Course of the Week: Tom Doak to design Pinehurst Resort’s 10th course

By |  January 4, 2023 0 Comments

(Photo: Tom Doak)

(Photo: Tom Doak)

Tom Doak will design a new course at Pinehurst Resort, its first new golf course in nearly three decades. Construction for the new course begins in January 2023.

Located four miles south of the main resort clubhouse, Doak’s 18-hole routing is set to open in late spring of 2024, coinciding with the return of the U.S. Open to Pinehurst No. 2.

The new course, which is the resort’s 10th course, will incorporate rugged dunes mined at the turn of the 20th century accented by native sand and wiregrass. With natural ridgelines, intriguing landforms, towering longleaf pines, streams and ponds, Doak envisions a course that complements the resort’s other courses through its contrasts.

“The site is topographically distinct and drastically different from anywhere in Pinehurst,” Doak says. “It’s bigger, bolder and more dramatic. There’s about 75 feet of elevation change, and we’ll work our way up to it around the mid-point of the layout. You’ll have expansive views from this apex over the rest of the course. It will be an unforgettable experience for golfers.”

(Photo: Pinehurst Resort)

(Photo: Pinehurst Resort)

Doak recalls first visiting Pinehurst more than 40 years ago and playing and touring No. 2. He rated the course a “perfect 10” in his book The Confidential Guide to Golf Courses, and was one of the most vocal supporters of its restoration by Bill Coore and Ben Crenshaw in 2010 prior to the 2014 U.S. Open.

“Tom Doak builds incredible golf courses on sand and we’re excited to see what he’ll create in the North Carolina Sandhills,” said Tom Pashley, president of Pinehurst Resort. “We’ve worked with some amazing golf architects who’ve embraced our natural aesthetic and believe Tom will do something fantastic on this site.”

(Photo: Pinehurst Resort)

(Photo: Pinehurst Resort)

Landscape architect Angela Moser will serve as Doak’s lead design associate for this project. Moser has worked on the Los Angeles Country Club’s North Course, Streamsong Black in Bowling Green, Fla., St. Patrick’s Links in County Donegal, Ireland, Te Arai Links in Tomarata, New Zealand and Ohoopee Match Club in Cobbtown, Ga.

“The number one thing that excited us about the project is working with the beautiful sand that’s native to this region,” Doak says. “The sand, the wiregrass, the bluestem grass, and other native grasses that grow around the Sandhills create a fabulous texture for golf. It’s something most places just don’t have.”

In addition to Doak’s routing, Pinehurst envisions the potential for more growth in the area, which encompasses 900 total acres in Aberdeen, N.C. Town officials will evaluate a variety of development opportunities, including additional golf, a short course and a clubhouse.

This article is tagged with and posted in Course of the Week, Industry News


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