Project team continues with multiyear renovation to ‘help realise course’s potential as one of the finest downland layouts in the south of England’
Golf course architect James Edwards of EDI-Golf and P Quinn Construction are undertaking a comprehensive renovation of East Brighton Golf Club on the south coast of England.
In its early days, the club was known as Ovingdean GC and then Kemp Town GC, before settling on the name East Brighton GC in 1901. Originally a 12-hole layout, it was expanded to 18 in 1897, but following the acquisition of 40 acres of land, the club revised its course with help from James Braid with the new-look design opening in 1908.
The course has largely been untouched since opening. In 2019, Edwards was appointed to oversee renovation work, primarily focusing on the greenside bunkers. After making some site visits with the course manager, Edwards started sketching plans for a few holes.
How East Brighton looked prior to renovation work starting (Photo: East Brighton Golf Club)
“It was more an analysis of the course, and then a series of headings of what to work on,” said Edwards. “The club decided early doors what way it wanted to go.”
A local contractor completed a pilot project on the second hole in 2021. However, it quickly became evident that a larger and more specialised firm was needed to handle future phases and the scope of work that Edwards was envisioning.
For the second phase, P Quinn Construction was selected. “As soon as the club saw Patrick [Quinn] work, they quickly realised that they had the team to handle the scale of the project,” said Edwards. “And at that point, the brief became more serious with Patrick and his team able to handle six or so holes a year.”
James Edwards’ sketch for the renovated sixteenth (Image: EDI-Golf)
Quinn added: “They definitely needed a bunker renovation, but when seeing James’s drawings and sketches, I could see how big an impact that we as a team could have on the whole look of the course. James would come up with an idea that wasn’t necessarily part of the brief and Paul [Kirwan, general manager] would be like, yes, let’s go for it. That was a great attitude.”
Kirwan said: “The timing was right because East Brighton was prepared to invest in a long-term vision rather than chase short-term improvements. Golf has become an increasingly competitive market, with golfers expecting greater value for money than ever before. We knew we needed to evolve, and we wanted to do it properly.”
The primary focus has been bunkering, but work has also included the introduction of mounds and hollows.
“Braid is being acknowledged but we’re adding our own flavour to East Brighton,” said Edwards. “We’ve been allowed to create the aesthetic we feel fits the landscape.”
Kirwan said: “Our vision has never simply been to rebuild bunkers. It has been to rediscover East Brighton’s identity as one of the finest downland golf courses in the south. This hasn’t been a bunker renovation programme – I’ve often described it as a rescue rather than a renovation.
“Every change has been made with the aim of creating a more strategic and visually compelling golf course, whilst remaining sympathetic to the unique downland landscape. It hasn’t been about restoring the features of an old James Braid design; it’s been about awakening the character of the course and the land it sits within.”
Edwards says this project has been quite different from his others, with much of that down to how Kirwan operates. “I’ve never had to stand in front of the members in the seven years I’ve been involved here… that’s unique. It’s been like, here are drawings and what I think you should do, and then Patrick and Grace [Donnelly, managing director of P Quinn Construction] price up the job, and we crack on.”
The freedom that Edwards and Quinn have been given to think about ways to improve the course as they work on the project is something they both haven’t encountered much. “This approach is quite different from some of the clubs I’ve worked at,” said Quinn. “There’s usually reining work in, whereas Paul and East Brighton are letting us push the boundaries and putting faith in us.”
Kirwan said: “We’re trusting the experts.”
P Quinn Construction has handled phases two and three, and will execute the work in phase four as well (Photo: Ryan Fergany of Fitness Content Agency)
Phase two was completed in 2025 and included holes three and four, as well as holes ten to fourteen and the sixteenth.
“These were big, chunky changes,” said Edwards. “The par-three fourth was a massive job. Patrick had to spend a week moving earth. This phase was a bit of an eye-opener for Paul regarding the scale – he was well prepared coming into phase three because we had done so much already.”
Changes to the fourth focused on transforming the look and play of the hole. What was once a relatively flat par three with circular bunkers and minimal shaping has been reimagined with subtle mounding and undulations that now frame the hole.
“The eleventh was a straight, uphill, boring hole and there’s a water tank behind the green,” said Edwards. “Patrick and I looked at each and went, we’ve got to screen that. The club asked what that would involve – we replied, it means moving a lot of earth as we’d need to build a mound behind the green. That’s one example of what we’re trying to do at East Brighton – take these weak moments and turn them into good ones.”
The par-three eleventh was renovated in phase two (Photo: Ryan Fergany of Fitness Content Agency)
The third phase covered holes fifteen, seventeen and eighteen. “We hit the ground running in phase three,” said Quinn. “There will be times where we need to make some sort of changes on the ground and things might not go exactly to plan, but we got a machine in early and brought some more of our guys in to handle the increased scope of work. Paul also gave us more time to complete the project in comparison to phase two.”
“The transformation has been remarkable,” said Kirwan. “When I joined, many of the bunkers had lost their original shape and purpose, and several holes lacked the visual definition that this course deserves.
“Today, thirteen holes have been significantly enhanced. Bold bunker complexes, natural grass hollows, new contouring and extensive areas of longer grasses have dramatically changed both the appearance and the strategic challenge of the course. More importantly, we’ve created a golf course that asks questions of every golfer. Better players are now encouraged to think carefully about shot selection and angles of play, whilst higher handicap golfers still have options to navigate the course successfully. Visitors and societies regularly comment that it feels like a completely different and much improved golf course!”
The project has included redesigning bunkers to be bolder and the introduction of new contours, hollows and undulations (Photo: Ryan Fergany of Fitness Content Agency)
Work on the remaining five holes, located on lower ground, will begin in 2027.
“As with any major course project, members naturally had questions whilst work was taking place and, understandably, there was some frustration during the early stages as newly constructed areas took time to establish,” said Kirwan. “However, as each hole has reopened and matured, the feedback has become increasingly positive. Members have been able to see the long-term vision coming to life, and many of the comments have shifted from questioning the disruption to appreciating what has been achieved. They’ve embraced the stronger visual presentation, the improved strategy and the individuality that the changes have brought to the course. Perhaps most pleasingly, holes that previously attracted little attention are now regularly discussed after the round by golfers of all abilities.
“It’s also important to recognise the people who helped bring the plans to life. A huge amount of the manual work, particularly during phase two, was undertaken by our greenkeeping team, led by Jack Slade at the time. We were also fortunate to have several volunteer members, helping us lay thousands of square metres of turf. It was a genuine team effort, and those contributions shouldn’t be forgotten when we look back at what has been achieved.
“I’m incredibly proud of what has been achieved, but we see this as the beginning rather than the end of the journey. Our focus is now on working with our recently appointed head greenkeeper, Ciaran Brown, to refine the work we’ve completed, continue improving our playing surfaces and allow the new architecture to mature naturally over the coming years.”
Kirwan adds that the ambition is to ensure the course feels like it as though it has always belonged to the South Downs. To help achieve this, the club is reusing, wherever possible, turf taken from the course to build bunker faces and surrounding features. “Rather than importing artificial materials, we wanted the new work to blend naturally into its surroundings,” he said. “After 12 to 18 months of establishment, those turf walls have matured beautifully, while the longer grasses surrounding them have softened the edges even further. The result is a golf course that feels far more natural and in keeping with its landscape.”
The aim of the project is to showcase the course as one of the finest downland layouts in southern England (Photo: Ryan Fergany of Fitness Content Agency)
The positivity around the project is felt by Edwards, too. “We’re proud of the job at East Brighton because I can see it jumping up leagues if it keeps going the way it’s going, especially because the landscape is incredible,” he said. “The course is completely untouched, apart from the odd renovation of a bunker here and there. We have a project with real potential here. If they continue to trust us for the next five years, the course could turn into a beast.
“We’re operating with a mindset of, let’s approach this in the way the world’s best would. Let’s be confident. The aim is for people to look at the holes and see something unexpected – I’m challenging Patrick to create different shapes. When we’re working on a bunker, I want there to be a moment where you go, this is different. The flavour of the course is really building. I’m trying to sympathetically move away from what was originally there – we acknowledge it – but there are opportunities to improve the course, and we are taking them.
“There’s almost a pact between myself, Patrick, Grace and Paul, where we want to take this course to the next level.”