the back and right side of the green. We can't wait to see how the golfers react to the finished hole and we're looking forward to the next nine holes!

Golf and the Housing Market

About a decade and a half ago, I heard something interesting about housing and golf. What I had heard was that home buyers valued and were willing to pay as much for passive open space frontage and as they would for golf frontage. Well, it seems if developers have learned their lesson, albeit a little bit late. This article from The Herald-Tribune in Sarasota FL published after the NAHB International Builders' Show in Las Vegas clearly does not bode well for new golf courses as real estate amenities.

The Landing's community in Sarasota has more than four miles of walking trails and a nature trail. Developers are finding more interest in such amenities.

HERALD-TRIBUNE ARCHIVE / 2012 / THOMAS BENDER

By Harold Bubil

Published: Friday, January 25, 2013 at 1:00 a.m.

Last Modified: Thursday, January 24, 2013 at 9:04 p.m.

LAS VEGAS - Although the number of houses specifically being developed for those 55 and over is expected to grow by more than one fifth this year, at least one amenity will not be prevalent: Golf.

According to a survey by housing groups, interest in golf courses by baby boomers and others has waned and, for developers, new golf courses do noteconomic sense.

"Golf courses are expensive to build and maintain, and they take a lot of time to play," said W. Don Whyte, chairman of the National Association of Home Builders' 50+ Housing Council.

In their place, developers are installing walking trails, wellness centers and other active amenities for a new breed of senior that is healthier and will likely live longer than his or her parents.

At developments in Utah, where Whyte lives, walking trails and vegetable gardens are proving to be a "tremendously popular amenity. You compare that to the investment you have to make for a golf course," he said, "and it is astronomical the difference in cost."

Developers in Southwest Florida are also reacting to the changing trends. In November, builder Taylor Morrison is planning to expand its Esplanade community in Manatee County with a pair of amenity centers, tennis courts, a restaurant, walking trails and a 6,000-square-foot wellness center.

It is also, however, planning a new 18-hole golf course at Esplanade.

The changes come as experts predict a 22 percent jump in the number of senior housing units in 2013, according to statistics released at the 2013 International Builders Show here.

But the "active adult" community is not a one-size-fits-all proposition, either.

In the Lakewood Ranch area, for example, Rosedale Golf & Country Club is adding a new phase but has abandoned plans to add nine additional golf holes in favor of more houses.

"Golf courses are not doing that well right now," said developer Pat Hogan, of the Hunt Group.

That said, high-end golf clubs such as Concession and the Founders Club, in Sarasota, have reported renewed interest and increased memberships -- perhaps signalling that golfers prefer existing, tried courses to new ones.

Meanwhile, walking and jogging trails, along with simple sidewalks and park areas, are the amenities most likely to attract both baby boomers and seniors, said Paul Emrath, the NAHB's vice president of survey and housing-policy research.

"These are also the two most popular amenities among younger home buyers. The older the buyers, however, the more likely they are to prefer a community offering an outdoor maintenance service," said Emrath.

"It's also interesting to see that many of the baby boomers and seniors who buy homes prefer to live in suburbs and rural areas, rather than in central cities."

The growth in construction of 55-plus housing units is expected to continue as the share of U.S. households in that age group -- now 14 percent -- increases significantly through 2020. NAHB is projecting 74,300 more units in 2013, and another 20 percent rise, to 89,071, in 2014.

"For the longest time, there wasn't even a reason to look into 55-plus housing, as many consumers weren't able to sell their existing homes at a fair price," said Whyte, of South Jordan, Utah. "That is beginning to change as the overall housing market continues to improve."

Root Development on Non-USGA Greens

In the past, I have railed against the USGA green construction method (USGA Greens and The Emperor's New Clothes) as being a mistake and founded on poor assumptions. The reason for this is simply that I have never believed that their construction method would grow better grass or provide better putting qualities than some other methods. Additionally, USGA greens will cost more to build and maintain, while possibly leading to more leaching of nutrients and pesticides into drainage-ways than some other construction methods.

The pictures below were sent to me from Sagebrush Golf & Sporting Club's Superintendent, Norley Calder. Sagebrush is a Whitman, Zokol, Suny design, built with a non-USGA green construction method that I developed to achieve a superior low maintenance, low input putting surface. Norley has these greens running at 11.5 feet on a daily basis with a single cut and no rolling while being irrigated once every 7-10 days during the hottest summer weather. Sagebrush's green roots may be one and a half feet deep and these non-USGA greens may be the best putting surfaces in all of Canada.

Sagebrush Golf and Sporting Club Spring 2011

How deep do these roots go?

USGA greens typically have their deepest and densest roots in their first full year and by year two, the root depth is reduced to seven or eight inches maximum with much less mass. Conversely, greens built with sound agronomic principals get better with age and rooting gets better from year to year, not worse. Pictures don't lie and neither do roots!

Italian Grape Hoes

Quite a few people have asked me the significance of using Italian Grape Hoes to finish bunkers. It's a little bit like the old adage: if you have to ask how much something costs you can't afford it. With the Italian Grape Hoe, if you have to ask why its a better tool to finish bunkers with, then you have never used one.

The Italian Grape Hoe (IGH) has a heavy sharp blade 7-8 inches wide, depending on the manufacturer, and 10 inches high. It typically comes with a handle that is 5 feet long.

With the IGH, when finishing, renovating or edging bunkers, one always works from within the bunker. One simply chops down and pulls back a chunk of what ever material is being worked. It is at least twice as fast as using a shovel. As you can tell by the photo above, the IGH has a curved head, so it allows you to easily create the "right" angle on the edges of the bunkers, even when working on steep faces.

The first time that I saw or used an Italian Grape Hoe was at Merion Golf Club in 1980 when we did a lot of renovation/restoration work on the bunkers prior to the Open. Apparently, they had been using them since Flynn was the Head Greenkeeper and Joe Valentine was the Construction Foreman. When Flynn left, Joe Valentine took over as Head Greenkeeper and then Richie Valentine took over as Superintendent. I was Richie's Assistant in 1980 and 81.

In a future post, I'll describe "chunking" to make repairs and create features in bunkers, another original technique from the early days that was handed down to Valentine and from him to me.