First course at Tianjin Binhai open

2 October 2011

The first course at the new Tianjin Binhai Lake club in China has opened.

Designed by US firm Schmidt-Curley, in association with Pete Dye, who was a mentor to both Brian Curley and Lee Schmidt, the course will host the European Tour’s Volvo China Open next year.

The development is part of a major new urban area outside the port city of Tianjin in north-eastern China. The Tianjin Binhai coastal district will have a population of over a million people.

The golf course features ten windswept, lakefront holes. To make construction possible, the site, which was within the confines of a man-made lake, was drained and its bottom excavated. The resulting fill was used to create the peninsula on which the course sits.

“Tianjin Binhai Lake showcases our ability to transform less-than-ideal sites into exceptional golf courses,” says Brian Curley. “We're always excited when opportunities arise to work with Pete. Lee and I were extremely fortunate to learn from him on some of his most influential projects – places like Casa de Campo, PGA West and Kiawah Island. We owe a great deal of our success to his guidance and friendship.”

The Dye course is the first of two at the facility. An 18-hole solo project from Schmidt-Curley will debut next spring.