Plantation Course Features Asia’s First Triple Green
(SCOTTSDALE, Ariz.) — Schmidt-Curley Design — the full-service golf-course architecture, master-planning and construction-management firm — today announces that 18 holes at the 27-hole Plantation Course at Siam Country Club are now open for play.
Two nines, the par-36, 3,759-yard Tapioca and par-36, 3,645-yard Pineapple, feature Asia’s first triple green. The Tapioca’s seventh hole and the Pineapple’s fourth and ninth holes play to a single green measuring more than 20,000 square feet (1,916 square meters).
"The triple green feature at the Plantation Course evolved as we worked out the routing for the three nines," says Lee Schmidt, founding partner and industry veteran for more than 35 years. "We had a large open area that abutted the clubhouse and thought that a triple green would make a unique focal point so long as it could be played without endangering fellow golfers."
The green’s meandering putting surface is contiguous and is divided into three distinct sections by large swales. Number seven on the Tapioca is a par-3 of 178 yards, while numbers four and nine on the Pineapple are lengthy par-4s of 490 and 469 yards, respectively.
The Sugarcane, the property’s par-36, 3,736-yard third nine, is scheduled to open on April 1.
Formerly a tapioca and pineapple plantation, the property’s geological and natural characteristics include rugged ravines bisecting its Paspalum fairways and mature trees augmented by landscape ground cover and plantings. The Plantation Course also features significant elevation changes that result in several breathtaking views of the beaches of Pattaya and the Gulf of Thailand approximately seven miles away.
Siam Country Club’s Old Course, a Schmidt-Curley renovation project completed in Fall 2007 and host of last October’s Honda LPGA Thailand, lies little more than one mile away. The Old Course’s high-flashed bunkering was eschewed in favor of a minimally-flashed and lower-lipped style at the Plantation Course.
Says Schmidt: "We wanted to differentiate the two courses as much as possible and felt the vastly different bunkering, in tandem with the Plantation Course’s undulating terrain, would accomplish this goal. Members and their guests will now be able to enjoy two dissimilar, yet equally pleasurable, playing experiences."
The project took 14 months to complete and was significantly aided by Flagstick Golf Course Construction Management, Schmidt-Curley Design’s in-house construction arm headed by industry veteran, Martin Moore.
"Flagstick was a vital partner in the endeavor," says Schmidt. "We know that when Martin and his team are on the job we aren’t going to have to worry about budgeting, staffing or scheduling. This in turn allows us to concentrate our full attention on the more specialized aspects of the assignment."
Flagstick, in conjunction with the firm’s recently-opened office on China’s Hainan Island, will enable Schmidt-Curley to optimally service their clients in the region.
About Schmidt-Curley Design, Inc.
Founded by partners Lee Schmidt and Brian Curley and based in Scottsdale, Arizona, Schmidt-Curley is a full-service, international golf-course architecture and master-planning firm with more than 100 layouts in 24 countries, including the U.S., Thailand, China, Vietnam, Mexico, Egypt, Sweden, and Korea. The tandem is responsible for crafting 10 of the 12 courses at storied Mission Hills Golf Club in Shenzhen, China — the largest golf complex in the world.
Schmidt-Curley teamed with long-time partner Nick Faldo, as well as Ernie Els, Jose Maria Olazabal, David Duval, Annika Sorenstam, Vijay Singh, David Ledbetter and Jumbo Ozaki to create a golf experience unlike any other globally. High profile, award-winning projects from Schmidt-Curley include Bali Hai and Siena Golf Clubs (Las Vegas), Amata Spring Golf Club (Chonburi, Thailand, two-time host of the PGA European Tour’s Royal Trophy), Terra Lago Golf Club (Indio, California, site of the Skins Game from 1999 – 2002), Twin Creeks Golf Club (Cedar Park, Texas), and Crosby National Golf Club (Rancho Santa Fe, California).
Schmidt-Curley has also worked extensively with golf’s biggest names — including Jack Nicklaus, Pete Dye, Fred Couples and Faldo on numerous high-profile projects — and boasts four ASGCA members (Lee Schmidt, Brian Curley, Grant Haserot and Andy Raugust).
Producing demanding yet beautiful and enjoyable courses, Schmidt-Curley strives to create golf experiences that stir the senses and elevate golfers’ appreciations for the land and the game. By balancing classic golf course architecture with ever-changing contemporary technology, Schmidt-Curley places an emphasis on site-adaptive courses, memorable and enjoyable for all levels of play and always designed for cost-efficient maintenance and operations. For more information, visit www.schmidt-curley.com or call 480-483-1994.
Contact:
Shane Sharp
Buffalo Communications
704.519.8381 (cell)
ssharp@billycaspergolf.com
Stephen Reynolds
Buffalo Communications
703.761.1444
sreynolds@billycaspergolf.com
