Arizona

Ak-Chin Southern Dunes Golf Club occupies 320 acres of the Ak-Chin Indian Community’s property in Maricopa. Designed by Fred Couples and the Schmidt-Curley partnership, the layout has hosted Arizona State Amateur Championships and is a US Open qualifying venue.

In 2010, the Ak-Chin Community purchased the facility after it had been developed as a private club. Four years later, the original architectural team was called in to renovate the layout, including the refurbishment of bunkers, the addition of tee boxes and expansion of fairways.

The 17th hole was also completely redesigned, which involved the reshaping of a large mound to open up sight lines, the re-sizing of greenside bunkers, and the expansion of the putting surface.

Ak-Chin Southern Dunes

North America

Central Thailand

Thailand

Situated halfway between the Thai capital and the beach resort of Pattaya, the prestigious course at Amata Spring Country Club is imbued with all the attributes you would expect of a top notch modern course in this part of the world: long, undulating fairways, exceptional greenside bunkering, wonderfully fast putting surfaces and plenty of water-threatened holes.

Fairways have been routed around two sizeable lakes and it’s on one of these grand water hazards that golfers encounter the layout’s signature hole at the 145-yard, par three 17th. In fact, that yardage is rather superfluous because the island green at this hole actually floats, so the carry to the 40 yards by 40 yards putting surface – accessed by a small boat from the lake side – can be altered at the flick of a switch.

A number of high profile competitions have been held at Amata Spring since the course first opened for play in 2005: The inaugural Honda LPGA Thailand tournament in 2006, the first four Royal Trophy events from 2006 to 2010 and the first Thailand Golf Championship (when Lee Westwood claimed his 37th career victory) in 2011.

Architect Lee Schmidt kindly provided us with the following comments:

“When the industrial complex Amata Nakorm was initially designed, a large lake was excavated as the water source for the proposed factories. With the expansion of the property and other facilities over time, other water sources were designed and the initial lake was no longer needed.

When we first saw the site in 2003 and were reviewing concept routing options, we wondered how deep the lake was. An engineer showed us a plan where there were really two lakes but the current water level was above the divider between the two.

The discussion progressed and we eventually found out we could make the final water level water at any level we desired. The final routing has hole eighteen near the location where the two lakes were divided. Fill material from other areas of cut on the course were added to expand the divider, thus making eighteen fairways shaped as they are today.

Hole seventeen, which is the floating green, was the concept of the golf course’s major shareholder, Andrew Yau. He first spoke of a floating green and we then said you mean an “island green”. He corrected us, saying a floating green not island green. Schmidt Curley Design had never designed or engineered one before but, with the assistance of a local Thai engineer, we started the design process.

There were a few failures during the construction process, but the final product was exactly what Andrew wanted. The green is anchored in four locations and has a submerged irrigation line running from the boat docking location to the green. The ferryboat carrying golfers to the green is captained by a well trained uniformed Thai staff member.

A number of other holes are worthy of mention: The 4th is a testing long par four that has a creek guarding the front of the green and it’s framed by a beautiful gold outlined historic Thai Temple.

Hole 7 is a medium length downhill par five with cross-bunkers between the first and second landing areas. The front third of the green is higher than the backs section, giving the illusion from the fairway that the green is sitting on the lake edge.

Hole 8 is a long par three over water with the green angled right to left. The front is slightly raised then the middle section drops down before rising over a metre to the back tier. Depending on the pin position there will many interesting putts made and missed on this exciting green.

The 18th is a demanding finishing hole playing over 470 yards. The tee shot needs to be both long and accurate, avoiding the bunkers on the right side of the fairway and water that extends the entire left side of the hole from tee to green.”

Amata Spring

Asia

Amata Spring Country Club was the venue for the Royal Trophy between 2006 and 2010 when the European professional team won three of the four events against their eight-man opponents from Asia.

Nevada

Bali Hai Golf Club is named after the fictional island immortalised by Perry Como’s No.1 single, 

, taken from the musical, South Pacific. The golf course is located at the southern end of the Las Vegas Strip, a mere 10-minute taxi ride from the main strip hotels. Designed by Lee Schmidt and Brian Curley in 2000 all of the holes have been created with a verdant tropical theme. To that end, they planted a total of 4,000 trees with 2,500 stands of towering palms, 100,000 tropical plants and created seven acres of lush water features.

The par 71 Bali Hai measures 7,002 yards from the tips, but there are three other sets of tees measuring 6,601, 6,156 and 5,511 yards, so golfers of all abilities will find a tee that suits their game.

As you might expect with a course aimed at businessmen and vacationers whose main focus is gambling, the course starts you off gently with a relatively easy hole – where many golfers might make par – but don't be deceived and get overconfident, things subtly get tougher as the round unfolds.

Worthy of particular mention is the 16th a pretty par three where you have to play over water in full view of the restaurant. Additionally, beware of the last two par fours which could ruin your card. The 17th is a 484-yard dogleg (SI2) and the 18th is a 486 yard (SI 4) with the green well-defended by water.

Bali Hai is bounded by Mandalay Bay Hotel on one side, Las Vegas (McCarran) Airport on the other and a freeway and railway line complete the boundaries, but it's no worse for that. Bali Hai is a surprising oasis of tranquillity amidst the hustle and bustle of Las Vegas and the strip… assuming you can ignore the aeroplanes taking off and landing, especially when you're playing the 3rd.

Bali Hai Golf Club regularly features in American magazine lists of the best courses you can play, so we’re pleased to have it as one of our Gems. The club is owned by the Walters Golf Group who also own Royal Links, located just outside Vegas. Bali Hai has a large clubhouse, and pro-shop which is well versed to renting clubs to visiting gamblers who need to take a break from losing money to get their golfing fix!

Bali Hai

Bali Hai Golf Club is named after the fictional island immortalised by Perry Como’s No.1 single, Some Enchanted Evening, taken from the musical, South Pacific.

All Areas

China

Stretching out along the southern shore of the Huanggang reservoir, an hour’s drive southeast of downtown Tianjin, the Pete Dye course at Binhai Lake Golf Club (fashioned by Schmidt-Curley Design) hosted two editions of the Volvo China Open, in 2012 and 2013.

Binhai Lake (Pete Dye)

Montana

Despite being located in Montana, a majority of your round at the Canyon River Golf Club will be located on flat land, focused more on the title river (which is actually the Clark Fork River). The 2006 Brian Curley and Lee Schmidt design revolves around a planned development just east of Missoula, and spends five holes with unabated looks at the river, which wraps around the property.

The design duo manages to involve the surrounding mountainside for more than just good looks, however, including at No. 12, a par three where regular players and tourists alike (it’s a public-access club) will be prompted to choose the right distance on a 211-yard par three that looks as tall as it is long.

Canyon River

Located to the east of Missoula, Canyon River Golf Club course is a Lee Schmidt/Brian Curley creation that first opened its doors for play in 2006.

Northern Thailand

The Chiangmai Highlands Golf and Spa Resort is located in the scenic hills of northwest Thailand and its Schmidt and Curley-designed 18-hole layout is a shot maker's course, making full use of the rolling terrain.

Built on the hermitage of Kuba Sivichai, the deeply respected monk who founded the Doi Suthep temple, the course is laid out in a very tranquil environment, where golfers can take time to breathe in the cool fresh air and connect with the natural surroundings.

The course’s Paspalum fairways and Bermuda grass greens translate into verdant playing corridors and consistent, firm and fast putting surfaces, with closely mown green aprons allowing the option of playing a ground shot, a short pitch or even putting the ball up to the hole.

The large and undulating greens are certainly difficult to master, especially since bunker complexes that are often deep and penal guard them. The sand traps are artistically designed and beautiful to look at but they’re to be avoided at all costs.

Feature holes at Chiangmai Highlands include the par four 4th, with water threatening on both sides of the fairway, and the short par four 11th, where topped tee shots and pulled approach shots will inevitably result in a wet (and lost) golf ball.

Chiangmai Highlands

The Chiangmai Highlands Resort is located in the scenic hills of northwest Thailand. The Schmidt-Curley-designed golf course, which opened for play in 2005, is a shot maker's course, making full use of the rolling ground.

Vietnam

Opened in 2019, Forest Dunes is the first of ten planned courses at FLC’s Quang Binh Resort, all of which will be designed by Brian Curley to rival those he laid out at Mission Hills on Hainan Island.

FLC Quang Binh (Forest Dunes)

Situated on Vietnam’s eastern seaboard, overlooking Nhon Ly Beach and the South China Sea, the FLC Quy Nhon Beach & Golf Resort is a 36-hole facility that opened its doors to visitors in 2016, when the Nicklaus Design 

 made its debut. Schmidt & Curley’s Mountain course was then unveiled the following year.

Both layouts were constructed in record time by Flagstick, one of Asia’s leading golf construction companies, as part of an ambitious project that incorporates a magnificent 900-bedroom hotel with spa, five hundred villas and a two-floor international convention centre.

The all-Platinum paspalum Mountain course is built on a sand-based, pine scrub hillside with ocean views from sixteen holes, with wide playing corridors and optional lines of play over sandy expanses that transition into native dunes. Open access to putting surfaces allows the ground game to flourish, which is the perfect way to combat the exposed location and often windy conditions.

“Out like a lamb, in like a lion,” is how architect Brian Curley describes the course, referring to the relatively straightforward opening four holes on the layout versus the same number of more challenging holes at the end of the round. “There are big wide fairways, because of the wind, and big differences in elevation. It’s not often you find land for a golf course where wind is a design consideration, especially in Asia, but it certainly is here.”

The uphill 385-yard 6th is a feature hole, where a small dune dictates the line of play and most golfers will aim for a plateau on the right then fire a long approach into the green. Other notable holes include the 452-yard 2nd, which plays to a distinct fall-away green, the spectacular 197-yard 14th, with its fabulous views across the resort, and the 383-yard 15th, where an interesting ‘half-pipe’ dip lies in front of the green.

FLC Quy Nhon (Mountain)

The Mountain course at FLC Quy Nhon Beach & Golf Resort is built on a sand-based, pine scrub hillside with with wide playing corridors and ocean views from sixteen holes...

The original course at Gassan Lake City Golf Club (as it was known) opened for play in 2005. A decade later the layout was completely renovated by architect Lee Schmidt and the property was renamed Gassan Legacy Golf Club.

Gassan Legacy

Egypt

Despite harsh economic times felt worldwide, Sir Nick Faldo’s design business continues to grow at a steady rate and he broke into the North African market in 2010 with a 27-hole Egyptian project that was undertaken in collaboration with the formidable architectural partnership of Brian Curley and Lee Schmidt.

In a remarkable feat of engineering, the imagination of Faldo and technical excellence of Schmidt and Curley transformed a barren, featureless desert landscape outside Cairo into a lush green golfing oasis, where palm-fringed fairways have been routed around a succession of lakes and streams, with the occasional waterfall feature thrown in for good measure.

Bunkering – as you might expect at such a desert location – is of the highest order and even though the designers might have been tempted to fill them with imported white sand, they’ve mercifully constructed the traps with local, pink-brown coloured sand that blends in sympathetically to the surroundings.

The spectacular water-fronted par three 8th, which measures 210 yards from the back tees, is considered as the signature hole on both the “Lakes” and “Palms” 18-hole configurations at Katameya Dunes, with both courses sharing the same front nine holes.

We caught up with Brian Curley and asked him a few questions:

The Top 100 Team was rather intrigued to find Katameya Dunes was a collaboration between your company and Nick Faldo. Can you tell us how that came about?

“The client came to us early in the process. In the initial discussions, they were impressed with what we have done and the early concepts I threw at them. The idea of bringing on a Tour Pro for marketing was away down the path but I brought up Nick as I had already worked on six courses with him. Nick is a great name for the project as many customers are UK based and I had always enjoyed working with him.”

It also looks quite a feat of engineering – can you throw a few facts at us, like the volume of water that flows over those little waterfalls every day?

“The waterfall system is set up to run at varied levels from slight to full on. At peak it pumps about 20,000 gallons per minute if desired. The funny thing is that the design would typically have the clubhouse at the highest elevation but the views outside the project were, in my opinion, not that great. I felt we could CREATE better views and it would be a greater impact if the water flowed TO the Clubhouse rather than away from it so we placed the Club environment at one of the lowest points. This way, all the views are up to golf with water coming at you. Not a typical solution but it works well here as it provides not only a nice view but also offers protection from the wind.”

Was it a unanimous decision to use very natural coloured sand in the bunkers?

“Yes, that is the sand on site. The large expanses of sand are a huge design backbone feature along with lakes, marshes (to create a feel of the banks of the Nile), and date palms. From there, we add color in bursts of plantings, including around four thousand trees.“

Katameya Dunes (Lakes)

Africa

In a remarkable feat of engineering, the imagination of Faldo and technical excellence of Schmidt and Curley transformed a barren and featureless Egyptian desert into a lush golfing oasis called Katameya Dunes...

Described as the “crown jewel” at the Mission Hills Resort on Hainan Island, the Blackstone course is marketed as the premier 18-hole layout at a ten-course golf complex where each and every track was designed by the prolific Schmidt-Curley Design team.

Fairways are routed across a varied landscape of woodland and wetlands, taking advantage of some dramatic elevation changes as they weave through beds of lava rock that were capped under a metre of soil during construction.

We were intrigued to find such a difference in stroke index ratings for the back-to-back par fives at holes 12 and 13 (SI 18 and 2) so we asked architect Brian Curley if this was due entirely to their respective lengths of 532 yards versus 681 yards. He replied thus:

“Hole 12 is a relatively benign par five but the green is quite challenging, especially the upper tier. A series of cross bunkers about 75 yards short of the green demands a proper club selection for the second shot. In most events so far, including the World Cup, many golfers have laid-up rather than go for the green in two shots.

Hole 13 is a long par five with no bunkers except left of the green. It plays straight and tree-lined until about 180 yards from the green where it turns strongly to the left. Golfers have to decide whether to lay back for the third shot or be aggressive and take on the turn where the slope dives left, potentially sending balls towards the lava rock.”

Blackstone hosted the 56th edition of the World Cup in 2011, when it was won by the two-man USA team of Matt Kuchar and Gary Woodland, giving the Americans their first victory in the event for eleven years. The tournament has now been changed from an annual to a biennial competition.

Mission Hills (Blackstone)

Venue for the Omega Mission Hills World Cup in 2011, the Blackstone course on Hainan Island covers 350 acres of a rugged landscape that’s dominated by lava rock, lakes and wetlands.

Opened in 1999, the Faldo course at Mission Hills Shenzhen is billed as being China’s first stadium course and it has its own equivalent of the famous 17th island hole at TPC Sawgrass at the par three 16th.

The Rolex World’s Top 1000 Golf Courses

 with the following edited narrative extract:

“The Faldo course occupies an attractive woodland setting and is refreshingly free of the vast houses that line the some of the fairways at the other [Mission Hills] courses here. The feeling is of agreeable seclusion. But, of course, it’s the also the design itself which is deserving of attention – and Faldo, who worked on the specifics with the noted design pairing of Lee Schmidt and Brian Curley, has fashioned an imaginatively bunkered ‘Stadium’-style layout.

Like a well-written piece of music that build towards a crescendo, the Faldo course, which hosts the annual Faldo Series Asia Grand Finals, flows along in style before reaching what can only be described as a highly memorable – and water-strewn – finish. Watch out for the par three 16th and its island green – it’s probably a tougher hole than the famous 17th at TPC Sawgrass.”

Mission Hills (Faldo)

Opened in 1999, the Faldo course at Mission Hills Shenzhen is billed as being China’s first stadium course and it has it’s own equivalent of the famous 17th island hole at TPC Sawgrass at the par three 16th.

Hainan Island lies just off the south west coast of China and it’s a former agricultural outpost that has quietly evolved into one of the world’s top golfing hotspots. When the Chu family – proprietors of the mega resort at Mission Hills in Shenzen – came up against government opposition to their construction plans on the mainland, they simply moved offshore to further develop the brand.

Situated 15 minutes from Haikou, the island’s capital, the site chosen for the latest multi-billion dollar Mission Hills resort facility is a seven mile-long property that sprawls out across a landscape of volcanic rock. In keeping with the vast scale of Chu family projects, a nearby clay mountain was virtually leveled and soil trucked in, 24 hours a day, to cap the entire property under a metre of earth.

So now the twelve course complex at Shenzen on the mainland has been joined by ten courses at the new Hainan resort complex since 2007 and all of these new tracks (a mixture of 9-hole and 18-hole layouts) have been built on top of the lava fields under the direction of the Arizona-based Schmidt-Curley Design company.

With fairways characterised by large waste bunkers, the Lava Fields course can be stretched to a mammoth 7,475 yards from the championship tees and both nines on the course end in some style. Hole 9, at 513 yards, is the longest and toughest par four on the card and the 18th is one of the best at the resort, a downhill par five with plenty of playing options from tee to green.

In 2011, the 56th World Cup of Golf was played at Mission Hills in Haikou when the 

Mission Hills (Lava Fields)

With fairways characterised by large waste bunkers, the Lava Fields course at Mission Hills can be stretched to a mammoth 7,475 yards from the championship tees...

 course at Mission Hills – the world’s largest golf club – is no longer playing host to the World Cup. The distinction now goes to the course that Ollie built, his inaugural signature design.

The Olazábal course at Mission Hills held its third World Cup in 2009 and it’s one of the most challenging layouts at the gargantuan multi-hole Mission Hills Golf Club.

The course of the two-time Masters champion (fashioned in conjunction with Schmidt-Curley Design) opened for play in 2003 and Ollie’s 7,300-yard layout is routed across undulating ground which features significant changes in elevation and more than 150 bunkers. It winds its way though Shenzen’s lush, tropical jungle and some breathtaking vistas of the surrounding countryside are reward for some hard walking.

The 2007 Mission Hills World Cup closed with drama when Scotland defeated America on the third sudden-death playoff hole and Robert Karlsson and Henrik Stenson beat the Spanish pairing of Miguel Angel Jimenez and Pablo Larrazabal in 2008. In the 2009 World Cup of Golf, brothers Edoardo and Francesco Molinari held off the challenge from Sweden to secure Italy's first victory in the team event.

Mission Hills Golf Club can now hold claim to being the most used World Cup venue with the fabulous Olazabal course pushing the World Cup course – designed by Nicklaus and venue for the 1995 event – out of the spotlight.

In 2012, the WGC-HSBC Champions event moved from 

 in Shanghai to Mission Hills in Dongguan, further cementing the tournament credentials of the Olazábal course. Ian Poulter secured his first win of the year with a closing round of 65 to claim the 2012 title.

Mission Hills (Olazabal)

The course of the two-time Masters champion opened for play in 2003 and Ollie’s 7,300-yard layout is routed across undulating ground which features significant changes in elevation...

Opened in 2007, the Pete Dye layout at Mission Hills Shenzhen was built in tandem with the Schmidt Curley design team. Its woodland setting is characterised by sleepered bunkers and undulating green complexes.

“The Dye course is a great example of how a sub-7,000-yard track can still challenge the accomplished player. It punches well above its weight by incorporating thick rough, railroad tie-supported bunkers and extremely contoured putting surfaces. A golf-only property, the Dye does still offer its fair share of birdie opportunities, especially on the early holes which allow players to ease themselves into their rounds.

Occupying rolling, rather than mountainous, topography the course begins to find its teeth around the turn and ends in fine fashion – the 18th is a marvellous par five that over the years has brought both joy and misery to those who have played it. Don’t be fooled: the Dye looks tempting enough but watch out when the wind gets up. The tricky greens can take control.”

Mission Hills (Pete Dye)

Opened for play in 2010, the Sandbelt Trails course at Mission Hills in Haikou is a Schmidt and Curley production that drew its inspiration from the iconic golfing layouts located in the famous Sandbelt landscape around Melbourne in Australia.

Mission Hills (Sandbelt Trails)

Shadow Dunes, the tenth course at Mission Hills in Haikou, is a Schmidt and Curley design that’s unlike any of the others at the resort in that it was fashioned to resemble a sporty links layout in a natural dune setting.

It’s actually Brian Curley’s favourite of the ten, but it gets little love as it’s at the far end of the project.

Mission Hills (Shadow Dunes)

Myanmar

Opened in 2018, the 18-hole championship layout at Myotha National Golf Club is a Schmidt-Curley design occupying a 380-acre portion of a large master planned industrial and residential community that’s situated an hour’s drive from Mandalay, the second largest city in Myanmar.

Brian Curley shared the following press release with us:

“When we first set foot on the property, it was evident that there was the strongest of opportunities to create not only the best golf experience in Myanmar, but one of the best in all of Asia. The property is quite unique as it evokes the characteristics of the Southwest United States where an arid climate produces a landscape that is stunningly contrasted from the typical lush environs of Southeast Asia.

In addition, the dramatic changes in elevation and the resulting arroyos create the opportunity for a course that is more in character with many desert courses, something quite uncommon for this region. The result is a striking contrast of swaths of green Zoysia grass set amongst the stark and rugged natural surrounds. These fairways benefit from the dryer conditions and help nurture a playability that centres on hard and fast conditions.

These firm playing conditions are incorporated into the design by creating width off the tee yet always rewarding properly placed tee shots that will often take advantage of speed slots, kick slopes and other features.

The bunkering is strong and bold, in keeping with the scale and enormity of the property. These bunkers dictate angles off the tee and into greens, often directing the player’s eye from the tee. Angles are a factor and those willing to take on more risk will often reap the benefit of reward.

The greens are often large but these feature strong slopes including backstops and bowls, This is most evident on the 13th hole, where a lower lobe drops some two metres. These greens are rarely designed to propel balls off the putting surface, instead they’re designed to send balls towards some of the more difficult pins.

Length is certainly a key with the back tees stretched to over 8000 yards but the forward tees are set at comfortable distances for all to enjoy. We feel that great effort was taken to create eighteen individual and memorable holes that will be easily recalled. At the same time, the course incorporates many unifying features and themes so that it reads as one consistent design. We are quite proud of our effort and honored to have created our first design in Myanmar for all to enjoy.”

Myotha National

The course at Myotha National Golf Club was fashioned by Brian Curley in 2018 on a truly grand scale. This 8,000-yard goliath is at the centre of a 1,700-acre industrial park complex to the south of Mandalay and it’s packed with dramatic elevation changes.

Opened in January 2017 and set to the north of Bangkok, the course at Royal Bang Pa-In Golf Club was fashioned on a vast 100-hectare site with no expenses spared by Schmidt-Curley Design. Huge undulating greens and risk and reward holes abound on this flat but exciting layout.

Royal Bang Pa-In

California

Situated in the scenic Coachella Valley, within a large Marriott Resort, the spectacular 18-hole layout at Shadow Ridge Golf Club was Nick Faldo’s first American course to open for play (fashioned in conjunction with Schmidt-Curley Golf Design) when it debuted at the start of the new millennium.

Although the fairways weave their way through quite a substantial residential development that lies between Frank Sinatra Drive to the south and Gerald Ford Drive to the north, there’s never a feeling of playing in overly cramped or constricted surroundings at Shadow Ridge.

Highlight holes include the 609-yard 2nd, the longest of the three par fives on the course, along with the 371-yard 8th, featuring a strategic split fairway. On the back nine, the par four 11th favours an approach from the right side of the fairway, whilst the par three 17th with its water-protected green is a potential card wrecker.

Shadow Ridge

Situated in the scenic Coachella Valley, within a large Marriott resort, the spectacular 18-hole layout at Shadow Ridge Golf Club was Nick Faldo’s first American course to open for play when it debuted in 2000.

One of three golf layouts at Siam Country Club, the Old course was originally laid out by Isao Mazumi in 1972 then renovated by Lee Schmidt and Brian Curley twenty-five years later when they replaced fairway grasses with salt water-tolerant Seashore Paspalum and removed trees that were obscuring sightlines on many of the playing corridors.

All three courses at Siam (Old, Plantation and Waterside) lie around 10 miles inland from the popular beach resort of Pattaya and the fairways of the Old are routed in a north-south or south-north direction towards or away from a lily-covered creek that runs through the property – water features most prominently between the 15th and 17th, a trio of holes known as the “Amen Corner” of Thai golf.

And just when you think you’ve safely negotiated the par four 15th, the long par three 16th and water-threatened 17th, the 540-yard home hole then doglegs uphill all the way to a heavily contoured green, behind which sits a large golden Buddha to further distract your attention.

The club has hosted many prestigious competitions down the years, such as the Thailand Open, and since 2007, the Old course has been used on several occasions as the venue for the Honda LPGA Thailand tournament.

Siam Country Club introduced a fourth course – Rolling Hills – at its Pattaya site at the end of 2019. Located in a valley at the bottom of the other three courses, it was designed by Brian Curley with the intention of one day hosting an LPGA event.

“The site has a natural sandy base in some areas,” said the architect, “and this material was used to create large sandy expanses with islands of native tropical carpet grasses. The holes often offer angles of attack that reward aggressive play and many have centreline hazards that create strategy and visual excitement.”

Siam (Old)

The Old course at Siam Country Club was redesigned by Lee Schmidt and Brian Curley, reopening for play in 2007. A trio of holes regarded as the “Amen Corner” of Thai golf feature between the 15 and 17.

 made its debut, Siam Country Club has gradually expanded into the impressive 63-hole golf complex that recently came into operation with the unveiling of the 18-hole Waterside layout in 2014.

Six years earlier, Lee Schmidt had laid out the 27-hole Plantation course in three returning 9-hole loops on the site of an old tapioca and pineapple plantation so, with that former usage in mind, it seems rather appropriate that the nines were named Tapioca, Pineapple and Sugar Cane.

The Honda LPGA Thailand event was held on the Plantation course the year after it opened in 2009 (the women’s tournament has since reverted to the Old course) and it hosted the Thailand Open in 2015, with both competitions taking place on the Pineapple (1-9) and Tapioca (10-18) nines.

Interestingly, these two nines also feature Asia’s first triple green. The 178-yard 7th on the Tapioca and the Pineapple’s long par four 4th and 9th holes share the same contiguous putting surface which measures more than 20,000 square feet, divided by large swales into three separate sections.

It’s a pity the Sugar Cane nine gets overlooked in the professional tournaments as some would argue it’s the best of the three loops, containing the signature hole on the course at the par five 5th – this 596-yard monster, featuring 28 bunkers, plays uphill to a split fairway that leads towards a tricky two-tier raised green.

Siam (Plantation)

The 27-hole Plantation course at Siam Country Club is a Schmidt-Curley design that opened for play in 2008. It’s laid out in three loops of nine, appropriately named Sugar Cane, Tapioca, and Pineapple.

Rolling Hills is the fourth 18-hole layout to open at the burgeoning Siam Country Club. Unveiled in 2019, Rolling Hills is a Brian Curley design that’s located to the south of the Old course. The “wall of death” in front of the par five 15th green will not be quickly forgotten.

Siam (Rolling Hills)

Stone Valley doesn’t quite match Brian Curley’s defunct Leader’s Peak course at Stone Forest in China for sheer drama, but Stone Valley does have a bunch of interesting green complexes and an impressive limestone backcloth.

Stone Valley

Central & North Sweden

Sweden

American architects Brian Curley and Lee Schmidt are well used to being involved in large scale golf developments around the world – having constructed five courses simultaneously at Mission Hills in China between 2002 and 2004 – so their 36-hole project at Vidbynäs Gård in Sweden was something they were able to take comfortably in their stride.

Curley grew up on California’s Monterey Peninsula and many of his designs are influenced by courses such as Spyglass Hill, Pebble Beach and Cypress Point. The Schmidt-Curley partnership is much in demand these days and they have collaborated in recent years with up and coming golfer-turned-architects like Nick Faldo, Fred Couples and Ernie Els.

The North course (formerly known as the Axa) at Vidbynäs opened for play in 2004, followed shortly after by the South layout. The North plays to a par of 72 over its championship length of 7,240 yards and it’s routed in and out and back fashion as opposed to the newer South, which is laid out in two returning 9-hole circuits.


Course architect, Brian Curley, provided us with the following exclusive article:

I first set foot on the property and was amazed at the potential. The combination of open fields, thick forest and wonderful rock outcroppings was spectacular and the plans to do two core golf courses with limited or no residential input was the icing on the cake.

I spent a tremendous amount of time on site trying to "find" holes in lieu of creating holes with extensive work. It was quite difficult at times to make connections because there were frequent areas of solid rock; beautiful but not golf friendly. So, great care was taken to look at numerous routing options that got the most of the property with a minimum of work.

In addition, Swedes are walkers so the green to tee connections needed to be as easy as possible. This was not an issue in the open fields but the areas of rock outcroppings posed problems yet some of these walks are quite beautiful and add to the experience.

Although the forested holes may be the most scenic, the open fields were much better suited to golf and the holes were easy to create. Existing streams provide both strategy and a constant water source almost year round, especially after a snow melt when unfathomable amounts of water come in quite a short period of time.

Construction occurred over about a two year period and the I remember making visits during the winter months when, despite frigid temperatures, much of the work is completed as the ground is frozen and many of the issues associated with soft, muddy conditions do not exist.

It was during these visits that the true, raw beauty of the property in its snow-covered conditions shines best. This is a special golf experience in a truly special place and I am very privileged to have been able to be a part of such a fine project with such wonderful people.

Vidbynäs (North)

Continental Europe

The North course at Vidbynäs Golf Club (formerly called the Axa) opened for play in 2004 and it was designed by American architects Brian Curley and Lee Schmidt...

At Vidbynäs you will find two top class courses, the North, formerly known as the Axa, and the South course, both designed by the renowned architects Brian Curley and Lee Schmidt.

The South course is laid out on mostly open country and has a distinct links character and is aggressively bunkered. Picking the right line of play is one of the qualities of the course and it’s an exhilarating challenge. There are a number of great holes worth mentioning.

The fairly short 3rd is a gorgeous par four with a central fairway bunker that creates an interesting strategic challenge. The more you favour the safer right side of the fairway, the more you bring in two large greenside bunkers that protect the angled green from the line of your approach. The wonderful par three 7th sits perched upon a small hill with the green angled and protected by three cavernous bunkers. When the pin is on the back right, you need both luck and tremendous skill to attack the flag.

The South course is routed in two returning nine-hole loops, and on the back nine don’t be fooled by the short par four 12th; either go for it, or lay up safely. It looks rather easy on the card, where some adopt the “I’ll just knock one out there” approach, but that plan is sure to get you into trouble. The green is well defended and is a tricky surface, so yes; it's short, but absolutely no push over.

Another short par four is the 16th, the cavernous bunkers framing the fairway look intimidating, but the tee shot is slightly uphill, and you need to carry 240 meters from the club tees to find them. It’s a visual gem and a great example of cerebral bunkering.

The signature hole of the South course is undoubtedly the par three 17th. The elevated tee offers a splendid view of the clubhouse and resort area. Club selection is crucial, anything short, left, right or long is not advised and the green is wide and narrow to the line of play. It’s a cracking short hole.

Following the round, find time to enjoy a beverage of your choice on the clubhouse patio and make sure that you have a good view of the 9th as many will try to make it in two on this short par five. With water edging the green to the left and the rest guarded by huge bunkers it is rather entertaining.

Vidbynäs (South)

The South course at Vidbynäs Golf Club opened soon after the North in 2004. Designed by Brian Curley and Lee Schmidt, Curley reckons Vidbynäs is “a special golf experience in a truly special place”.

Situated less than ten miles from the Canadian border, the appropriately named Wilderness Club offers members of an upmarket residential development a number of sporting options, from fishing and water sports to basketball and beach volleyball. There’s also a championship-standard golf course designed by Brian Curley and Nick Faldo.

Originally opened as a private club, it’s now available for the general golfing public to enjoy. The surrounding mountains provide a fabulous backdrop on a layout that exhibits several significant changes in elevation during the course of a round, where bluegrass fairways and bentgrass greens are largely bordered by swathes of fescue.

All the noteworthy holes occur on the back nine, starting with the downhill short par four 10th, played to a pond-protected green that’s also defended by a lone tree on the right of the fairway. The 12th is a dramatic par five, sweeping downhill and left to an offset green that sits on the edge of a large pond and this hole is replicated somewhat at the 593-yard 18th, where both the fairway and the home green are set on the west bank of Grob Lake.


Wilderness Club

The Faldo-designed championship course at the Wilderness Club is just one of a number of sporting options available to members at this private residential development.

Laid out by Schmidt-Curley Design, the 18-hole course at Yulongwan Golf Club occupies a rugged mountainside property, with fairways routed around natural forests and a lovely tranquil lake.

Yulongwan - Kunming

 graduated from the School of Agriculture at Purdue University in 1970 before becoming a design associate for 

 – a fellow Hoosier – where he worked on projects such as Casa de Campo in the Dominican Republic during his seven years with the old master.

He then spent over a decade with the Landmark Land Company, heading up the Design and Construction Division which built the Californian resorts of PGA West, La Quinta and Mission Hills. Lee then had a successful 7-year spell as a senior design associate with 

 before founding his own company with Brian Curley in 1997.

The Schmidt-Curley Design firm has worked quite a bit in the United States and the neighbouring countries of Canada and Mexico but the vast majority of its output has occurred in China and other Asian countries.

A long standing member of the American Society of Golf Course Architects, Lee was elected president of that organization in 2014.

 went to Pacific Grove High School, where his father was the principal, before studying at the School of Architecture and Environmental Design within California Polytechnic University prior to his graduation in 1982. He began his design career with Landmark Golf Company as a Land Planner, eventually concentrating solely on golf course projects.

He left the company after a few years to work briefly on some international developments with the well-travelled architect 

 and his Golfplan company but he returned to Landmark in 1988 when things didn’t quite pan out as expected.

Over the next decade, Brian was heavily involved in design assignments with both Lee Schmidt (until he left in 1991) and Pete Dye, who was the headline architect with Landmark for quite a number of years.

Brian and Lee formed their own design partnership in 1997, becoming leaders in the burgeoning Asian golf market as they quickly established ten courses at both the Mission Hills sites in Haikou and Shenzhen – followed by another ten that will be spread out across Vietnam.

A long standing member of the American Society of Golf Course Architects, Brian has served on the Board of Governors of that organization.

During their initial years, most of the Schmidt-Curley designs were the results of a joint effort from both partners on courses such as Bali Hai in Nevada and Oak Valley in California.

Realizing that the Asian golf development market was about to take off in a big way at the start of the new millennium, the company saw that its future lay in that part of the world. “We didn’t just dip our toe in,” says Curley,” we jumped in head first.”

“I am proud of how we at Schmidt Curley Design, in a small way, have helped grow the game in other parts of the world.” Lee Schmidt 

“I think that when you can take something that has no business being a golf course and turn it into something that is world-class golf is a huge accomplishment." Brian Curley