France’s links, La Mer at Le Touquet Golf Resort, has undergone a major restoration project as part of long-term plans to restore the course and resort to their 1930s glory.
France’s #1 links, La Mer at Le Touquet Golf Resort, has undergone a major restoration project as part of long-term plans to restore the course and resort to their 1930s glory.
The Harry Colt classic, regarded as one of the finest links on the Continent, opened in 1931 when Le Touquet was the most fashionable resort in Europe.
But fortification and bombardment during World War II resulted in significant damage to the terrain and the abandonment of four of Colt’s original holes.
While efforts were made to restore these holes in the 1990s, the discovery of aerial photography from the 1930s helped golf architects and leading restorers of classic courses in Europe, Patrice Boissonnas and Frank Pont, bring the entire course back to what now closely resembles Colt’s original design.
“This is the kind of commission a golf architect dreams about,” said Boissonnas.
“Finding lost holes from a legendary course designer like Harry Colt – the mastermind behind the New Course at Sunningdale, the West Course at Wentworth and Royal Portrush in Northern Ireland, to name but a few – is like finding treasure in a treasure hunt.''
''There are so few situations like this, and when they do come along, it is very exciting.''
The newly restored links course, set behind the towering dunes and vast beaches at Le Touquet, is receiving high-level plaudits.
Adam Lawrence, editor of Golf Course Architecture magazine, has written he believes La Mer is a future European top 10 course in the making. He said: “Le Touquet's La Mer is a genuine links course, the best form of golf, and there are precious few links in Continental Europe. Harry Colt’s La Mer layout has great terrain and a bunch of great holes.
For more information about Le Touquet Golf Resort, visit www.opengolfclub.com/en/Golf-du-Touquet
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