70 construction timeline,” says Dana. “In addition to the nursery, we harvested grasses from the course itself before shaping operations took place. The harvested grass was then preserved and replanted in other finished areas. This nursery and harvesting process saved significant dollars and was an extremely resourceful use of the site’s existing assets.” While Pate and Dana left the overall bunker scheme largely unchanged, fairway bunkers on ten holes were all moved slightly closer to the centreline to enhance strategic interest, while several bunkers that were located well out of play and had become irrelevant were removed. “The fairway bunker on the third hole’s landing area was relocated slightly left to open up an alternate fairway and a direct angle into the very small and elevated green,” says Dana. “The corner fairway bunker on four was relocated right to widen the very narrow fairway and make the hole more playable for resort guests. Also, the waste bunkers on holes three and nine were extended to prevent the longer players from carrying the entire length of them, making good golfers think more about their tee shot.” Another key aspect was reinstating the character of bunkers following years of erosion caused by the harsh coastal conditions. All bunkers were reshaped with steep, grassed faces with mounding characteristic of Dye’s style. “We rebuilt faces to reintroduce strategic intent, levelled bunker floors and installed proper drainage to significantly improve playability,” says Birtel. “Pete Dye’s legacy was central to every decision we made. At each stage, the guiding question was simple: does this look and feel like Pete Dye, and like Teeth of the Dog? “There were several instances during bunker shaping when we stepped back and felt the work didn’t reflect Pete’s style. In those cases, we reshaped and refined until it aligned with what we believed Pete would have done himself. Teeth of the Dog has always had a strong Pete Dye identity, and our goal was not to add character, but to clarify and strengthen it. We feel the renovation successfully enhanced that original DNA.” Birtel says the 526-yard par-five third typifies this strategy. “It plays into the trade winds and finishes at an elevated, tabletop green guarded by classic Pete Dye pot bunkers,” he says. “We relocated the forward and middle tees to the left, improving sight lines so players now look directly down the hole rather than over adjacent tees. We pinched in the left fairway bunker and extended the right one to increase its coverage for tee shots drifting right. Two additional right-side fairway bunkers were tightened to influence lay-up decisions, and we added a new central pot bunker approximately 60 yards short of the green to further complicate second-shot strategy. “Around the green, bunker faces were rebuilt to restore their visual and strategic impact. The green itself, which sits about 15 feet above the fairway, was expanded back-left and at the front, reintroducing additional pin positions. It remains a relatively small target that demands precision and will penalise any approach that fails to find the putting surface.” TEETH OF THE DOG
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