MASTER architect of golf course design Robert Trent Jones Jnr has been commissioned to create a unique tidal course on Abu Dhabi’s Saadiyat Island – a natural island lying just offshore the UAE capital.
The new course will join Jones’ portfolio of over 200 courses in 35 countries. Jones has been commissioned by Tourism Development & Investment Company (TDIC), Abu Dhabi developers and the name behind Saadiyat Island’s transformation into a leisure, residential and cultural destination.
“Robert Trent Jones’ credentials are second-to-none and are compelling when selecting a designer who can deliver a championship course which is informed by its natural environment and which also makes keen financial sense,” said Lee Tabler, CEO of TDIC.
All leading tournaments – The PGA Tour, The Senior PGA Tour, the LPGA Tour, The Asian Tour, The European Tour, The Australian Tour, the World Cup and the World Match Play Championships - have been staged on Robert Trent Jones courses.
The Saadiyat Island course – the first to be undertaken by the American master course architect in Abu Dhabi – will be in the destination’s Saadiyat Reserve District – one of seven distinct districts. The reserve is Saadiyat Island’s eco-destination with a landscape characterised by dramatic tidal flats.
“Robert Trent Jones is renowned for his innovative design concepts that integrate course with coastal wetlands and other sensitive environments,” said Tabler. “His courses are acknowledged for enhancing habitats while creating playable courses rich with strategic variety. These design traits fit extremely well with our plans for Saadiyat Reserve and also with TDIC’s own corporate ethos of strong and tangible environmental stewardship.”
Jones said, “The distinctive terrain of Saadiyat Reserve presents us with a challenge and an opportunity to deliver a course like no other in the region, if not the world.”
“The wetlands allow us to give full rein to our vision of creating golf courses where nature works in harmony with the values of the royal and ancient game.”
Spread over 130 hectares, the Saadiyat Reserve golf destination will feature the 71 hectare Robert Trent Jones II course, the design of which is due for completion this year with groundbreaking scheduled for early 2009.
Meanwhile, TDIC is progressing well with the championship Saadiyat Beach Golf Course – the UAE’s first signature Gary Player course and the Arabian Gulf’s only ‘ocean’ course with several beachfront holes. The course is due to open in the third quarter of next year.
“The two courses will offer distinctly varied playing experiences and will compliment each other with differing shot values and landscape settings,” said Tabler.