x
Skip to main content
Golf Logo
InsideGolf Join Now  / Log In
How this new Nicklaus Design course will help extend golf’s reach
SHARE
  • Share on Facebook
  • Share on Twitter
  • Share by Email
Golf Logo
  • News
    • Latest
      • News
      • Features
      • Shows
      • PGA Tour Schedule
    • Series
      • Tour Confidential
      • Monday Finish
      • Hot Mic
      • Rogers Report
    • Shows
      • The Scoop
      • Subpar
      • Seen & Heard
  • Instruction
    • Game Improvement
      • Driving
      • Approach Shots
      • Bunker Shots
      • Short Game
      • Putting
      • Rules
      • Fitness
    • Series
      • Top 100 Teachers
      • Rules Guy
      • The Etiquetteist
    • Shows
      • Warming Up
      • Play Smart
      • Short Game Chef
      • Pros Teaching Joes
  • Gear
    • Clubs
      • Drivers
      • Irons
      • Hybrids
      • Fairway Woods
      • Wedges
      • Putters
    • Other Gear
      • Balls
      • Shoes
      • Apparel
      • Golf Accessories
    • Series
      • ClubTest
      • Winner’s Bag
    • Shows
      • Fully Equipped
  • Travel & Lifestyle
    • Travel
      • Course Finder
      • Courses
      • Resorts
    • Lifestyle
      • Accessories
      • Celebrities
      • Food
      • Style
      • Betting Advice
    • Shows
      • Super Secrets
      • Destination Golf
  • Shop
    • Shop
      • Clubs
      • Shafts
      • Training Aids
      • Balls
      • Bags
      • Technology
      • Apparel
      • Accessories
      • Our Picks
      • Shop All
    • Collections
      • The GOLF Collection
      • The Birdie Juice Collection
      • The Fully Equipped Collection
      • Shop All
  • Newsletters
    • Sign Up for GOLF’s Newsletters
      • Hot Mic
      • Monday Finish
      • Play Smart
      • Our Picks
      • Top Stories
      • Sign Up for All
  • News
    • Latest News
    • Features
    • Shows
    • PGA Tour Schedule
  • Instruction
    • All Instruction
    • Driving
    • Approach Shots
    • Bunker Shots
    • Short Game
    • Putting
    • Rules
    • Fitness
  • Gear
    • All Gear
    • Drivers
    • Irons
    • Hybrids
    • Fairway Woods
    • Wedges
    • Putters
    • Balls
    • Shoes
    • Apparel
    • Golf Accessories
  • Travel & Lifestyle
    • All Travel
    • All Lifestyle
    • Course Finder
    • Courses
    • Resorts
    • Accessories
    • Celebrities
    • Food
    • Style
    • Betting Advice
  • Series
    • Tour Confidential
    • Monday Finish
    • Hot Mic
    • Rogers Report
    • Rules Guy
    • The Etiquetteist
    • ClubTest
    • Winner’s Bag
  • Shows
    • The Scoop
    • Subpar
    • Seen & Heard
    • Warming Up
    • Play Smart
    • Short Game Chef
    • Pros Teaching Joes
    • Fully Equipped
    • Super Secrets
    • Destination Golf
  • Shop
    • Clubs
    • Shafts
    • Training Aids
    • Balls
    • Bags
    • Technology
    • Apparel
    • Accessories
    • The GOLF Collection
    • The Birdie Juice Collection
    • The Fully Equipped Collection
  • Newsletters
    • Hot Mic
    • Monday Finish
    • Play Smart
    • Top Stories
    • Our Picks
    • Sign Up for All
InsideGolf Join Now  / Log In
InsideGolf

Over $140 of value - Just $39.99

InsideGOLF
Travel

How this new Nicklaus Design course will help extend golf’s reach

By: Michael Arkush
February 13, 2021
  • Share on Facebook
  • Share on Twitter
  • Share by Email
rendering of Qiddiya

A rendering of Qiddiya, Nicklaus Design's forthcoming course in Saudi Arabia.

courtesy

The plan mimicked that of many other Nicklaus Design signature courses.

Have the man himself visit the site. Check out the property. Meet the locals. Get a better sense for the kind of course he wants to design.

But this time was different. The pandemic kept him from making the trip.

No matter. Jack Nicklaus scoured photos, topography maps and design plans and worked with members of his team who had been on the site to formulate a strategy.

As a result, Nicklaus Design, an affiliate of GOLF.com’s parent company, 8AM Golf, is well on its way toward building a championship course about 30 minutes from Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Construction is slated to begin this spring with the opening likely to be near the end of 2022. It will be the first Jack Nicklaus Signature Design in the Middle East to involve Nicklaus himself.

The golf course, Qiddiya, will be an integral part of Golf Saudi’s goal of elevating the game in the Kingdom, where there are just 5,000 golfers. Golf Saudi is aiming to more than double the number of public-access courses in the country — there are five today — by 2030.

Travel
Sand Hollow in Utah.
Course Rater Confidential: What are the best desert golf courses in the country?
By: GOLF’s Course Ratings Panel

Bringing golf to a place where it hasn’t been part of the culture is not new for the Nicklaus Design team.

“This is, literally, what was done in Dubai 20 years ago,” said Dirk Bouts, a senior designer for Nicklaus Design. “You’re kind of doing it all over again.”

The goal is to design a course that can host prestigious events — the European Tour’s Saudi International would appear to be the most obvious candidate — while also catering to players who might be new to the game. The design, which will sit about 2,000 feet above sea level, will have wide fairways and no rough.

“Jack definitely wants to make sure it’s enjoyable,” Bouts said. “Surely the local people playing it will not be that familiar with the game yet, so you want to make sure they have a great time.”

As is the case with any new project, there will be hurdles to overcome. Weather is near the top of that list. The summers in Saudi Arabia are long and hot and there is little rainfall.

“Maintaining the turf and having the right amount of water there will certainly present a challenge,” said Paul Stringer, president of Nicklaus Design. “They’re up to that challenge.”

Qiddiya
The landscape at the Qiddiya site evokes the Arizona desert. courtesy

Nicklaus Design will put in a couple of lakes, mainly for irrigation storage. “The site doesn’t have a lot of vegetation,” Stringer said, “so like a lot of desert golf courses, it will have to be created.”

Stringer, who has lived in Scottsdale and Tucson, sees similarities between the Arizona desert courses and the Tuwaiq mountain range which will surround Qiddiya.

“It reminds me a little bit of Pinnacle Peek in north Scottsdale in terms of the formation,” he said.

One main attraction will be the three holes that will sit on a small escarpment on the southern edge of the site with “tremendous views of the valley down below,” Stringer said.

News
jack nicklaus and jackie nicklaus masters
In new book, Jack Nicklaus’ eldest son shares life lessons learned from his father
By: James Colgan

Beyond golf, the development will also include amusements parks, a safari park, a high-end resort hotel and spa and a residential community.

Qiddiya’s origin story began two years ago when Nicklaus met with His Excellency Yassir bin Othman Al-Rumayyan, the chairman of Golf Saudi and the Saudi Golf Federation. Golf Saudi was seeking a design firm to build a new private golf club in the Kingdom.

At the end of 2019, Nicklaus Design was awarded the project. The team will also create a nine-hole par-3 course and a large practice facility. Sean Quinn, another senior designer working on the project, said the team plans to have fun with the par-3, including a “St. Andrews 17th green with a wall behind it.”

The notion of growing the game in a country where golf is just catching on was appealing to Nicklaus Design.

“That’s what makes it exciting for Jack and all of us,” Stringer said. “Jack loves creating golf in new cultures and new environments that haven’t had golf.”

Once it’s deemed safe to travel, Nicklaus will pay a visit to the Kingdom, where he will put his official stamp of approval on the design.

Latest In Travel

3 days ago

Royal Dornoch names designer for ambitious masterplan

5 days ago

St. Andrews golf guide: a 5-day dream trip to the Kingdom of Fife

5 days ago

Philadelphia Cricket Club: The 6 most critical shots at the Truist Championship

1 week ago

This war-weary nation's only golf course is short on yards — but long on charm

generic profile image

Golf.com

Related Articles

Travel
american dunes

A hole I love: American Dunes' 'Beauty and the Beast' 16th

By: Ran Morrissett
Travel
justin thomas and jack nicklaus at panther valley

Justin Thomas, Jack Nicklaus collaborating on new golf-course design in South Florida

By: Josh Sens
Travel
The course occupies a rolling piece of land about 20 miles east of Manhattan.

Former major championship host to undergo $5 million 'reconfiguration'

By: James Colgan
Travel
gary player and jack nicklaus

Jack Nicklaus and Gary Player's course-design firms form 'strategic alliance'

By: Josh Sens
Travel
concession par-3 course

The most fun course at The Concession might be one the pros aren't playing

By: Josh Sens
Courses
concession

Inside Concession Golf Club, a Florida course that doesn’t always feel like one

By: Ran Morrissett
Travel
sterling grove

Check out Arizona's first new public golf course in five years

By: Josh Sens
Courses
sherwood cc

How this week’s PGA Tour venue has changed in an important way since its last close-up

By: Josh Sens
News
muirfield village golf club

Nicklaus Golf, Full Swing partner to bring some of Jack's best designs to simulators

By: Zephyr Melton
Sign up for GOLF's Newsletters
Get the latest news, the hottest instruction tips, new product releases, golf media insider reports and more delivered directly to your inbox. Choose your favorites now.
Sign Up
Categories
  • News
  • Instruction
  • Gear
  • Lifestyle
  • Travel
Services
  • Masthead
  • GOLF Media Kit
  • GOLF Magazine Customer Service
  • TERMS OF SERVICE
  • PRIVACY POLICY
  • Opt-out of Ads/Sharing
  • Your Privacy Choices
Social
  • facebook
  • x
  • instagram
  • youtube
Membership
InsideGOLF Logo
More than $140 Value for JUST $39.99

INCLUDES 12 SRIXON Z-STAR XV GOLF BALLS, 1 YR OF GOLF MAGAZINE, $20 FAIRWAY JOCKEY CREDIT - AND MUCH MORE!

LEARN MORE

© 2025 EB Golf Media LLC. An 8AM Golf Affiliated Brand. All Rights Reserved. All of our market picks are independently selected and curated by the editorial team. If you buy a linked product, GOLF.COM may earn a fee. Pricing may vary.

Go to mobile version