University Golf Club in Vancouver, Canada, turned to Alex Hay of Lobb + Partners to provide a permanent solution to reduce the number of balls hit off property from the tee shot on the sixth hole, which runs along a residential road.
As a temporary measure, the club had used an advanced tee to address the problem on the par-4 hole. Hay, who heads the Canadian office of Lobb + Partners, proposed converting the sixth hole to a par-3 and then creating a new par-4 on the seventh hole to replace the existing par-3.
“The new sixth green is perfectly positioned on the natural terrain, moving from left to right,” Hay said. “Normally, with a green of this orientation, we would probably have placed a bunker on the right side of the green, but to guide golfers away from the road, we placed a large visual bunker on the left side and opted for a short run of grass to the right.”
Hay’s project on the Vernon Macan public course – which opened in 1929 as Westward Ho! and was renamed in 1985 after a redesign – will also see the introduction of native grasses into out-of-play areas to reduce the need for irrigation.
Construction has begun on the new sixth hole, managed by Alberta contractor Goodwin Golf. A temporary hole has been created to make the course 18 holes. Work on the new seventh hole is expected to begin in 2025.
