Eden Course Alterations

[Rich Goodale]

Rich

Did you ever play the original Eden config?  I was there early enough but only remember vaguely.

I tried to source pics of those lost holes but can't find anywhere and it wasn't that long ago (20 years or so)....perhaps Tom Doak or Brian Morgan?  The original 16th par 3 would be the most interesting/

Never did, alas.  When I was there fist in 1978 I didn't even know they had any courses other than the Old one!

[Paul_Turner]

Ally

Here:

http://www.golfcoursearchitecture.net/Article/The-origins-of-Eden-at-St-Andrews/1802/Default.aspx#.VF0r4MnYciU

But still nobody appears to have a photo!

[Ally Mcintosh]

Ally

Here:

http://www.golfcoursearchitecture.net/Article/The-origins-of-Eden-at-St-Andrews/1802/Default.aspx#.VF0r4MnYciU

But still nobody appears to have a photo!

I stood by that old 2nd green for about 20 minutes a couple of months back, camera in hand... But there were about 20 Italian students practising on it so it didn't make for a very telling photo.

I'd love to know what the alternate plan was instead of losing those 4 Eden holes.

And was the land of the original 4 holes as it is now or was any of it flattened for the driving range?

Ally

[Brian_Ewen]

http://blog.standrews.com/eden-5th-green-renovations-update/

Eden 5th green renovations – update

A good start has been made to the project in the first week despite some heavy periods of rain. Before stripping the turf we pegged the area of the original green along with recording the levels at various points for reference.





The new size and shape of the green was then marked out and the rootzone from those areas removed. This is then bulked up with sand, screened and mixed to be reused back on-site later.



There are two principal reasons for making changes to the green. Firstly, there was a layer of ash between the rootzone and the sand underneath, which was affecting the drainage of the green. This was common practice in greens construction in days gone by as a way of retaining moisture prior to the advent of irrigation systems. In the past we would’ve been able to regularly punch holes through this layer and connect the rootzone with the sand below, but years of constantly topdressing the green, as we try to retain firm surfaces and keep organic matter levels low has resulted in that layer being deeper than we are able to deep-tine aerate.

Secondly, with constant competition play from the nine local golf clubs here in St Andrews, we were finding it increasingly difficult to provide a variety of suitable pin placings on what is probably the smallest green on the Links. There was always a risk that the ‘safe place’ on the green (back left) was going to flood resulting in competitions being cancelled and having to be rescheduled.

Along with its location, the green’s size and lack of fair pin placings is the reason that we’ve had to rest it for a number of months each winter over the past five years.



With the rootzone cleared, we then mined sand from a nearby area to re-grade levels on selected areas as per the plan.



The bunker located at the front right, 30 yards short of the green has been moved closer to the green. The mound which was in that area has been pushed to the right to allow for better traffic management of the 45,000 golfers who play the course each year. The irrigation sprinklers and pipework has been re-routed to fit the new layout.





With new sand added to the subgrade and firmed, levels have been checked and we’re almost ready to begin replacing the rootzone.



Words by Kevin Muir, Course Manager – Eden, Strathtyrum and Balgove Courses

[Sean Walsh]

They at least appear to have good reasons for doing the work to mitigate the drainage issues. Be nice to know how thorough the "recording the levels at various points" is. 45,000 rounds a year is sure to give them plenty of money to provide for a more detailed survey than that.

A little concerned at increasing the size of the green when the lack of it is one of the main features of the hole.

[Brian_Ewen]

http://blog.standrews.com/eden-5th-green-renovations-complete/



Eden 5th green renovations complete

The renovations to the 5th green of the Eden Course are now complete. Golf course architect, Martin Hawtree has been involved throughout the process and has made several site visits.



The original character and shape of the two-tier green has been retained while the renovations have allowed us to increase the area of the putting surface.

http://blog.standrews.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/01/blog2.jpg[/img]

The bunker on the left of green has been pulled towards the front and reshaped while the rear was lowered to allow better access.



The mound which encroached onto the very right edge of the green has been dragged further right and a new bunker added to protect the back portion of the green. This will allow for better traffic flow.

We can now utilise more of the green for pin placements, while a run off area has been created at the back right.



Rough mounding at the rear of the green screens the 6th tee and walkways have been graded through these to allow golfers easy access to the tee.

Words by Kevin Muir, Course Manager – Eden, Strathtyrum and Balgove Courses

[Brian_Ewen]

The new 5th green on the Eden opens on Monday.

Better not say anymore