77 alternative as the trees grew up and the left fairway shrank. The balance of optional routings has now been restored. The left fairway has been expanded, and with the ground firmer and more roll-out expected, the prospects of taking the safer ‘low road’ become more appealing. Meanwhile, the ferocity of the mid-fairway bunkers has been recaptured in the form of seven new hazards, with steep mounding, deeper floors and a subtle angling in of the complex so that the last bunker in line, now 335 yards from the (lengthened) back tee, is 10 yards closer to the pond on the right, making the opportunity zone for elite players more demanding and thought-provoking. Throughout the course, fairway bunkers have been made more relevant by tighter mowing into them and by angling them a little closer to the line of play; where ground exists, they have been moved slightly downfield. With some lengthening of holes still possible, the result is that the strategic bunkering Ross intended is now more relevant to elite players while the landing zone for mid-range golfers is marginally wider. Those who thought they knew Seminole will now experience a golf course that is more dynamic, more engaging and more demanding of those who seek a strategic advantage. It’s also simply a more beautiful landscape to survey visually. Over the years, a wall of sea grapes running the length of the east side between the golf course and the Atlantic Ocean has been cut, from as high as 15 feet down to four feet. The result is that the ocean is more dramatically in view, and from more holes than ever – even more so now with the sandcapping and elevation change. Finally, the rough areas are now more varied, with extensive recultivation of native wild sandy dunes replacing areas that had simply been sprigged in bermudagrass. During the research for the project, the design team and club officials uncovered a series of images illustrating the curious agricultural fate of the Seminole golf grounds during World War Two, when concerns about a potential invasion from the sea shut down almost all coastal activity, including golf. Locals utilised the cessation to turn part of the 140-acre site into agricultural land – in Seminole’s case a crop of watermelons. They were farmed on site, particularly along the northwest corner, where the fourth, eleventh and fourteenth greens converge. In a gesture of historical recognition, watermelons have again been planted – not in such arrays as to constitute farmland, but enough to provide an interesting alternative plant material and perhaps also to harvest for club consumption. The club, as yet, does not have a signature refreshment. But this restoration deserves to be honoured. Perhaps a mixologist could create an appropriate watermelon cocktail. As a nod towards Seminole’s agricultural role in World War Two, the project included a modest planting of watermelons Photo: courtesy of Autumn Hartshorne SEMINOLE GC
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