*This article was developed with the aid of Tom Pilcher’s “How otters and beavers returned to one of the world’s greatest golf courses”, written on March 6, 2021 for CNN International.

This week the golfing spotlight shifts across the pond for professional golf’s final major championship of the year, the 149th Open Championship at Royal St. George’s in Sandwich, Kent, England, golf’s oldest and most international major championship. Much has changed since Royal St. George’s last held the Open in 2011, including a dedication to sustainability and a return to how things looked over a century ago.

Royal St. George’s: A Duneland Paradise for Flora and Fauna

Shortly after Royal St. George’s hosted the 2011 Open Championship, Paul Larsen was promoted from assistant to head greenkeeper and one of his first tasks under the new title was to amend the golf course’s less than favorable Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) rating. SSSI is “a formal conservation designation that describes an area of particular interest to science due to the rare species of flora and fauna it contains.”

The poor SSSI rating came from invasive, non-native turfgrass that made up most of the course’s playable area. The thick, lush turfgrass not only inhibited the growth of local nesting bird populations but also made locating and identifying errant golf shots nearly impossible as the grass would seemingly swallow golf balls whole.

Like many parkland style golf courses (inland golf courses that feature trees, lush grass and man-made features like bunkers and ponds), Royal St. George’s featured built-up rough that didn’t support native flora and fauna. Parkland style courses can be expensive to maintain because they typically require significant maintenance and upkeep to ensure lush conditions throughout the golfing season.

With the help of Natural England (a parliamentary appointed organization designed to advise the government on issues of sustainable development - i.e. conservation, enhancement and management of the natural environment for the benefit of present and future generations), Larsen began the arduous process of modernizing the course by returning it to its former landscape: a duneland paradise.

The process of returning the course to a duneland paradise for Larsen and the team from Natural England was not easy. Besides navigating the rough seas of membership frustrated with changes in course management, ridding the course of the old turfgrass was paramount to improving the SSSI rating. To do this, they instituted controlled burning throughout the course and reseeded it with thinner, wispier fescue grass. What resulted surprised Larsen as Royal St. George’s saw an abundant return of wild orchids (specifically the lizard orchid which is one of Britain’s rarest plants), wild plants like bedstraw and broomrape and even otters and beavers, which were once extinct from the area, returned.

The transition to fescue decreased the playable area of Royal St. George’s that required dedicated maintenance freeing up natural habitats for local biodiversity. It also allowed Larsen and his staff to be better prepared for climate hardships like periods of drought because the native fescue could adapt better to harsher conditions. Said Larsen in April, 2020 regarding Royal St. George’s return to its natural duneland environment: “the course has needed less feeding, less work and we can survive for longer without essential maintenance on it.”  

Larsen also developed an appreciation for the renewed working relationship with Natural England noting that none of the work done would not have been possible without their guidance. Phil Williams of Natural England noted: “Paul often says he used to see it as a golf club with a sand dune on it, and now he sees it as a sand dune system with a golf course on it. Changing perceptions is what we need.”

Driving the Green Takeaways

As the United States continues to face unprecedented heat waves and droughts, golf courses (specifically ones located in the western half of the country) will be called upon to reevaluate their entire operations. Water shortages and extreme heat will push turfgrass to its limits while maintenance crews will be tested beyond what they’ve learned in the normal course of their on the job training and golfers, owners and municipalities will have to adapt to what is seemingly becoming a new way of life thanks to climate change.

Developing environmental partnerships, revitalizing native species of turfgrass and decreasing maintained playable areas, similar to what Larsen has done with Royal St. George’s, will be key to managing the growing climate crisis. While much of this is easier said than done, it is time for golf to reimagine the roles of golf professionals and superintendents to work in partnership with the natural habitat instead of fighting against it. This starts with an open conversation about alternative methods to combat the extreme climate challenges that lie ahead. The next step is shifting the average golfer’s perceptions of what a golf course should look like from a lush green course with trees and wildlife on it to a diverse, natural landscape that is home to a golf course.

As you tune in this weekend to watch the 149th Open Championship, be sure to take in the beauty and spectacle of the natural duneland landscape and the hard work and effort undertaken by Larsen, his staff and the team at Natural England as they present a product worthy of hosting golf’s oldest and most revered major championship.

For a more intimate view of Royal St. George’s ahead of this weekend’s Open Championship, check out this hole-by-hole course guide as it highlights many of the elements from the original design created by Dr. Laidlaw Purves in 1887.