New Course Debuts at Clearwater Bay Golf Club in China


Schmidt-Curley Design has announced that the B Course at Clearwater Bay Golf Club in Lingshui, China, has opened for play.

4th Hole at Clearwater Bay's B Course

It is Schmidt-Curley's second design at Clearwater Bay for the Agile Group, one of China's leading property developers. The par-72, 7,035-yard layout is Schmidt-Curley's 13th course to debut on Hainan Island, the epicenter of the Chinese golf course construction boom, since 2009.

Set on terrain dotted by picturesque lakes and groves of coconut palms, the B Course features a variety of bunker styles. They include steep, grass-faced, sandy waste areas and a number of penal pot bunkers. Water also enters play on nine holes.

No. 9 at Clearwater Bay's B Course

"The B Course has a unique look that relatively few projects in China have embraced," says Lee Schmidt, who co-founded Schmidt-Curley Design with Brian Curley in 1997. "Despite the prevalence of hazards, it's a design players of all abilities will enjoy. We were sure to provide plenty of width to playing corridors, and bunkers are typically flat-bottomed giving them more bark than bite."

Two short par-4s are highlights. Players who challenge a bunker and lake down the right side of the 380-yard third hole will be rewarded with a short pitch to the green. Those who select a safer line off the tee will be left with an exacting approach, especially when the pin is back-right.

12th Hole at the B Course at Clearwater Bay

No. 15 is a 337-yard par-4 with a wide landing area. The putting surface, however, is perched three meters above the fairway and protected by deep bunkers and grass hollows.

No. 15 is a 337-yard par-4 with a wide landing area. The putting surface, however, is perched three meters above the fairway and protected by deep bunkers and grass hollows.

The B Course complements Clearwater Bay's par-72, 7,333-yard A Course. Opened in 2009, the original track is characterized by high-flashed bunkers and several windswept, seaside holes.

The architect of record for all 10 golf courses at the new Mission Hills Hainan - host of this fall's Omega Mission Hills World Cup - Schmidt-Curley has two fully-staffed Asian offices (Haikou and Kunming, China) in addition to its Scottsdale, Ariz., its U.S. headquarters.

For more information, visit www.schmidt-curley.com. For more information about Clearwater Bay Golf Club, visit http://www.cwbgolf.org/public/index.aspx.