Creating Alternatives to Original Golf Templates
The word ‘template’ is, of course, part of modern-day golf architecture speak. It’s not quite clear when the term was first used to describe certain hole designs, but we do know it has its origin in golf pioneer C.B. Macdonald’s trips to Britain and France between 1902 and 1906 when he sought to identify the […]
Golf’s Short Course Craze
By Tony Dear Golf’s short course movement is in full swing. Whether it’s a layout with fewer than 18 holes, or one consisting solely of par threes, truncated golf is appearing with increasing regularity as America discovers how much fun it can be, how great it is for introducing youth to the game, how […]
Who Deserves Credit for a Golf Course Design?
The recent publication of Golf Digest’s top-100 course ranking raised eyebrows and set tongues wagging. And rightly so, raising eyebrows and stirring debate is precisely what rankings are for, though cynics might insist there are less philanthropic reasons. As all credible grading is apt to do, this list launched a million conversations over the relative […]
What’s Tougher: Renovating a Course or Designing New?
When asked if they’d rather build from scratch or renovating existing courses, most architects say they prefer to build new. Some pause a moment, however, before adjusting their response. “Actually, it depends.” There’s a lot to think about. Before taking on a new course, the architect must consider the quality of the site, how far […]
The 5 Classic Public Courses Most in Need of Renovation Love
By Adam Schupak We are in the Age of Renovation in golf course architecture. So the title of this piece—choosing only five public courses in need of work—is highly subjective and ripe for debate. (Let the games begin in the comments section!) But we can all agree that many municipal and public courses would […]
Tom Doak’s Sedge Valley – A Sub-Par 70 Design at Sand Valley
By Tony Dear Golf course design priorities have seen a welcome shift in recent years. The emphasis on demanding, arduous golf has started to give way to fun, sustainable courses that you’d want to play again and again. The new wave is seen in the boom of short courses across the country (Pinehurst’s Cradle, […]
What Next for the Bally Bandon Sheep Ranch?
By Tony Dear It has become decreasingly mysterious with every passing article—and there have been many—but the Sheep Ranch still possesses sufficient intrigue and anonymity to ensure the golfer recounting his experiences of the place speaks mostly to a hushed audience. Images and stories have been filtering through for nearly two decades, and its […]
First Peek: Stoatin Brae
By Graylyn Loomis The newest course at a Michigan resort is a coming-out party for a team of up-and-coming designers When Jon Scott, owner of Gull Lake View Resort in Augusta, Mich., wanted to add a sixth golf course to his family’s property, he turned to Tom Doak, who lives about three hours north in […]
The Essential: Tom Doak
Growing up in suburban Connecticut, Tom Doak would accompany his father on business trips to places like Pebble Beach and Harbour Town, where he caught the golf bug. He later traveled extensively throughout the British Isles on a Cornell University post-graduate scholarship, paying particularly close attention to the Old Course at St. Andrews, studying it […]
Does the Golf Course Architect Matter?
Ted Vassallo, a retired civil engineer from Vermont, says the identity of the golf course architect wasn’t a major factor when he and wife Jan were deciding which of the seven communities at The Cliffs to move into. “We originally intended building a house up in the mountains at Glassy, which has a Tom Jackson […]
