Since 1991, I've worked closely with arguably the most influential golf course architect of the past half-century-Pete Dye. Beginning with the Ocean Course at Kiawah Island, I spent much of my first decade helping Pete on the front end of the design process-the master planning, routing and technical elements of the job. Eventually I became a project architect for the company, leading the design and construction of many notable Dye courses around the country. I've also been active as a solo architect, with courses like the Trophy Club in Indianapolis and Rock Hollow in Peru, Indiana standing as just a couple of my most successful original projects. My renovation work, at courses like the Duke's in St. Andrews and Princess Anne Country Club in Virginia Beach, has also been well received by both critics and the golfing public alike. 

As Pete winds down his remarkable career, I wanted to introduce myself to a new audience of golf enthusiasts, and perhaps reintroduce myself to old friends and associates. I have two goals for this newsletter-to keep readers up to speed with what I've been up to on my various current projects, and to share some of the things I've learned over the years in golf course architecture that matter to me the most.

Hamilton Elks Master Plan Complete

      One project I'm excited by at the moment is at The Elks Golf Club in Hamilton, Ohio, a Donald Ross design midway between Cincinnati and Dayton. This assignment came together through a Hamilton Elks member whose brother is a member at Hyde Park CC, another Ross course in Cincinnati that I had sympathetically restored a few years back. I interviewed in November and wanted to get started before I left for Florida for the winter. I met with the club leadership all through December and we got the master plan done.  

I always enjoy working on old Ross courses and feel pretty comfortable doing it. A funny side note from my project at Hyde Park-when I was doing that master plan, the club wanted new fairway bunkering, but we didn't have any historical drawings except for green drawings. So I came up with a plan and the club approved it. Just before we started construction, one of the members came across drawings of the entire golf course from the 1920s. Our plan was about a 95% match to Donald Ross's. It was very cool. When you study Ross as closely as I have, over time you get a sense of where he'd place his bunkers. For example, any time there's topography with the face of the landform facing you, if it made sense, he'd build a bunker into it.

Hamilton Elks was a similar scenario to Hyde Park. In my research, I didn't find any drawings of the golf course at the Tufts Archives in Pinehurst or anywhere else. That's where "institutional knowledge" can really come in handy. During my interview process at Hamilton I went around the golf course with one of the old-timers. I'd say something like, "Well, this hole isn't right. Ross would've put bunkers there and there, not where they are right now." And the longtime member would say, "Well, you're right. This hole has been changed. We want you to put things back to the way they were."

At Hamilton Elks, the greenside bunkers haven't changed that much over the years, but bringing back Ross's fairway bunkers would surely add a lot of interest. And an architect still has to adapt a restoration plan to today's game, placing bunkers where they have the greatest impact. Like most architects, Ross had a range of projects, from high-end to low. Hamilton Elks probably fell somewhere in the middle-there are records of him making site visits, though it's unlikely that he actually built the golf course. Either way, the club in the early days couldn't afford tons of fairway bunkers, so I'm also looking forward to adding a few new ones in places he likely would have chosen.

The most fun thing about this project has been dealing with the guys at the club who are out there playing nearly every day. They love the game, and they want to be good stewards of their golf course. It's easy for multi-millionaires to do this stuff, but these are blue collar guys. It's inspiring, and it motivates me.

The club is now in their fundraising stage-if all goes well, we'll be able to re-work a hole to serve as the example for the rest of the project. The short par-4 7th on the Red nine is my choice for a starting point. It's near the pump station, which is important since when it comes to irrigation, you want to work outward rather than start in a remote corner. It's also probably the worst hole on the golf course right now. Ponds were dug in front of the green-it's the exact opposite of what Donald Ross would've done. But it's a hole that has a lot of potential.

Hamilton Elks has the kind of naturally beautiful property that's commonly found among designs of its era. It's easy to imagine a group of golfers in 1920 saying, "Let's go out and find a good piece of ground for a golf course," and stumbling on this site. It's not overly dramatic, just plenty of nice roll throughout. Ross never hesitated to supply the golfer with some challenges, either. He'd find high points, put greens up on top and surround them with bunkers. To think these guys would have to then get up there with hickory clubs! In any case, from day one the property at Hamilton Elks has reminded me a bit of my time in Scotland, so even though the work there is likely to happen in stages over a period of years, it's something I know will enjoy. 

A study of the 16th on the East Course at 

Royal Melbourne in Victoria, Australia

     The movement of the eye over MacKenzie's composition from the tee is a great example of form and function uniting to create a work of art. Repetition of the curves along the top of the bunkers provide a sensuous middle horizon line. Combine this with the long view through the green, which provides the feeling of limitless space, and it is one of the best compositions I have seen. As in all great art, the bunkers provide a frame, giving the eye a place to rest. Then after viewing it for a moment, previously invisible details come into focus. It is a great example of golf course architecture.

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Grey Oaks CC Short Game Practice Facility