New Tanjong, newer charm

Sentosa Golf Club (SGC) members face a dilemma.

But it is a happy one.

With the completion of the redevelopment of the club's New Tanjong Course, members can choose between two world-class courses.

The award-winning Serapong Course's reputation is already established, after staging some of the biggest events on the global golf calendar, namely the Singapore Open.

And the New Tanjong is poised to give "Big Brother" a run for its money with its slew of quality changes.

One hundred Sentosa members and their guests had the opportunity to tee off on the New Tanjong at a special preview yesterday.

They came together to pledge a total of $50,000 for the beneficiaries of Assisi Hospice & ARC Children's Charity by buying the inaugural 25 flights.

Featuring an iconic experience set against the Singapore Straits with panoramic views of metropolitan Singapore, the New Tanjong will assert a unique personality with large sandbelt bunkers rarely seen in Asia.

It also offers golfers the challenge of playing on a course with modern hints of inspiration resembling the style of renowned golf course architect Alister MacKenzie.

Apart from the enhanced golfing experience, environmental sustainability is a hallmark of the redeveloped course, with several green initiatives implemented to conserve and re-use resources.

GO GREEN

These include a special temporary nursery to facilitate the relocation of more than 300 trees during the redevelopment, installing six reservoir-cum-water features to ensure that the New Tanjong is self-sufficient in irrigation, re-using concrete from old cart paths, and re-using the fairways' sand cap and greens mix.

The redeveloped 18-hole par-72 course is home to unique hole layouts, water features and the hardy "zorro zoysia" grass on its fairways, ensuring the rigorous conditioning required to host international championship tournaments

The major makeover of the course also addresses several potential issues associated with older venues.

Like other golf courses in the region, Tanjong has had to withstand the vagaries of a tropical climate, with such weather conditions typically allowing a golf course to have a lifespan of about 20 to 30 years.

Despite smaller-scale upgrading efforts over the years, the old Tanjong course's infrastructure faced challenges in irrigation, drainage and turf maintenance.

The course was closed for redevelopment in November 2015, with nine months of construction followed by a three-month turf maturation period.

Said SGC president Low Teo Ping: "The successful completion of the New Tanjong marks an important milestone in the club's vision of being beyond Asia's best.

"With the New Tanjong Course, SGC now returns to offering two high-quality courses, including our award-winning Serapong Course.

"The two courses provide further opportunities for Singapore to host international golfing tournaments."

To allow the New Tanjong time to mature, SGC will offer limited games and put in place longer intervals between flights until the course is officially open in February.