SENTOSA GOLF CLUB MAGAZINE
REFRESHING
TIMES
We talk to world-class shaper Steven Page on his recent experience of helping to renovate The Serapong, the jewel in Singapore’s golfing crown.
“I
t is a world-class course without any doubt. It is such a good test of golf. You can’t afford to lose focus for a second, trust me on that! And boy do you need to putt well – those are some of the purest greens I have ever played.” Matt Kuchar was naturally taken with The Serapong following his threeshot win in this year’s Singapore Open over Justin Rose. Now, when the world’s best return for the 2021 renewal, they will be met with a course that has now been given a refresh on all fronts and, while there has been no change to the layout, strategy and footprint, the upgrade has been as detailed as it has been thought out. The last time The Serapong underwent any major renovations was back in 2006. Now, under the guidance of the club’s General Manager, Director of Agronomy and resident designer Andrew Johnston, no stone (or green, bunker, fairway
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A view of The Serapong’s newly renovated 6th green and bunkers
and tee box) has been left unturned. The reason behind all this major refresh was simple – golf courses in the tropics age faster than others in less temperate climates. As a general rule of thumb this ageing process is nearly twice as fast. Since the last major changes were carried out, technology has also made positive progress combined with the club’s ever-willing endeavour for excellence, it’s time to take The Serapong to an even higher level. As the course aged it had become
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inundated with unwanted foreign grasses and so the refresh was well needed – In many warm season golf destinations like South Florida a renovation of our scale would generally happen once a decade. To sum up, the fairways had become infested with weeds and grasses weeds, so the grass has been replaced with a fresh, clean layer of Zoysia Matrella. The build-up of organic matter over a decade has also impacted the soils ability to drain creating an unwanted retention of moisture in the soil, and the replacement of the grass and removal of the organics will improve the draining infrastructure and will enhance the percolation rates during our intense downpours. The tees had become uneven due to divots and general wear and tear, all of which is to be expected over time, and they have been both relasered to reinstate a tabletop finish and returned to their original size, and the grass updated with platinum @sentosagolfclub
