Lawrence Golf Design

Design realities from sand to clay, sea level to foothills — and how Lawrence Golf Design approaches them with project-proven detail.

Across the Southeast, golf courses share warm summers and passionate players — but the renovation challenges change dramatically from county to county. Coastal courses fight salt, sand movement, and stormwater. Piedmont and foothill sites wrestle with clay soils, shade, and topography. Florida and Gulf climates magnify heat and water management. A one-size-fits-all renovation playbook doesn’t work here; the design, construction, and agronomy choices must be regional.

Jeff Lawrence, ASGCA, and Lawrence Golf Design have led master planning and renovation scopes across this spectrum — from Cougar Point at Kiawah Island, SC (green redesign, bunker adjustments, grass conversion) to Laurel Oak Country Club in Sarasota, FL (green conversion and redesign), and Pine Lake CC / Lake Hickory CC in NC (master planning, bunker renovation, drainage, Green complex redesign, tee renovation and new irrigation system).

The firm’s approach pairs classical strategy with region-specific engineering so that the course plays better and is sustainable. Below is a practical guide to the Southeast’s most common renovation constraints — and the solutions Lawrence Golf Design specifies repeatedly on real projects.

Primary constraints:

• Stormwater & tidal influence: Low relief, shallow groundwater, king tide backflow.
• Sand movement & salt exposure: Windblown sand contaminating bunkers; irrigation sources with salinity variability.
• Rootzone oxygen: Prolonged wet periods stress turf if water has nowhere to go.

Design responses Lawrence uses on coastal work (e.g., Cougar Point – Kiawah Island, SC):

• “Shallow-fast” drainage architectures at greens — wider trench lines and high-permeability aggregate to shed water before the water table pushes back.
• Elevated tie-ins at green surrounds and tee platforms to create subtle, dry shoulder zones for maintenance access.
• Bunker simplification + edge stabilization, minimizing deep flashed faces that load up with salt-laden sand.
• Grass selection & conversion planning that matches salt and humidity exposure; pair with irrigation auditing when sources fluctuate.

Resulting benefits: predictable recovery after coastal rain events, reduced bunker contamination, firmer day-to-day playing surfaces without overbuilding.

Primary constraints:

• Clay and clay-loam soils: Slow infiltration, surface sheen after rain.
• Topographic runoff: Cross-slope flow lines cut fairways and green approaches.
• Tree pressure: Airflow and light limitations around cool-season or transitional turf.

Design responses used across Fox Run CC, Cedarbrook CC, Lake Hickory CC:

• Hydrologic mapping at master plan scale — sketching catchments hole by hole, then locating interceptor drains at the high side of fairways to capture water before it crosses lines of play.
• Micrograding around green complexes (1.5–2.5% target surfaces; 2–3% fall around tie-ins) so water never stalls near collars.
• Bunker repositioning away from natural catch basins, with outfalls armored by turf-reinforcement mats.
• Tree canopy audits and targeted removals or thinning to open wind corridors and morning light, protecting summer turf vigor.
• Cart-path realignment on steep holes to reduce concentration of flow and washouts.

Resulting benefits: less downtime after summer thunderstorms, better green health in July–August, and more durable bunker edges on sloped sites.

Primary constraints:

• Heat + rainfall extremes: Intense convective storms followed by high ET rates.
• Shallow water tables: Limits cut-and-fill; demands careful rootzone and outfall detailing.
• Play volume & expectations: Conditioning must rebound quickly.

Design responses applied to Laurel Oak CC (Sarasota) and Bonita Bay (Naples) scopes:

• Two-tier drainage systems: surface grading married to subsurface collection with redundant outfalls; velocity control at pipe termini to prevent blow-outs.
• Greens conversion planning with staging windows suited to heat; specify sand profiles balancing firmness with moisture retention.
• Bunker modernization (floor pitches, liners choices) to reduce contamination and speed post-storm recovery.
• Water-use efficiency: nozzle packages and spacing reviews during design so irrigation updates align with the new grass and design intent.

Resulting benefits: faster reopen after rain, consistent putting surfaces through summer, predictable maintenance inputs.

Primary constraints:

• Transitional climates: Hot, humid summers; cold winters; freeze-thaw cycles.
• Aging infrastructure: Many courses are at the end of useful life for drainage, bunkers, and irrigation.
• Mixed turf strategies: Cool-season vs. warm-season debates, or blends.

Design responses seen in The ACE Club (Philadelphia area) bunker renovation concept planning:

• Phase-friendly master plans that let owners stage capital: bunkers → greens → irrigation, without rework.
• Detail-rich bid documents (sections, profiles, quantities) to produce clean apples-to-apples pricing in markets with variable contractor availability.
• Freeze-thaw protection at bunker edges and green perimeters (drain depth, freeboard, and edge geometry) to reduce spring failures.
• Data-driven turf calls that weigh summer stress vs. winter performance, water availability, and course traffic.

Resulting benefits: predictable bidding, fewer change orders, and resilient surfaces across shoulder seasons.

Whatever the zip code, the most successful projects share five operational traits Lawrence Golf Design bakes into scope:

1. Master plan first. It’s the map for phasing, budget control, and long-term consistency (e.g., Cedarbrook, Lake Hickory, Pine Lake CC, River Hills CC, Holly Tree CC).
2. Detail where it matters. Drainage, grades, and quantities in the drawings reduce surprises during construction.
3. Right-sized bunkers. Strategy stays, maintenance drops.
4. Turf and irrigation as a pair. Conversions (as at Cougar Point and Laurel Oak) perform best when irrigation audits and control upgrades are coordinated.

• Cougar Point – Kiawah Island, SC: Green redesign, bunker adjustments, grass conversion.
• Laurel Oak CC – Sarasota, FL: Green conversion, green redesign.
• Cedarbrook CC – Elkin, NC: Master plan, ongoing consulting.
• Lake Hickory CC – Hickory, NC: 27-hole master plan, 27-hole bunker renovation.
• Pickens CC – Pickens, SC: Master plan, bunker renovation, 9-hole par-3 design.
• Fox Run CC – Simpsonville, SC: Green renovation master plan.
• The ACE Club – Philadelphia, PA: Bunker renovation, hole redesign.
• Highland Springs CC – Washington, DC: Concept planning.
• Bonita Bay – Naples, FL: Major 18-hole renovation.
• Bull’s Bridge – Kent, CT: 18-hole bunker renovation.
• Holly Tree CC - Simpsonville, SC: Master Planning, Detailed Design, Major renovation
• 3’s Greenville, Greenville, SC:  Bunker and Green Renovation, Himalayan Green design.