Golf Design Matters – Insights from the Inside – hosted by Scott Macpherson

Ever wondered how to layout a golf course to get the best out of a piece of land? With landmark courses around the world, American golf course architect Bill Coore is one of the best at doing this, and in this episode he shares the ideas he has developed with his design partner Ben Crenshaw.  Join the podcast now for Bill's secrets and insights into the wonderful world of golf course routing.

The 150th Open Championship in St Andrews was a thrilling event by all measures. The Old Course was presented in the finest condition ever seen and the firm and fast conditions provided a spectacular event for the players, almost 300,000 spectators, and the millions more watching on television. In this podcast the Course Manager of the Old Course Gordon McKie returns to discuss the challenges faced setting up the course in hot and dry conditions and how his team went about their work to balance green speeds, moisture rates and much more. Listen now to the Special Open Championship Course Review podcast of Golf Design Matters.

The game is in the balance – golf technology vs golf courses. Senior Editor of golf Equipment at Golf Digest – the largest circulation golf publication in the world – joins Scott to discuss the changes in club and ball technology and the impact this may have on golf courses. How far are the pros hitting the golf ball, what is the 'trampoline effect', and how can the Old Course hold up an attack from the best golfers in the world during The Open Championship? These questions and many others are discussed in this episode of Golf Design Matters.

Sir Graham Wylie is a successful self-made businessman with a background in software development who had a dream to develop a golf facility in his home town of Newcastle, England. In 2004 the first steps were taken to secure Close House – an old estate some four miles from Newcastle on the banks of the River Tyne.  The property featured a deteriorating mansion house first built in 1779, and was in the ownership of Newcastle University. Sir Graham bought the property, retained land for the use of the university sports teams, and then set about buying additional land to develop a new course known as the Colt Course – a top 100 golf course that opened in May 2011 and went on to host the 2017 and 2020 British Masters.  Represented on the world stage by touring professional Lee Westwood, Close House is now a 45-hole facility with a modern clubhouse, full length driving range, on-site accommodation, a thriving membership. Hear now how Close House was developed by an owner passionate about creating a first-class golf facility.

Heathland golf courses are a specific type of inland golf course that are characterised by their sandy peat soils, and heather and woodland landscapes. They offer some of the best inland golf and have become internationally renown. Some of the first and finest emerged in the late 19th century and early 20th century and were designed by famous golf designers like Colt, Fowler, Simpson etc. Heathland courses can be found across the UK, but certain areas like Surrey in greater London are home to a cluster of terrific heathland courses like Sunningdale, Wentworth, Swinley Forest, Woking, St George's Hill etc. In this episode Australian-born and UK-based golf course architect Tim Lobb discusses his experiences renovating heathland courses. 

Dr Michael Hurdzan is a  former President of the ASGCA, historian, author, US Army Colonel and has designed a number of golf courses all around the world including  Erin Hills, which  hosted the 2017 US Open. Based in Ohio, Michael has written eight books, one of which is called Golf Greens : History, Design and Construction (2004). In this episode of GDM, Michael discusses his thoughts on designing golf greens and gives insightful thoughts on the various green construction methods. 

Having just completed a multi-year, multi-million year rebuild of one of Scotland's iconic inland courses, David gives a fascinating insight about sand-capping fairways, new drainage methods, bunker liners and turf grass. Considering the course has over 220 rain days ever year and receives in excess of 80 inches (that's over 2 metres) of rain each year, never has the old saying of 'golf is 90% drainage and 10% common sense' been more apt.

Sylvain was formerly a green keeper in France and UK, but is now a consultant agronomist based in Spain. He shares his thoughts on working with golf courses across Europe to develop better playing surfaces for golf, and in this episode gives some wonderful insights about the differences between warm and cool season grasses and key factors to consider when developing an agronomy plan for a golf course. 

Irrigation is a significant cost to any golf course development or renovation project. Getting the best value requires an understanding of how to source, store and spread the water. In this episode independent irrigation designer Giles Wardle from Irriplan shares his views on the best ways to achieve this after almost 30 years in the golf sector. Listen now for insights into irrigation design secrets for both warm and cool season grasses.

Listen to Andy Brown – Global Business & Relationships Manager at TORO – for his insights on irrigation, machinery and the golf industry from his perspective. Listen to hear if autonomous mowers will be the future of golf,  about the advances in the power supplies of machinery, or how is technology changing the future of golf course irrigation.

An Interview with Gordon McKie – Course Manager of the famous Old Course in St. Andrews. Gordon describes getting into the golf industry, his journey to St Andrews, preparations for the Old Course in the run up to the 150th Open Championship, building bunkers, advances in green keeping technology and more.

This episode discusses sustainable golf course design and construction with Sam Thomas from the Scottish-based international environmental golf organisation GEO. Scott talks biodiversity and finds out how golf courses can be more environmentally friendly, including what steps can be taken to measure habitat improvements on golf courses in the UK and around the world.

Legendary Scottish golf professional and two-times golf major champion Sandy Lyle talks with Scott about Augusta National, winning the Players Championship and Open, changes to the golf ball, driving ranges and his experiences with golf courses design.