The Construction of Red Mountain Phuket Golf Course

Red Mountain Phuket Golf Course, Phuket, Thailand














The section of the property hosting the 1st green gave major (but not the most!) headaches during route planning. The 1st Green, 6th and 9th tees and two access roads had to be safely 'shoe horned' into a narrow neck only 250 ms. wide dominated by a very steep ridge. Some serious cutting was inevitable to create space for a greensite. We elected to reverse the 1st and 9th holes leaving only the decision of how much of the cliff we would cut away to shape the 1st green. By removing 25ms of hillside we were able to create a spacious and visible greensite without morning shade problems, and a hole around 400 yards long.

Getting the new cliff to look natural was easier said than done! Contractors wanted the earth hauled away as quickly as possible. Once trucks could access the hilltop, excavators would cut 7-8 layers of 2.5 ms each. As the highest layers were quickly removed we had little time to shape the cliff edge to look as though they belonged, before our shapers ran out of reach! Close inspection will reveal we missed a few places, but on the whole I feel the new green setting is quite in keeping with the general site characteristics.









14th hole before and after

Visually the 14th is one of my favourite holes on the course and a tribute to the skills of Shaper and Design Consultant Al Tikkanen. Shapers like Al have a huge influence on the way a 'Two Dimensional' Plan comes to life on the ground, but are seldom given enough credit.

The way this hole plan evolved also strongly emphasizes the need for flexibility and regular on-site decision making during construction. What was originally planned as a 245 yard one shot hole with virtually no water, became a beautiful but treacherous 197 yard par 3 to a virtual island green. During clearing we found a 2m. thick layer of very white sand covering a wide area under the green site. Where we did not have to remove too much soil to get to the sand, we just kept digging until the sand was gone. The result was a new lake in the area of the green site. With a brand new canvas, a new plan was sketched and we backfilled the area where the back of the green would sit. I often wonder how much influence Blue Canyon Country Club had psychologically on my ideas for this hole! I always felt the Canyon's 17th was nearly, but not quite, a wonderful par 3. Red Mountain's 14th has a remarkably similar layout and green shape, but in my view has improved aesthetics and visibility.

The extent to which Tin Mining operations altered the site over the years is also well illustrated here. As you play from the 15th tee, try to imagine that the layer of sand under the 14th green stretches directly under but 45 ms lower than where you are standing! The 15th tees are built on tin mine spill filled over the sand which itself was pumped from another location to get at the valuable tin ore. Tin Mining operations stopped in Phuket some 25 years ago, not just due to falling ore prices, but when the Thai Government made a conscious decision to replace Mining with more sustainable Tourism Development on the Island.

The real headaches during planning came when we had to find the last 4 holes in the 'mountain' section of the property. MBK Chairman Khun Banterng Tantivit, who was the real driving force behind getting the project off the ground, wanted this land used for golf, partly for economic reasons. Phuket's 80 meter height construction limit meant no Development would be possible on this rectangle of the property. While others felt it was simply too difficult for Design and Construction of playable holes, Khun Banterng, himself a keen golfer also felt that one of the most memorable finishing stretches of holes in Thailand could be created in these hills.

The density of vegetation and subsequent 'gaps' in the topographical survey meant we were to some extent operating 'blind' in the most extreme areas on the 'mountain'.
The 15th hole was relatively easy to find. However, creating a fairway wider than the current 35 ms would prove to be impossible without serious excavation and the environmental disasters that would surely follow if we opened up the hillsides once again.
The 16th was to be a short par 3 on the opposite slopes of the same valley while the 17th would be a wild par 4 reversing the routing of the current 16th hole and playing across a chasm to a green 100 ms left of where the 17th tees now sit. This would leave us the possibility of a 650 yard par 5 finishing hole with a dizzying drop of over 80 ms!

Following further exploration, during which I more than once got lost in dense ferns and other undergrowth over 3ms high, we found trees of such size and beauty and contours so much more severe than indicated on the 'topo' that route changes would be inevitable. Given construction and access road issues and complications in irrigating holes 100ms above the supply lakes, should we even be attempting to find golf holes up here? During one site visit the Chairman confidently announced to other Directors that whatever we end up with 'We can build SOME KIND OF golf holes up here.' His expression did not convey the confidence in his voice! The new routing created some of the most extreme but exhilarating Golf in the Country, IF played with the right spirit. The 16th tee is far and away the highest point in Phuket Golf and is over 300 feet higher than the 14th green! 6ms cuts allowed us to find a narrow fairway for this pesky little par 4 of just over 300 yards. Yes, it's narrow. Yet Golfers can play virtually any club in the bag from the tee and still hit the green in regulation. Former European Tour Star Barry Lane played the hole 4 times in 4 days, each time selecting a different club from the tee. He played it in even par but feels he still hasn't found HIS best way to play the hole and isists he will be back to figure it out!

The 150 feet drop to the par 3 17th green makes club selection uncharted territory.You may need 3 clubs less than normal to account for the precipitous drop. And, please drive carefully on the way down to the green! The 18th hole, falling 50 ms down a valley framed by forested slopes and sheer 'Red Canyon Walls' is 560 yards but probably plays closer to 500. There will be eagles; but there will be more disasters. Canny players will realise staying on the short grass is the way to win the money, but can you resist taking on all the attacking options in front of you?

This is the essence of the Red Mountain Phuket Golf Course. There is risk and reward all over the course. There are multiple playing options depending not only on your skill level ,but your mood on the day. It is an exhilerating course for those with the spirit of adventure of the Pioneers of the Game.

Welcome to Red Mountain Golf Course. I hope you have as much fun playing the course as I had Designing and Building it.

Jon Morrow - August, 2007.