AV GOLF DESIGN

Our Philosophy

Learn About Our Approach to Golf Course Design

Our approach to design is land-based

Land-based design means that the design of each hole is primarily influenced by our first-hand experiences on the site, rather than relying solely on ideas conceived while separated from the actual site experience. The key to building on time and on budget lies in the quality of preparation during the design process, before construction begins.

Quality is achieved by spending the necessary amount of time on site, and in consultation with the client and the client’s consultants to resolve most of the issues related to the design and construction of the course before construction begins.

The inherent characteristics of a property that can give tremendous character to a course are there to be found, as long as we are receptive to them. No maps, pictures, videos, or literature of or about the site can adequately supplant the personal experience on the land. Our approach is a reversal of a bad trend in design offices. Many offices have eagerly pursued the marketing and brand name frenzy to the point that this consumes more than half the office hours. Left with little time for design, the design work has been passed down to second and third level designers who do most of their creative work on a client’s project in the office, rarely, if ever, seeing the site. Many offices are preoccupied with their own packaging and marketing, course rankings, and generating fame and notoriety for themselves. For us, land-based design allows us to leave behind this mass-market approach, and open up our minds to the land dedicated for a golf course. Land-based design begins and ends with a face-to-face encounter with the land, with nature. In this way, we are more willing to cooperate with nature, not impose a will to make it conform.