This is the first look at what Donald Trump hopes will become one of the most daunting tee shots in golf – the 14th at his championship course in Aberdeenshire.
Once turfed, the sand in the centre of the picture – 225 yards from the tee – will be the only fairway at the signature par 4 hole, which has been designed to punish every hook and slice.
Players lucky enough to hit the fairway with their first shot will then have to navigate through another 200 yards of the Great Dunes of Scotland before reaching the green, which is nestled behind the peaks on the horizon.
Esie O’Mahoney, of lead contractor SOL Golf Course Construction, has worked on some of the world’s most famous courses, including Royal Lytham and St Annes, Royal Birkdale and Muirfield.
But he believes players stepping up to the tee at Menie Estate’s 14th face “one of the most daunting golf shots in the world”.
The Press and Journal has been given an exclusive first look at how work is progressing on Mr Trump’s £750million golf resort.
Construction is well underway at the near-600-yard 18th where the American billionaire hopes future Open Championship winners will clinch the famous claret jug.
Sarah Malone, executive vice-president of Trump International – Scotland, has been providing Mr Trump with daily construction images and updates.
Last night Mr Trump said he was delighted with the way the course was taking shape. “I’m extremely pleased with progress on site – the land is so magnificent that every hole created will be spectacular,” he said.
“I’m looking forward to walking the course during my visit next month.”
Irishman Mr O’Mahoney, 36, is the man who has been tasked with turning the rugged coastline – and Mr Trump’s plans – into the world’s greatest golf course. But the contract manager, of County Clare, said the scale of the job did not intimidate him.
“There is pressure, but this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity,” he said. “The site is there, the design is there, so there is no reason why this should not become the best course in the world. The land is breathtaking. You couldn’t create a site like this, even with all the money in the world.”
There are now eight excavators, six dump trucks and two bulldozers on site helping shape the course and instal the drainage and irrigation required. More than 20 people are on site, but Mr O’Mahoney said more and more workers would move in as the months passed. When finished, the course will be one of the longest in Europe, at more than 7,400 yards off the championship tees.
