- AddressArdfin, Isle of Jura PA60 7XY, UK
Situated between the village of Craighouse and the slipway at Feolin Ferry on the southern shores of Jura, the Ardfin Estate extends to eleven and a half thousand acres, encompassing around ten miles of coastline that stretches out along the south side of the island.
In 2010, retired Australian hedge fund manager Greg Coffey purchased the property from the Riley-Smith family (brewers from Tadcaster in Yorkshire) and immediately set about implementing an ambitious plan to upgrade Ardfin’s infrastructure.
The dilapidated C-listed Jura House has now been restored to its former glory, old disused outbuildings have been totally refurbished and transformed into modern guest accommodation and – more importantly for golfers – a brand new 18-hole course has been constructed.
Bob Harrison, former lead architect for Greg Norman’s design company (who has a string of courses currently ranked inside our Australian Top 100) mapped out the 18-hole layout overlooking the Sound of Jura and it was built by Irish contractor SOL.
Occupying a mainly cliff top location on either side of Jura House, the course is routed across a rugged landscape of peat and rocks, where large quantities of unsuitable material had to be dug out and replaced with soil mined from other areas on the estate.
Dry stone dykes were repaired, extended and brought into play, making them an integral part of the playing strategy on several holes. Sand and gravel was shipped in by barge from Northern Ireland and turf for tees, greens and surrounds was imported from Yorkshire.
The scale of the build would have been off putting for most construction firms but SOL is obviously made of far sterner stuff, having successfully delivered challenging projects to great acclaim in recent times at both Trump golf facilities on the Scottish mainland.
There are only three short holes on the card and they’re all spectacular: the 2nd and 10th require heroic carries from tee to green across the edge of the cliffs and the 12th plays out along the beach, beside the old boat house which has been converted into a half-way house.
Last word goes to architect Bob Harrison, who had this to say about Ardfin: “I am convinced that it is one of the most beautiful and spectacular courses in the world, and the question then becomes whether I have given the holes the interest and strategic merit they deserve.”
The impressive new 18-hole course takes shape on the Isle of Jura’s Ardfin Estate
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Harrison joined the newly formed Greg Norman Design firm in 1988 and for the following twenty years he was the lead architect for all of the Great White Shark’s Asian and Australian golf course projects.
