[Jeff_Brauer]

  I just got an email from some time poster Rick Baril noting that his mentor Bob Von Hagge passed away on Sunday, at age 83.There is a press release, probably on their web site, but I was unable to cut and paste more information in here.


It is always sad to see the passing of great golf course architects, especially those with historic links to the likes of Dick Wilson.

[Davis Wildman]

Jeff,

I am sorry to hear; in discussion with several associates/clients yesterday, I learned of Bob's passing...I didn't know him, but they spoke so highly of him, it is apparent he will be dearly missed by many in the industry.

I wish I'd had the opportunity to meet him.

[Matt_Ward]

Sorry to hear that.

Enjoyed a few of his places -- no doubt there was plenty of criticism when he created Crystal Springs in Franklin, NJ.

The par-3 10th there is one of the best dropshot par-3 holes I have played.

RIP.

[Lester George]

Great guy, great architect when you consider his entire body of work.  I was fond of him but didn't get to know him well.

Lester

[Carl Nichols]

Have only played 1 or 2 of his courses. What are considered the best and most typical of his work?

[Mike Nuzzo]

Thank you Jeff
Very sorry to hear
Mr. von Hagge was an extremely nice gentleman
I feel lucky to have spent a little time with him
peace

[JC Jones]

This is very sad news.

I have never played one of his courses but last spring I was fortunate to spend about an hour on the phone with him discussing architecture.  He was very kind, very generous with his time and very patient with my questions.  He gave me a first person account of Dick Wilson's work at Seminole (he was the associate in charge of implementation at the time) and some very funny stories about their time together as well.

I will always appreciate that conversation and I thank Kelly Blake Moran for setting it up for me.  I wish him peace.

[JWL]

Jeff
Thanks for the information on Mr. Von Hagge.  When I was considering a career in GCA in the late 60's I wrote him a letter for some direction.   He sent me my first response and was very kind and informative.  I am saddened by his passing.
JWL

[Randy Thompson]

A great architect and an even better human! A great loss to golf, although he leaves behind more than 200 golf courses and I don´t know how many pups but I am proud to be one of them and will never forget him and all he did for me through the years. RIP!

[Tom Dunne]

I met Robert Von Hagge once, around 2003, at the White Witch in Jamaica. It was one of my first traveling assignments for The Golfer magazine and I remember thinking how glamorous the world of golf was, in part because of Mr. Von Hagge himself. He was the kind of man who stood out at a cocktail party--tall, handsome, and elegantly dressed. He could wear a silk cravat with ease. There are some rumors of even more flamboyant attire from his earlier career--a gold lamé cape?--where visual evidence may be required.

I would guess we probably talked for about fifteen minutes. Bob knew about The Golfer and was interested in the photo and art side of the magazine. I remember he said he thought a lot about light and shadow in his work*. Given that we were watching the sun set from the clubhouse patio high above the White Witch, I first thought that was just an easy comment to make, but he explained that he didn't underestimate the importance of giving a client something visually striking to take to market. I got the sense that he enjoyed both the artistic and commercial sides of being a golf course architect.  

Anyway, that was just one conversation several years ago, but Robert Von Hagge was a memorable guy. I'm glad I got to meet him and am sorry to hear of his passing.


*I found this interview with Bob while looking up the name of his well-known course in France (Le Golf National). I guess light-and-shadow was indeed something he liked to talk about:  

 “Great golf courses are beautiful golf courses. The only eternal thing is not grass or trees but the light of the sun. You have to create the shadow, hour by hour and to understand how the light will fall on the features you create. It’s very painterly."

Full link, worth a read: http://www.golfcoursearchitecture.net/Article/Interview-Robert-von-Hagge/1440/Default.aspx

[Jeff_Brauer]

Bob Von Hagge often talked of shadows in his designs and it was one of his key selling points to the many real estate developers he worked for.  My best personal remembrance of Bob was following him in an interview down near Chorpus Christi, TX.

As I walked in, he was saying his good byes, kissing the two women's hands who were on the committee and telling them how nice they smelled.  They were eating it up, no doubt.  I had to joke that the only time I told a women about her smell, it was to comment on how BAD they smelled......I learned a valuble sales lesson that day!

Bob was one of the true characters of the golf design biz.  He will be missed.

[Forrest Richardson]

I was fortunate to meet him. Sadly, it was just a few years ago and not enough time was available to talk in depth. I regret not having time with him as I became involved in golf. Here is the latest obituary...services are this Saturday:

---

HOUSTON — Global golf course architect Robert von Hagge, who developed the Walden on Lake Conroe course and the Tournament Course at The Woodlands Country Club, died Saturday at the age of 83.

A celebration of life event will be hosted by Northgate Country Club on Saturday from 7-9 p.m. Northgate is located at 17110 Northgate Forest Drive in Houston. A private burial will be held prior to the service at Forest Park in The Woodlands.

The family has requested that no flowers be sent. In lieu of flowers, memorial/honor donations can be made to the MD Anderson Cancer Center (online at www.mdanderson.org, by mail to the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, PO Box 4486, Houston, TX 77210, or by phone at 713-792-3450).

Von Hagge’s professional life stretched from his early teen years as a caddy to international fame as a master golf course designer and architect. During his fascinating career, he vaulted to the top ranks of golf course design and architecture, became a dominant force in the European and Mexican golf world, and moved effortlessly into golf design throughout the world — arguably one of the most influential course designers in the history of golf.

Von Hagge was literally born and raised on a golf course, and had worked as a caddy, shop boy (cleaning and repairing golf clubs), caddy master, golf course maintenance crewman, assistant greens superintendent, assistant golf professional and commercial illustrator for sporting magazines before his 17th birthday. After high school, he attended the Naval Academy in Annapolis, Md., and Purdue University Agriculture School, majoring in landscape architecture.

The son of noted course designer and developer Ben von Hagge, who worked briefly with none other than Donald Ross in the 1920s, Chicago-born Robert von Hagge learned the trade from his mentor, design legend Dick Wilson, when Wilson, one of America’s foremost golf course architects, employed him in 1955 as an apprentice golf course designer.

By 1959, he was being recognized within the profession as a principal designer with the Wilson firm. By the year’s end in 1962, he had been involved in all or part of the design of 40 golf courses in the U.S. and the Caribbean and four foreign countries. Late that same year, he resigned his affiliation with the Dick Wilson Company in order to start his own firm. Von Hagge was the last living associate from the original post-war architect Dick Wilson’s organization

During his six-plus decades as a master golf course designer, von Hagge created some of the world’s most outstanding and award-winning courses, and has been responsible for the design, re-design or partial design of more than 250 courses in the United States, Mexico, the Caribbean and 16 foreign countries. At one time he had worldwide offices ranging from South Florida and California to Australia, before he decided to move his headquarters to The Woodlands.

He and his partners Mike Smelek and Rick Baril have created internationally-recognized courses in more than 50 cities including Paris, Milan, Buenos Aires, Caracas, Mexico City, Sydney, Tokyo, Madrid and Genoa. In the U.S. they have courses in Miami, Philadelphia, Long Island, San Antonio, Dallas, Houston, Orlando, Naples, Fort Myers, Phoenix, Tampa, San Francisco, San Diego, Los Angeles, Albuquerque and dozens more. Their courses have received more than 500 awards of distinction.

Les Bordes, set in the middle of the Loire Valley in France and ranked as the No. 1 golf course in Europe, is considered von Hagge’s piece de resistance. According to Top 100 Golf Courses website, “It’s been said that when he designed this beast he was at his most wickedly creative” … and (the course) “is a supreme challenge.”

“Robert Von Hagge earns top honors for Les Bordes, the country’s premier layout since it opened in 1986. … Les Bordes is king because it is a truly total experience … von Hagge’s masterpiece,” said a golf writer for PerryGolf.com.

As founder and senior partner/architect of von Hagge, Smelek and Baril, he actively maintained hands-on involvement in the creation of their distinctive designs all over the world even in his early 80s. Of course he wasn’t racking up the air miles to the extent he used to — something he said he regretted.

“I miss a lot of the dirt, the rain and the mud, squeezing something out of primitive circumstances,” von Hagge said.

For decades his name has been synonymous with “premier global golf course architect.” Always following his own philosophy propelled him into greatness: “Every shot situation should be one where the golfer walks up to the ball and has his breath taken away. It should be a ritual experience.”

He often spoke warmly of his partners of more than a quarter of a century.

“Both Mike and Rick have been a driving force behind the creation of many major projects throughout the world and largely responsible for the creation of some of the world’s finest golfing experiences,” von Hagge said. “I am personally grateful for the obvious creative talent and responsible dedication that is a part of the very fiber that these two outstanding men bring to the team. I am simultaneously proud and delighted that we are all on the same company design team, one which they will someday inherit along with its history, credentials and worldwide reputation; a reputation which they both have so richly contributed to over the past several years.”

[Steve Lang]

   sad indeed.. but as i like to say, his spirit will live on for those who knew him and his works.

I wonder if he and Jay Riviere ever played golf together???

Robert von Hagge
Courses Built (ones I've played*)

Admiral's Cove - East Course in Jupiter
Admiral's Cove - Golf Village North Course in Jupiter
Admiral's Cove - Golf Village South Course in Jupiter
Admiral's Cove - Golf Village West Course in Jupiter
Bay Colony Golf Club - Private in Naples
Blackjack at Chase Oaks Golf Course - Public in Plano
Boca Del Mar Country Club - Private in Boca Raton
Boca Rio Golf Club - Private in Boca Raton
Boca West - 3 at Boca West Country Club - Private in Boca Raton
Briar Bay Golf Course - Public in Miami
Brookfield Hills Golf Club - Public in Brookfield
Brookview/Ridgeview at Boone Links Golf Course - Public in Florence
* Canongate at The Woodlands - Panther Trail Course in The Woodlands
* Canongate at The Woodlands - The Oaks Course in The Woodlands
Card Sound Golf Club - Private in Key Largo
Carolina Golf Club - Semi-Private in Margate
Catalina Course at Omni Tucson National Golf Resort & Spa in Tucson
Championship at Boca Dunes Golf & Country Club - Semi-Private in Boca Raton
Championship at Colony West Country Club - Public in Tamarac
Championship at Hillcrest Golf Club - Semi-Private in Hollywood
Cliffs at Possum Kingdom Lake, The - Public in Graford
* Club at Falcon Point, The - Private in Katy
Club at TPC at Prestancia - Private in Sarasota
Crandon Park Golf Course - Public in Key Biscayne
Crown Colony Country Club - Semi-Private in Lufkin
Crystal Springs Golf Club in Hamburg
Cypress Creek Country Club - Semi-Private in Boynton Beach
* Devlin/Von Hagge at Quail Hollow Resort & Country Club - Semi-Private in Painesville
Dolphin at Ocean Reef Club - Private in Key Largo
Doral Golf Club, The - Resort in Rye Brook
Doral Golf Resort & Spa - Gold Course in Miami
Doral Golf Resort & Spa - Jim McLean Signature Course in Miami
Doral Golf Resort & Spa - Red Course in Miami
Eagle Vail Golf Club - Public in Avon
East at Boca Lago Golf Course - Private in Boca Raton
East at Hunters Run Golf Course - Private in Boynton Beach
East at Woodlands Country Club - Private in Tamarac
East Course at Torreon Golf Club in Show Low
Eastwood Golf Course - Public in Fort Myers
Glades at Colony West Country Club - Public in Tamarac
Grey Hawk Golf Club in Lagrange
Hammock at Ocean Reef Club in Key Largo
Hidden Lakes at Tan-Tar-A Resort and Golf Club in Osage Beach
Hollytree Country Club - Private in Tyler
Indian Spring Country Club - East Course in Boynton Beach
Indian Spring Country Club - West Course in Boynton Beach
Kings at Gleneagles Country Club - Private in Plano
La Paloma Golf Club in Amarillo
Lakes at Blackhawk Country Club - Private in Danville
Lakeview/Brookview at Boone Links Golf Course - Public in Florence
Marco Shores Country Club - Public in Naples
Miami Beach Golf Club in Miami Beach
Nashville Golf & Athletic Club - Private in Brentwood
National Golf Club - Albatros Course in Ile de France
New at Raveneaux Country Club - Private in Spring
Nine Hole at Boca Dunes Golf & Country Club - Semi-Private in Boca Raton
North at East Lake Woodlands Golf & Country Club - Private in Oldsmar
North at Fountain Country Club - Private in Lake Worth
North at Hunters Run Golf Course - Private in Boynton Beach
North Shore Country Club - Private in Portland
Ocean Shores Country Club in New South Wales
* Old at Raveneaux Country Club - Private in Spring
Palms at Pompano Beach Golf Course - Public in Pompano Beach
Pelican Marsh Golf Club - Private in Naples
Pines at Pompano Beach Golf Course - Public in Pompano Beach
Poinciana Golf & Racquet Resort - Resort in Kissimmee
Queens at Gleneagles Country Club - Private in Plano
Rayburn Country Resort - Blue/Green Course in Brookeland
Rayburn Country Resort - Green/Gold Course in Brookeland
Ridge Club - Private in South Sandwich
Royal Mougins Golf Club in Provence Alpes Cote dAzur
Sabals at Palm-Aire Country Club - Semi-Private in Pompano Beach
Sawtooth at Chase Oaks Golf Course - Public in Plano
Shawnee Golf & Country Club - Private in Shawnee
Sherbrooke Golf & Country Club - Private in Lake Worth
South at Fountain Country Club - Private in Lake Worth
South at Hunters Run Golf Course - Private in Boynton Beach
Tanoan Country Club - Acoma Course in Albuquerque
Tanoan Country Club - Sandia Course in Albuquerque
Tanoan Country Club - Zia Course in Albuquerque
The Club at Sonterra - North Course in San Antonio
The Lakes Golf Club in New South Wales
The Links At Boynton Beach - Championship Course in Boynton Beach
The Links At Boynton Beach - The Family Course in Boynton Beach
The Oaks at Tan-Tar-A Resort and Golf Club in Osage Beach
Vista Hills Country Club - Private in El Paso
** Walden on Lake Conroe Golf & Country Club - Private in Montgomery
* Walden on Lake Houston Golf & Country Club - Private in Humble
** Wedgewood Golf Course - Public in Conroe
West at Boca Lago Golf Course - Private in Boca Raton
West at Fountain Country Club - Private in Lake Worth
West at Woodlands Country Club - Private in Tamarac
West Course at Torreon Golf Club in Show Low
* Willow Creek Golf Club - Private in Spring
Winter Springs Golf Club - Semi-Private in Winter Springs
*** Woodlands Country Club - Tournament Course in The Woodlands

[hick]

I met Mr Von Hagge back in 1998 when i worked at Hunters Run in Boynton beach. Sorry to hear of his passing.

[Gary Slatter]

I met Robert Von Hagge once, around 2003, at the White Witch in Jamaica. It was one of my first traveling assignments for The Golfer magazine and I remember thinking how glamorous the world of golf was, in part because of Mr. Von Hagge himself. He was the kind of man who stood out at a cocktail party--tall, handsome, and elegantly dressed. He could wear a silk cravat with ease. There are some rumors of even more flamboyant attire from his earlier career--a gold lamé cape?--where visual evidence may be required.

I would guess we probably talked for about fifteen minutes. Bob knew about The Golfer and was interested in the photo and art side of the magazine. I remember he said he thought a lot about light and shadow in his work*. Given that we were watching the sun set from the clubhouse patio high above the White Witch, I first thought that was just an easy comment to make, but he explained that he didn't underestimate the importance of giving a client something visually striking to take to market. I got the sense that he enjoyed both the artistic and commercial sides of being a golf course architect.  

Anyway, that was just one conversation several years ago, but Robert Von Hagge was a memorable guy. I'm glad I got to meet him and am sorry to hear of his passing.


*I found this interview with Bob while looking up the name of his well-known course in France (Le Golf National). I guess light-and-shadow was indeed something he liked to talk about:  

 “Great golf courses are beautiful golf courses. The only eternal thing is not grass or trees but the light of the sun. You have to create the shadow, hour by hour and to understand how the light will fall on the features you create. It’s very painterly."

Full link, worth a read: http://www.golfcoursearchitecture.net/Article/Interview-Robert-von-Hagge/1440/Default.aspx

Tom, I think I met Robt Von Hagge at the same time, at the White Witch.  I also love shadows and Rick Baril produced some great ones on the Cinnamon Hill Course renovation they did while White Witch was being built.
Although I never asked him about it, a good friend from the LPGA Tour told me Robt actually took his name from his first wife, Marlene. 
I very much enjoyed listening to him and I have enjoyed a few of his companies courses, and Cinnamon Hill is my favourite.  As Rick may attest, Cinnamon Hill was a budget job and they had a great routing to follow so it turned out maybe a little better than the sensational White Witch.

[Patrick_Mucci]

Bob had a great zest for life.

I enjoyed meeting and working with him back in 1990/91/92.   We kept in touch over the years, but, he was in Houston and I was in New York and we didn't get many chances to get together and reminisce.

I think we formed a nice relationship

He was a unique individual, not just in golf, but in life and will be missed.

Father Time marches on eventually catches up to all of us.

Enjoy life as Bob enjoyed life and you'll have very few regrets.

[Steve_ Shaffer]

I just came across this article by Bill Huffman on von Hagge and his work in Arizona- Tucson National and Torreon:

http://www.azgolf.org/LiveLearnPlay/articleDetails.asp?Category=37&Article=489&CategoryID=4&SubCategory=2

[Bill_McBride]

I was skimming Steve Lang's listing of Mr. Von Hagge's courses and noticed Eagle Vail which I played in 1978. It was a pretty tight layout when up on the mountainside, then plunged down to a meadow in one fell swoop with a huge downhill tee shot.

After the round I was perusing a local paper and saw this brief review of the course:

"Those who have played Eagle Vail talk about it in the same hushed tones veterans of Guadacanal use to discuss WWII in the Pacific!"

[TEPaul]

What Tom Dunne and Pat said sure spurred my memory of Robert Von Hagge:

I only met him once but it was way farther back then these recollections of him. I think it was in the mid to late 1950s. The place was the Cloisters in Sea Island Georgia. The LPGA was there and all the gals were playing. I guess the only reason I went was my dad brought me along for some reason because he worked for Spalding at the time and one of the things he did was to make sure the gals playing for Spalding were always taken care of with balls and equipment or whatever. I remember Marilyn Smith, Mary Lena Falk, Betty Jameson, Patty Berg, Louise Suggs et al and of course the beautiful Bauer sisters. Man were those Bauer sisters beautiful. All those gals created the LPGA, by the way, in concert with Babe Zaharias and her husband.

I'd never seen women play golf before and I'll never forget thinking how good they were and what beautiful swings most of them had.

The only other person I remember from that time and place was Robert Von Hagge because as Tom Dunne mentioned, the guy looked like he was right out of central casting on spades. Tall, long blond hair, unusually dressed and pretty flamboyant. You couldn't miss him across a very wide fairway.

I doubt he was into golf architecture at that time but the big deal was something like he was married to one of the Bauer sisters and actually beginning to go out with the other one----or something like that.

Some people for various reasons you just never forget. It sounds like you had a long and full life Robert Von Hagge. You won't be forgotten!

[cary lichtenstein]

My wife and I decided to retire and move to Florida in 1998. Our decision was based on the East golf course at Admirals Cove. I had played all the gated community courses in Boca and Jupiter and that was the one most suited to our games. His recent renovation only made it better.

We have lots of forced carries and that has always been my cup of tea. I liked the challenges.

I spent some time with him in Florida and Houston and found him to be a first class gentleman.

[Dave_Miller]

  I just got an email from some time poster Rick Baril noting that his mentor Bob Von Hagge passed away on Sunday, at age 83.There is a press release, probably on their web site, but I was unable to cut and paste more information in here.


It is always sad to see the passing of great golf course architects, especially those with historic links to the likes of Dick Wilson.

Robert Von Hagge designed my club in Florida, Admirals Cove.  I had the opportunity to work with him and his staff as part of the renovation of the East Course as I was a member of the Committee.  He and his staff with Mike Smelek did a great job.
Von Hagge was also the original designer of the North, South and West courses at our Golf Village across the street.  However these were re-designed by Warren Hendersen.
Von Hagge also did the White Witch in Jamaica which I liked very much when I played it a few years ago.
A great architect has passed on.
Fairways and Greens,
Dave

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