Hazards play tricks on golfers’ minds, deceiving their eyes
look at the natural terrain and see if it can be turned into a hazard. Sometimes, we’ll even design a complete hole around it.
At our latest project, at New Giza in Egypt, we are making perfect use of the natural surroundings to bring hazards into play. The course, which is in view of the Pyramids, is set out in a disused quarry with dramatic cliffs. We have been able to incorporate the old quarry wall into our design, using it as a ‘natural’ hazard. You might not think of a wall running down the edge of a hole as a hazard, but there is no doubt that it will certainly make you think as you stand on the tee - the last thing you will want to do is ricochet a ball off it. While a quarry wall is an obvious
hazard, there are surreptitious hazards dotted around many golf courses, the most common of which is simply the cut of the grass. The recent US Open at Torrey Pines was a prime example of using long grass as a hazard. Letting the rough grow very long can be extremely penal, as trying to get out of thick vegetation is much tougher than escaping most bunkers.
Some people say this is unfair, but my friend and partner, five-times British Open Champion Peter Thomson, always used to say that he would figure out where the trouble was on a golf course and then make sure he avoided it. Of course, there are some hazards
The 10th at Cedar Hills, Utah
around the world that aren’t seen as hazards at all, but more iconic symbols of the course itself. Take Portugal’s Penha Longa, for
example. This course has an ancient Roman aqueduct running across it and, while it is a fascinating sight, it is still a hazard because it does what we want all hazards to do - play tricks on your mind. Having marvelled at it, when you line up your shot you will be wary that you don’t hit the aqueduct or get stuck behind it. One of the most famous, of course, and one of my favourites, is the Old Course Hotel at St Andrews. Before the
hotel was built, there used to be railway sheds poking out into the line of play from the tee. The hotel is now on this site and a single storey wing has replaced the old sheds, so golfers cutting the corner or looking for the right side of the fairway, which is the ideal angle from which to approach the green, still have to play over the building. It’s an exciting and daunting drive requiring great thought, yet seems to perfectly complement the course’s natural hazards that have been there 600 years.
About the author: Tim Lobb is a partner of Thomson Perrett & Lobb based in London, working with five-times British Open Champion Peter Thomson and leading Australian architect Ross Perrett. For more information, visit
www.tpl.eu.com
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