Dubai (UAE): Tiger Woods' first course design globally will raise the stakes in Dubai by up to 50 per cent but the craze for signature courses is being driven too much by marketing, leading course designer Peter Harradine has claimed.
In the liveliest debate of the first day of GolfEx Dubai 2007, Harradine questioned whether money is becoming the only criteria for course designs.
"The whole world is based on marketing," said Harradine. "Tiger is the best athlete that's ever walked the earth, but as a golf architect? If a top player is involved in a course design, it usually means it will be over budget and over schedule. My signature stands for quality, built on time and on budget."
Harradine didn't reserve criticism for the players so much as developers and owners. "The players aren't daft, if they know they can ask for $1 million or $2 million more they will, and good luck to them - they realise that daft people will pay them."
Jeremy Slessor, Managing Director of European Golf Design, defended the use of top players putting their names to projects, saying the increased pulling power invariably leads to higher revenues. "It may be marketing, but as a mechanism it works. If you put Langer's name on a course you know it will be played by Germans," he said.
KPMG's Andrea Satori said that a financial definition of a signature course would be one costing between $800,000 and $2 million.
Harradine also called for designers to offer uncomplicated layouts, saying the current trend was for fancy championship par-72 courses over 8,000 yards. "We have forgotten the normal punter who just wants a good experience," he added.
Despite his reservations for the unbridled growth in signature courses, the Managing Director of Harradine Golf welcomed the fact that the world number one has chosen Dubai for his first design worldwide.
"The fact Tiger is developing his first course here is great news," he said. "It will raise the stakes by 50 per cent not only it terms of fees but also budgets. We now have a very high benchmark."
GolfEx Dubai 2007, the Middle East's premier golfing exhibition, has attracted a star-studded line-up of speakers this year, with Tiger's agent Mark Steinberg, Colin Montgomerie and Ken Schofield among its distinguished speakers. Taking place at Dubai's Madinat Jumeirah, the two-day event ends tonight (Monday).
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Notes to editors:
Copies of speeches will be posted on the GolfEx website each evening of the conference. Click on www.golf-ex.com for more details
For further information:
Dominic Ellis.
Tel: +97150 6244112
© Press Release 2007
