Cape Fear National Golf Club - Golf Course Designer

Detail application both on the golf course and in the areas that surround the golf course. I started as a landscape architect, which helps me to present the golf course and the areas that surround the golf course in a very sophisticated upscale manner. Many of the hazard areas are aesthetically pleasing, featuring colorful plants and native grasses.

The course features over 1,500 linear feet of bridges, three separate waterfalls, several ponds, strategically placed rock walls, drive-through sand waste areas, beach bunkers that run into the ponds and over 1.5 million cubic yards of earth were moved to design Cape Fear National. The Cypress marsh also frames a couple of the holes on the back nine. The drainage on this golf course will be unparalleled in the local and regional market.

Question

Can you describe Cape Fear National in a couple of sentences?

Answer

A challenging, visually stunning golf course designed to use the natural areas encompassing the golf course to enhance the aesthetics of the golf course and the golf course to enhance the natural areas around the course. Cape Fear National will be a fun course to play and will be aesthetically unmatched in the Wilmington area.

Question

What features are consistent with Tim Cate designed golf courses?

Answer

I only work with high-end golf courses. Quality is always of the utmost of importance to me and if that is not the number one priority of the client, I will pass on the project. I pride myself on designing golf courses that provide an aesthetically pleasing, memorable experience to all levels of golfers.

Every shot needs a challenge, visual interest and difficulty level. I am always 100 percent dedicated to each project ensuring that the courses exceed my client’s expectations. I am constantly tweaking the course until the day it is grassed. A great deal of thought and creativity goes into each and every hole.

Question

Were you given any specific directions from the client regarding the design of Cape Fear National?

Answer

The client has given me simple instructions, “Build us the best golf course in the Wilmington market” and they have provided the resources to accomplish their goal.

Question

Which hole do you feel will become the signature hole on the first eighteen holes?

Answer

My goal is to make each hole spectacular and memorable. If I were to pick my favorite hole, I would pick hole number 13. This hole is a par four dogleg right that plays 440 yards from the back tees.

There is a giant berm that runs along the far right side of the entire hole. That berm will feature native grasses, Wax Myrtles and wildflowers that will really make it stand out. There will be a waste bunker that runs between the fairway and the berm until about 60 yards out from the green where it crosses between the fairway and the green.

Golf carts travel through the waste area for the majority of the hole. There is a pond that runs along the length of this spectacular golf hole. Sand traps are strategically placed beside the pond that will keep your ball from making it to the water if traveling along the ground.

There is plenty of mounding around the green complex to accent this large target. It wouldn’t surprise me if any of the following holes were selected as the signature hole once the golf course is completed – hole number four, five, eleven, thirteen or eighteen.

Question

What tips would you give to golfers playing Cape Fear National?

Answer
Pay close attention to your yardage book and don’t bite off more than you can chew. I hope you enjoy playing the golf course as much as I enjoyed designing it.

Interviewed by: KemperSports