Good Shapers Song

Bulldozers and Dirt - DBT

"Green green grass under my feet,
but all I can think about's the dirt underneath,
Bulldozers and dirt, bulldozers and dirt,
behind the trailer my dessert,
Them red clay piles are heaven on earth
I get my rocks off bulldozers and dirt".

Drive-by Truckers

How I Got Started in Golf Architecture - Part Three

"Sight is faculty; Seeing is an art."

George Perkins Marsh

My growing passion for golf and the golf course landscape eventually led to me leaving my Landscape Architecture firm and entering graduate school to focus solely on golf course design. It was not an easy decision. Not only did I enjoy the people I was working with, but I had built up a fairly impressive portfolio of work. A portfolio that would now be useless when seeking to obtain golf course design commissions. But before I made the final commitment I needed to get over one last hurdle. I was still finding that the design of golf courses was lacking in both creativity and foundational design. The question I needed to resolve was this; is it the process itself or is it just the people designing golf courses? In other words, was the design of golf courses simply too limiting, or were the designers themselves lacking in creativity? The person responsible for helping me think through this process was Bob Reimann. Bob was a brilliant and creative Landscape Architect and long time design instructor (and former Dean of Landscape Architecture) at the State University of New York at Syracuse. When I discussed some of these issues with him, his answer was “all the more reason to follow your passion.” If it wasn’t to be extremely challenging to me as a designer, then what was the point? He also pointed out that sometimes subtlety in design can make a huge difference, but it isn’t always obvious to the casual observer. Eventually I came to realize that strong conceptualization could lead to both bold and subtle forms. And that some things only the designer recognizes. And that’s OK.




So I left my firm and entered graduate school. I already knew that a great golf course must be both strategically sound and aesthetically appealing. So I set out to further study this. First, I did the obvious and began studying the classic American courses. I then traveled to Scotland and Ireland to study some of the links courses. I wasn’t, (and I’m still not), interested in becoming a golf course historian. I made no intention to “memorize holes” or golf course routings, though I sketched every course I visited. My purpose in traveling and studying the classic courses had two purposes. First, to simply experience the origins of the great game of golf. And then secondly, to see how the architects of old interpreted the original links in a new landscape. My goal was never to capture something that I eventually could cut and paste into my future designs. At the same time I was continuing to pursue a broader interest in studying the forms and features of the natural landscape. With Bob Reimann’s guidance, I spent a semester conducting “A Study of Natural Compositions in the Adirondack Park”. In a nutshell, my goal was to observe nature, and then through photography and sketching, try to figure out why certain landscapes are more attractive than others. It also involved analyzing the processes of nature, such as the movement of water, its “sequence”, and erosion. You see, I believe what the great Landscape Architect Olmsted did, that nature has a restorative power – and not just for intellectuals but for the common man. And I knew I wanted to infuse my golf course design work with a sense of this. I began training myself not to just look at golf courses and nature, but to “see”. As George Perkins Marsh wrote in Man and Nature – “To the natural philosopher, the descriptive poet, the painter, and the sculptor, as well as the common observer, the power most important to cultivate, and at the same time hardest to acquire, is that of seeing what is before him. Sight is faculty; seeing is an art.”

When I left graduate school I felt confident I was ready to get started. I obtained my License in Landscape Architecture and in 1996 simply “Hung my Shingle”. The rest - as they say - is history.

How I Got Started in Golf Architecture - Part Two

   

"It's alright, it's alright, it's alright, - she moves in mysterious ways" U2

It was 1987 when I began working at Environmental Design and Research, a large Syracuse based Landscape Architecture firm. I knew if I wanted to practice Landscape Architecture (including Golf Design) that I would need to eventually obtain my professional license. This would require me to apprentice three years under a licensed Landscape Architect, and then take and pass a rigorous week long national exam. This is similar to architecture or civil engineering. So even though I hadn’t yet decided to specialize in golf course design, I knew that either way I would need a license and this position would fulfill part of that requirement.

My role initial role at EDR was that of a typical “green” intern, starting with the most menial tasks, such as drafting and assisting partners with their projects. I eventually became more involved in design and project management. David Crandall was the founder of the company and the lead designer at the firm. He was a great person to work for and an outstanding designer. I came to the firm with strong conceptualization skills and a love of design in general. But Dave really influenced me a lot. He taught me to trust my intuition and helped me translate my ideas into quick sketches. His encouragement was critical to my development as a designer. We worked on a broad range of projects, residential design, streetscapes, community planning, urban design, and athletic facilities. I learned that the design process is similar to each project and that managing projects and budgets are important aspects of the profession. But we also were getting golf design projects – or pieces of them - and I was able to do routings and preliminary design work. It was during this time that I recognized a higher level of interest and spent much time outside of work researching golf course design.

During the same years I was working at EDR, I was invited by the State University of New York at Syracuse, to teach design in the Department of Landscape Architecture as a visiting instructor. My design work at EDR was beginning to gain attention and the department felt I would be able to bring my knowledge of design to the classroom. At the time, I was the youngest instructor in the department. I gave lectures and was responsible for daily interaction and instruction for 1/3 of the design studio. I also began to look more closely at Golf Course Design and considered going back to obtain my Master’s Degree in Landscape Architecture. I also briefly considered pursuing a career in teaching Landscape Architecture.

While all of this was going on, I traveled with my wife and some folks from my church to Honduras in 1992. We were there to see what life was like in Central America and we were led through various villages and barrios by one of my best friends. It was truly an eye and heart opening experience. While I was there, my wife and I struck up a conversation with a retired Latin American History professor from Columbia University. He was living in Rochester, NY – just a short drive away from us in Syracuse. He invited me to join him later on that same year to travel to Nicaragua. He was planning a trip and needed someone to design and build a children’s playground in the Village of Chacra Saca. I decided it was something I would like to do. So later that same year, I traveled to Nicaragua with a small group of high school students, an electrician (to electrify their well) and a Vietnam Veteran and his son. We built the only playground we saw in the country. Some may have wondered, why we were building a playground for the children, when there were so many other pressing issues. Most of the residents did not have electricity and most of the homes were made from random pieces of wood and had dirt floors. But all of the villagers were very grateful. They loved to see the joy the children had when they played on the playground. For a moment, the children lost themselves in a world that took them somewhere else. Isn’t that what recreation is meant to do?

I mention this story because it was an amazing trip and we had long conversations into the night. The poverty was unbelievable, but the spirit of the people amazing. I thought a long time afterwards about recreation, and its value to both children and adults. It seems a very odd place to come from, but after the dust settled from those trips, I decided to take a chance and pursue a career specializing in Golf Course Architecture. I had finally recognized (and accepted) the value that recreation has for any civilized society, and the wonderful opportunity this country affords to pursue ones own dreams.

How I Got Started in Golf Architecture - Part One

A question I am often asked is just how I got started in golf design. I will try to trace it as best as I can, but it’s not really such a linear progression. I first found out about Landscape Architecture as a profession when I was a junior in high school back in Connecticut. I spoke with a Landscape Architect and she told me about the various things that Landscape Architects do. She mentioned that most Landscape Architects eventually specialize in one aspect of the field. She mentioned Golf Course Design as one of several niches within recreation specialization. And while I thought that this was interesting, I was equally intrigued by all facets of Landscape Architecture, including urban planning, residential design, park design, garden design, historical preservation, ecological restoration, etc. She then described the process of obtaining a degree in Landscape Architecture from an accredited university and then obtaining a license in Landscape Architecture in order to practice in the majority of states with licensing laws. I decided this was a great field and ended up getting an Associates Degree from the State University of New York at Cobleskill. There I took courses in Turfgrass Management and Landscape Development. Bob Emmons, who has since retired, was the turf guy. (Little did I know at the time my good friend and fellow DJ, Frank Rossi, would eventually end up being the “turf guy” at Cornell!) Anyhow, we ended up building two greens and learned how to operate golf course maintenance equipment.


Following graduation from Cobleskill, I worked on the maintenance crew at the Shennecossett Golf Course in Groton, Connecticut. (This was back when it was still a Donald Ross course, before they ruined it – but that story is coming in another blog!) Anyway, I wondered who this Donald Ross guy was that designed it. At the time, I was involved in all of the operations of maintenance, including cutting greens, raking all 100 bunkers, cutting cups, etc. I also did some construction of tees, drainage, and helped with minor irrigation repair. I loved it. So much so, I took a year and a half off before going to Syracuse to get my degree in Landscape Architecture. Once I got to Syracuse, I became fascinated with all aspects of Landscape Architecture. I was interested in Golf Course Architecture, but was by no means “focused” on it. I did look into the field of Golf Course Design – but to be perfectly honest, I found it to be awfully shallow compared with other aspects of Landscape Architecture. The only interesting book I found was an old one – “The Links” by Robert Hunter. (Still one of my favorites) This was during the mid-80’s. I wasn’t sure, but it seemed no contemporary golf course architect had anything worthwhile to say. Yet contrasting this were the other aspects of Landscape Architecture. There was plenty to say. From Jens Jensen, to Thomas Church, Lawrence Halprin, Ian McHarg, John Simonds, Dan Kiley, and others. There was also this “kid” – an undergraduate from Yale that I was reading about - who had recently won a design competition for the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington DC. Her name was Maya Lin, and she had just blown away a field of national and international Architects and Landscape Architects by winning the competition. Her “original” thought process had led to an “original” design that is as moving and awesome and popular a piece of memorial architecture as exists anywhere in the world. I found that inspirational. Here, there were all of these ideas and original thoughts in many aspects of Landscape Architecture, and then there was Golf Design – with nothing to say, dead, completely void of any new design concepts. And worse yet, golf course design was being practiced by an old boy network – that looked like a “fraternity of designers and professional golfers”, who not only didn’t have any new ideas, but hadn’t even bothered to study the old ones! So I pursued what seemed far more interesting to me at the time, and took a job in a Landscape Architecture firm in Syracuse.

Why "Scratching the Surface"?

“NO ASPECT OF THE PAST, HOWEVER GRAND IT MAY APPEAR, IS TO BE REGARDED AS SUPERIOR TO THE PRESENT MOMENT”

 emerson

A few have asked about the title of my blog, "Scratching the Surface". Scratching the surface is what we do when we create a golf course. In one way or another, we scratch at the surface of the earth. Sometimes we need to scratch more than others. The second meaning has more to do with the purpose of this blog. The art of golf course architecture is in its infancy. And in my opinion, lagging behind other allied arts (including other niches within Landscape Architecture) in the development of ideas and contemporary theory. There are many reasons for this. Many involved in design are not qualified or formally trained. And the majority of today's golf architects are focused on (or hiding behind) the past and "classical design". They offer nothing new. Ideas are inbred and stale. Honestly, when was the last time you heard an architect say anything interesting about their work? Templates and berms are two words for "I have nothing new to offer". Fresh ideas are hard to find and discussions about design are overly simplistic. The profession is starved for new ideas and plagiarism is rampant. To be certain, the history of golf design is important and foundational to developing an understanding of the profession. And I love the old classic courses and confess to being a Ross-head myself. But it is all Golf Course History 101. It's freshman year of design at college. It's time to move beyond and offer true and original interpretations of what a golf course can be. And that doesn't mean abandoning all of the wonderful characteristics of great historical design anymore than one would in building architecture (or as my nephew Ryan says, "real architecture"). Scale, proportion, balance, juxtaposition, etc. are all important. But great architecture is not just about recreating the past. It also involves being here now. And in that way, we are just beginning to "Scratch the Surface".

Advancing the Art and Profession of Golf Course Architecture

I've decided that the best time of the year for me to focus on writing generally lines up with the academic year. Summer gets hectic with construction schedules, travel, family activities, and yes - for those of us residing in the Northeast, playing golf. During the next several months I will be focusing on more philosophical ideas that I hope will lead to the advancement of Golf Course Architecture as both an art and profession. My involvement with the State University of New York Department of Landscape Architecture in Syracuse always brings a few calls or e-mails from students (or occasionally their parents) asking about Golf Course Architecture as a profession. The undergraduate students ask about schooling, licensure, the job market, types of projects, how I got started, etc. as they try to determine a specific area of specialization or interest within the field - something nearly all contemporary Landscape Architects will eventually do. I have also worked with several graduate students and sat on their committees. Many of these students have a foundational background in design theory, and design history, and it often leads to interesting philosophical discussions in regards to golf design. Therefore, much of what I will discuss in the coming months will be directed towards this audience, as I know they are out there actively looking for this information. Other topics I will address include reflections from my golf design journal that I have been keeping since 1999.