Course designer Barrie Gregson is overseeing the new 9-hole at Woodside Golf Glub in Cheshire where all the work is being carried out in house


A mineral GOLDMINE


By LAURENCE GALE MSc


WOODSIDE Golf Club is a family owned business that boasts a unique design and landscape. For any golf


enthusiast the club provides excellent quality greens and fairways that are surrounded by the magnificent scenery provided by the lush Cheshire countryside.


The 9-hole course is a Pay and Play facility and currently over 50,000


rounds of golf are played at Woodside each year. This is a phenomenal amount of golfers and would have adverse effects on many greens and fairways in the UK. Woodside are, however, able to accommodate this number quite easily, because the course is rarely affected by winter weather.


The Club remains open 365 days of the year due to the rich, free natural


draining sands and soils the land possesses. The area has a reputation for natural sand and quality soil profiles that run beneath the Cheshire countryside.


The course is able to


withstand plenty of golf and machinery traffic during the wettest months of November to February, without getting any significant surface damage. This is only


possible with the strategic management of resources (materials, machinery and labour) overseen by the present Head Greenkeeper Richard Corless who often works long hours to ensure


the course looks its best. Richard has been at the course for 6 years and has overseen its development helped with the assistance of the golf course director. He also manages a driving range at the site, which is again open to the public all year round.


To help maintain the high standard of the course and facilities, Richard has


recently acquired two other staff.


The Woodside golf course directors have recently


authorised the construction of a brand new, nine-hole academy course. The work began in October and is being carried out in-house under the supervision of Barrie Gregson a golf design consultant whose previous work includes some De-vere courses and Mottram Hall Hotel complex.


THERE are a number of factors that make Woodside a unique course:


· The new course has been designed to fit in a relatively small area, utilising effectively only 12 acres of land.


· It has been specifically designed to test the skills and patience of the golfer.


· Each hole will offer different hazards and green topography to challenge the golfer.


There is even a Mackenzie


green thrown in for good measure.


· All the labour is carried out in house with Barrie working closely alongside Richard and all other Greenkeeping staff.


· All the materials for the land shaping, modelling and constructing of the greens and tees will be resourced from site using their own machinery.


Under Barrie’s guidance Richard operates the excavator and is also


responsible for all the earth moving and shaping. Their challenge is turning a relative flat piece of land into a challenging nine-hole academy course in less than ten weeks.


All this is only possible


due to the fact that the local soils at Woodside are made up of a perfect sand and soil composition. All the topsoil present on the site is


consistent in depth (450mm) and is classified as a sandy loam soil. The underlying sand consists of a clean


medium / fine sand, with an even particle size


distribution, thus making it ideal material for green constructions.


A number of canals and lakes have already been built. These have been constructed by simply


excavating, modelling and then laying out membranes to hold the water. The


process is easier due to


there being very little stone debris present in the land. They have been designed so water will flow throughout the canal and lake features, thus helping to oxygenate the water and produce essential water movement creating features that are alive and interesting.


Barrie has created a real challenge for the golfers at every hole and has worked the design around ideas and experiences he has seen over the years working in the industry. Working with Dave Thomas has


influenced Barrie in many respects, in that a golf


course should compliment the area and topography of the local landscape.


Woodside utilises and makes superb use of the natural features (trees, water,


woodland) found within the land, to ultimately create a stunning landscape.


Barrie has also designed the course to feature a


number of hazards, bunkers, water, trees and cunningly placed pin positions. One green is a plateau green offering a dome to hit from 100 yards, however, once on the green you may find yourself over putting, off downwardly steep slopes. All the greens average


about 250m squared in size therefore making accuracy an essential skill required when playing this course. Golfers short game skills


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