American architect Gil Hanse will design the 2016 Olympic golf course in Rio de Janeiro, after winning selection over Greg Norman, Jack Nicklaus and Gary Player.
Organisers picked Hanse Golf Design over seven other finalists. Hanse will team up with Hall of Fame player Amy Alcott to build the first Olympic golf course since the sport was dropped following the 1904 St Louis Games.
“I’m still a little bit stunned by the whole thing,” Hanse said by phone from Miami.
“We are obviously very honoured, very humbled by the selection. It was a thrill just to be in the competition with these great designers. I’m excited that the selection panel felt that our efforts were the ones that best matched the criteria set by organisers.”
The Rio 2016 committee said Hanse Golf Design was “the candidate that most aptly met the selection criteria” issued by organisers, proposing a strong legacy component that prioritised a golf academy to help the sport’s development in Brazil.
Golf made its debut at the second modern Olympics in Paris in 1900, but lasted only one more games. It was reinstated in 2009 and is guaranteed to be at the 2020 Games, but a good impression in Rio would help keep the sport in the games beyond that.
Another IOC vote on adding or removing sports is scheduled for 2017.
Hanse hopes to have a course similar to Royal Melbourne with construction expected to begin in October and completed by the middle of 2014. Tests events will likely be scheduled for 2015. After the 2016 Games, the course will be used as a public facility.
“It’s difficult to compare landscapes, but I think sort of the sand belt of Australia would be a good one to look at as far as that type of vegetation and certainly that style of architecture,” he said.
Hanse Golf Design was created in 1993 and built the Castle Stuart course that hosts the Scottish Open. Hanse also built the course at the Boston Golf Club, and last year completed the renovation of the North Course at Los Angeles Country Club. He was recently hired by Donald Trump to help renovate the Blue Monster course in Miami.
The other seven companies which made the final shortlist were Greg Norman Golf Course Design, Gary Player Design, Hawtree Ltd, Nicklaus Design, Renaissance Golf, Robert Trent Jones II and Thomson-Perret Golf Course Architects.
Norman had a partnership with the retired player Lorena Ochoa, while Nicklaus was set to team up with women’s great Annika Sorenstam.
The winner was announced as delegates from the International Olympic Committee made a three-day visit to Rio to receive updates on the city’s preparations.
