Ted Robinson Passes Away

[Jeff_Brauer]

I was just notified by ASGCA that Ted Robinson Theodore (Ted) G. Robinson, a Past President of the American Society of Golf Course Architects, died Sunday March 2, 2008 at his home in Laguna Beach, California after a 10 month battle with pancreatic cancer.  He was 84.

A class guy and we will miss him in ASGCA.

[Forrest Richardson]

Here is the release:


Golf Course Architect and ASGCA Past President Ted Robinson Dies at 84

Theodore (Ted) G. Robinson, a Past President of the American Society of Golf Course Architects, died Sunday March 2, 2008 at his home in Laguna Beach, California after a 10 month battle with pancreatic cancer.  He was 84.

Robinson served as ASGCA President from 1983-84.  He joined ASGCA in 1973, and ascended to Fellow in 1995.  With an architectural career spanning over five decades, Robinson is credited with over 160 projects that bear his influence, including courses in the Western United States, Hawaii, Mexico, Japan, Korea and Indonesia.  In 1954, Robinson established his own practice concentrated in golf course design, land planning, subdivision and park design.  Robinson spent the majority of his career working independently while wife Bobbi managed the office until 1991 when son, Ted Jr., joined the practice.

“ASGCA is saddened by Ted’s passing,” said ASGCA President Steve Forrest.  “His work over the past 50 years represents some of the best in the industry and he was a true pioneer in golf course architecture.  His integrated design concepts set the standard for many of today’s architects.  As both a colleague and a friend, he will be missed.”
 
Dubbed the “King of Waterscapes,” Robinson endorsed the use of water as a defining hazard for course designs.  He believed waterscapes gave putting greens maximum character and provided players with an appealing challenge.  Robinson was also widely recognized for his golf-oriented master planned community, Mesa Verde, in Costa Mesa as well as 26 separate golf course architecture projects in the Palm Springs/Palm Desert area alone, including Sunrise, Monterey, Palm Valley, The Lakes, Indian Wells, Ironwood, Tahquitz Creek and Desert Springs. 

As Robinson’s career blossomed, Golf Digest listed his courses among the top five in Washington, Oregon, Utah, New Mexico, Arizona and Hawaii.   One of Robinson’s most beloved projects was Sahalee Country Club, long regarded as one of the top 100 courses in the world.  Located in Redmond, Wash., Sahalee Country Club hosted the PGA TOUR Championship in 1998.  Other notable courses include Tijeras Creek and Tustin Ranch in Orange County, (California), the Experience in Koele on the island of Lanai (Hawaii) and Robinson Ranch in Santa Clarita (California), a project designed and developed jointly with his son and named in his honor.  Some of Robinson’s most prestigious international courses include Lakewood Golf Club in Japan and Pinx Golf Club in Korea. 

Robinson was born on May 17, 1923 in Long Beach, California.  He received his undergraduate degree from the University of California, Berkeley and earned his Master’s degree in Planning from the University of Southern California in 1948. 

Ted Robinson is survived by his wife Bobbi, son Ted Jr., daughters Kris and Leigha and his ten grandchildren.   

A memorial service will be held at 2:00 p.m. at Desert Horizons Country Club in Indian Wells, California on March 13.  In lieu of flowers, the family requests a donation to the Ted Robinson Cancer research Fund, USC/Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center, RM 8302 MC 9181, University of Southern California, PO Box 77902, Los Angeles, CA 90099-5334.   

More information on Robinson’s career, as well as video clips of him discussing his work, can be found on in the “Architects Gallery” on the ASGCA Web site.  Simply visit www.asgca.org and click on the “Inside ASGCA,” then click on “Architects Gallery.”

[Joe Hancock]

Jeff,

Thanks for the heads up, and obviously our condolences to the family and those who knew him well.

Joe

[John Kavanaugh]

Now I feel bad that I never defended the guy.  Reminds me of back in high school when an unpopular kid would die in a car wreck.  You wish you would have done something to make their short time on earth just a bit better.

[George Pazin]

It's hard for me to imagine someone with his accomplishments caring what a bunch of gca'ers thought.

10 months battling pancreatic cancer at age 84, he must have been a fighter.

[Forrest Richardson]

Jeff B. knew Ted, Sr. much more than me. I only met Mr. Robinson a few times. Once at La Purisma where he and his wife were driving around while the ASGCA was enjoying a round at the course. Arthur Jack Snyder was in the cart with Robert Muir Graves and the old guys were clearly having some good times recalling old meetings and stories.

Mr. Robinson was a very gracious man — that is what I will remember most. I do wish I had spent time speaking with him about his work, but time never presented itself.

(He was also very tall.)

[Scott Weersing]

Here is a list of the courses that Ted Robinson is credited with designing:

http://www.worldgolf.com/golf-architects/ted-robinson-sr.html

The list is probably incorrect as it lists Lost Canyons, which is a Pete Dye design.

My favorites are:

Tijeras Creek
Mountain Meadows
Trysting Tree

His courses were fun to play and interesting. I doubt anyone will be creating a Robinson tribute course, except perhaps Trump.

[Tim Nugent]

Ted and his wife Bobbi were a class act.  Nicer people you couldn't find. Forrest's comments pertaining to La Purisma brought back the last time I shared with them.  Bob Graves and his wife, Ted and Bobbi along with my wife and father had dinner in Santa Barbra - Jeff was also dining in the same restraunt with his brother.  Dick, Bob and Ted just went on and on with war stories from the good ol'days.  It's sad that we seem to be losing the post war generation.

[JohnV]

Sympathies to all his friends and family.

I always enjoyed Tokatee.  It is a wonderful course in a great setting.  It was probably the best public course in Oregon before the building boom of the 1990s and 2000s.

[Jay Flemma]

Yes, this is terribly sad.  That being said, everyone I talked to said he was a fine gentlemen and a hard worker who took solace in the simple pleasures in life.  His good example will be missed.

[Jeff_Brauer]

Jay,

Yes, say what you want about the market segment he served with his designs, Ted was the epitome of class and graciousness, as is Bobbi.

I recall them hosting ASGCA in Palm Desert in their condo (it was a second home he negotiated with Horizon as part of his fee, if I recall)  This was 1984 and I was just a pup in the design world, and really green as peas in ASGCA. But I spent quite a bit of time talking with him.

I'll never forget asking him how he could function as a one man band, as it were.  He said he took about three or four days per plan set!  He then explained that he had engineers who the owner retained and with whom he had worked with before, who took his quick sketches and did the grading and drainage.  That made sense, because most of his work was within housing communities and all that had to work together.  Then, he made field visits.

As the press release suggests, I think Ted was fairly proud of the waterfalls, for the very least that they were different and trendsetting.  And, dare I say it, they were necessary to make golf retirement communities more saleable and desireable for that generation.  Maybe the next generation views them as cliche, but we often do view sucessful design trends that way later on because they become so common as to be trite.  But, if they weren't good, they wouldn't have become so common, right?

[Jay Flemma]

Right, Jeff.  he saw what was successful at the time and did a good job of replicating it and making imrpovements.  I hear he was notoriously good at coming in on time, under budget and giving the client what they wanted.  Maybe the people we have to reach are the golf course owners!

[Bill_McBride]

Sympathies to all his friends and family.

I always enjoyed Tokatee.  It is a wonderful course in a great setting.  It was probably the best public course in Oregon before the building boom of the 1990s and 2000s.

Agreed, John.  It's interesting how "minimalistic" Tokatee is in that great setting, given Mr. Robinson's image.  Nary a water feature in sight.

[Jon Spaulding]

As a neighbor, my prayers are certainly with his family.

As a member at a place where he has worked before, I will keep quiet out of respect for the departed.

[PjW]

I would like to add my sympathies to the family and friends of Ted Robinson.  I first met Ted in 1977 prior to going to Sahalee as the superintendent.  Ted spent over two hours with me talking about the golf course which was a highlight for me as a green horn in the business.  I had an opportunity to be the construction manager for the General Contractor at KoOlina, which has a water feature on about every other hole, it seems.  Ted fulfilled a need in GCA; his designs were restricted by the sites he was given and by the budgets provided, however, the enjoyment of 100,000's of golfers playing the game on his courses is an ongoing legacy.

Phil Wycoff