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Kevin Pallier

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Next G: Best up and coming architects
« on: May 21, 2018, 03:47:32 AM »
With Hanse in his mid-50's, Doak approaching 60 + Crenshaw & Coore close to / over 70 (to name a few) - who leads the "next generation" of golf course architects?

Who are the best up and coming architects out there?  what designs have they done?

Jeff Schley

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Re: Next G: Best up and coming architects
« Reply #1 on: May 21, 2018, 04:02:14 AM »
Although in his early 50's I believe, I like Mike Devries.  Has done Cape Wickham and Kingsley Club.  Minimalist design philosophy.  A friend said he did a great job at Sunningdale CC in NY.
"To give anything less than your best, is to sacrifice your gifts."
- Steve Prefontaine

Luke Eipper

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Re: Next G: Best up and coming architects
« Reply #2 on: May 21, 2018, 07:35:33 AM »
In Australia , Mike Cocking of OCCM is certainly up and coming. His renovation of Peninsula Kingswood is something to behold. His renovation work at Kingston Heath and Victoria in conjunction with Ashley Mead and Mike Clayton also is terrific stuff. He has a terrific ability to transpose ideas into reality with subtle artistic flair .


In North America, I would put forward Jeff Mingay. His work at the Victoria Golf Club in British Columbia is cool. Equally, Keith Rhebb and Riley Johns.


In Europe/UK, Frank Pont. His new reversable course in the Netherlands is really neat and forward thinking. He has done some great restoration work at Tanridge in the UK, as well as De Pan and Royal Hague in the Netherlands.
« Last Edit: May 21, 2018, 08:36:30 AM by Luke Eipper »

Tom_Doak

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Re: Next G: Best up and coming architects
« Reply #3 on: May 21, 2018, 07:41:26 AM »
With Hanse in his mid-50's, Doak approaching 60 + Crenshaw & Coore close to / over 70 (to name a few) - who leads the "next generation" of golf course architects?



Hey!  I'm only 57, and Ben is nine years older than me.  Don't put us out to pasture just yet, even though I do sometimes wish 65 or 70 was the official age of retirement.


There are lots of talented young people in the next generation, but not much opportunity for them to prove themselves, with so many established designers competing for the few new jobs.  I look at somebody like Clyde Johnson, who just turned 30 and has worked on several great courses for us, and remember that at his age (and with much less experience) I was already working on my third solo design!


When I do retire (or semi-retire) I look forward to steering investors and clients toward some of the people I've trained, hopefully before they're so old you are already looking past them!


PS Jesus, Mike DeVries is over 50 now, too.  I remember everyone from their twenties, it's amazing how time flies.

Joel_Stewart

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Re: Next G: Best up and coming architects
« Reply #4 on: May 21, 2018, 10:33:10 AM »
David Kahn and Tim Jackson are probably in their 30s.


Not sure the age of Tad King and Rob Collins.


Jay Blasi is in his 30s.




Jake Marvin

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Re: Next G: Best up and coming architects
« Reply #5 on: May 21, 2018, 11:22:13 AM »
There seems to be plenty of qualified "next-gen" architects out there, but as Tom mentioned, not many projects. I'm much more interested/concerned to see where the next generation of golf course building comes from.


One has to think the market for destination resorts with courses of huge scale is beginning to dry - between Bandon and the expanding Gamble in the West, Streamsong and Cabot in the East, and Sand Valley and Kohler in between, I doubt there's room for too much more of that. Perhaps even minimalism will begin to fade a bit, who knows.


That doesn't even delve into the market for golf in general, which obviously didn't recover much with the rest of the economy. As such, it's probably foolish to think that there will soon be many more new projects for the Rhebbs/Johnses/Collinses/Claytons, etc. of the world. I think the leaders of the next generation may well be those architects that carve out a niche in full or partial renovation/restoration projects.


Hopefully, at some point owners/operators start to see providing better golf as an alternative to providing no golf at all by closing down. This extends especially to municipal operations and the generally terrible courses they provide (trying to avoid the argument about municipal golf in general, I'll just say that if we have to have municipal gov't, I'm fine with them providing golf courses as they do fields for any other sport). Maybe I'm giving them too much credit, but if they understood that you can actually turn a profit from well-built, adequately-maintained courses, there'd be a great market for architects to revitalize golf courses for the average player, which could actually bring more people to play.


Or, maybe that slightly off-topic rant is all wishful thinking. I'd just prefer to see a way for all these guys to get work, and to get better courses for everybody to play on.

mike_malone

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Re: Next G: Best up and coming architects
« Reply #6 on: May 21, 2018, 11:23:40 AM »
 I expect Riley Johns and Keith Rhebb to be on such a list.
AKA Mayday

Ari Techner

  • Karma: +0/-0
Re: Next G: Best up and coming architects
« Reply #7 on: May 21, 2018, 11:29:35 AM »
Rob Collins/Tad King


Andy Staples

Mark_Fine

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Re: Next G: Best up and coming architects
« Reply #8 on: May 21, 2018, 01:48:55 PM »
Why would Tom and some of these other “young” guys think about retiring?  Pete Dye worked until almost 90 as did Geoffrey Cornish.  I’ve teed up several jobs for Tom. Why should I stop now 😊😉😊

Peter Pallotta

Re: Next G: Best up and coming architects
« Reply #9 on: May 21, 2018, 01:59:02 PM »
I think one of the challenges for the next generation of architects might be that, given the state of the magazine business, they won't have the next generation of *writers* to help promote them. Once there was a Keeler or a Jenkins or a Wind, Diaz or Klein; but to paraphrase The Godfather: writers don't have that kind of of muscle anymore -- the five families have splintered off into 5000 families, and the current group of 'name' writers are (naturally) too busy promoting their own architectural contemporaries and trying to make their livings to bother going out to find/promote the rising stars of tomorrow. And, without these public advocates in their corners, the next generation of architects will also, I'd imagine, find it hard to make the all-important *connections* with the next generation clients/money, or with the (ever-shrinking) list of tier-one private clubs that have not yet gotten around to commissioning a 'sympathetic restoration'.  Neither Mike Keiser nor Raynor courses grow on trees.     
« Last Edit: May 21, 2018, 06:49:23 PM by Peter Pallotta »

Martin Lehmann

  • Karma: +0/-0
Re: Next G: Best up and coming architects
« Reply #10 on: May 21, 2018, 05:21:13 PM »
From my own experience (I hired him for a course renovation), I can nominate Caspar Grauballe. A young architect from Denmark, still in his 30s, who used to work for Hawtree. In that capacity, he was lead architect at the Trump project in Aberdeen. Maybe not a recommendation in the eyes of some, but in my view one of the top design achievements in golf of the past decade. The good thing about Caspar, besides he knows his trade and has a deep understanding of golden age golf course architecture, is that he is a modest man, with an open eye for the needs and wishes of his clients.

Matthew Rose

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Re: Next G: Best up and coming architects
« Reply #11 on: May 21, 2018, 06:35:52 PM »
I hope Jay Blasi does well. Chambers Bay isn't a bad start. We come from the same neck of the woods in southern Wisconsin, and I think we played in a few high school events at the same time, although we weren't pair together.
« Last Edit: May 21, 2018, 06:37:57 PM by Matthew Rose »
American-Australian. Trackman Course Guy. Fatalistic sports fan. Drummer. Bass player. Father. Cat lover.

Chris Mavros

  • Karma: +0/-0
Re: Next G: Best up and coming architects
« Reply #12 on: May 21, 2018, 09:09:29 PM »
While I think the architects mentioned have several years, and projects, ahead of them, here are just a few that I would like to see more from:


Collins/King


Tyler Rae


Keith Rhebb


Mike Cocking




Mike_Young

  • Karma: +0/-0
Re: Next G: Best up and coming architects
« Reply #13 on: May 21, 2018, 09:53:29 PM »
[quote author=Jake Marvin link=topic=65934.msg1573894#msg1573894 date=1526916133
Hopefully, at some point owners/operators start to see providing better golf as an alternative to providing no golf at all by closing down. This extends especially to municipal operations and the generally terrible courses they provide (trying to avoid the argument about municipal golf in general, I'll just say that if we have to have municipal gov't, I'm fine with them providing golf courses as they do fields for any other sport). Maybe I'm giving them too much credit, but if they understood that you can actually turn a profit from well-built, adequately-maintained courses, there'd be a great market for architects to revitalize golf courses for the average player, which could actually bring more people to play.

--------------------------

hmmmm.... you think maybe that has been happening for a while but it doesn't garner national attention or management company attention?  I been doing it for years... ;D
« Last Edit: May 21, 2018, 11:30:39 PM by Mike_Young »
"just standing on a corner in Winslow Arizona"

Steve_ Shaffer

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Re: Next G: Best up and coming architects
« Reply #14 on: May 21, 2018, 10:29:08 PM »
From what I've seen, Jackson/Kahn  and Andrew Green are contenders:




http://jacksonkahndesign.com/





http://greengolfandturf.com/







« Last Edit: May 21, 2018, 10:30:42 PM by Steve_ Shaffer »
"Some of us worship in churches, some in synagogues, some on golf courses ... "  Adlai Stevenson
Hyman Roth to Michael Corleone: "We're bigger than US Steel."
Ben Hogan “The most important shot in golf is the next one”

Tim Gallant

  • Karma: +0/-0
Re: Next G: Best up and coming architects
« Reply #15 on: May 22, 2018, 08:19:23 AM »
Rob Collins/Tad King


Andy Staples


Ari is not lying. I had a chance to see Andy Staples’ work at Meadowbrook. WOW! It felt so fresh and original despite applying old school features & principles. It might be the best golf course I’ve seen from an ‘up and coming’ architect. Hell, it was one of the best courses I’ve seen period.

A.G._Crockett

  • Karma: +0/-0
Re: Next G: Best up and coming architects
« Reply #16 on: May 22, 2018, 08:58:02 AM »
Bill Bergin.  Look him up.
"Golf...is usually played with the outward appearance of great dignity.  It is, nevertheless, a game of considerable passion, either of the explosive type, or that which burns inwardly and sears the soul."      Bobby Jones

Jay Revell

  • Karma: +0/-0
Re: Next G: Best up and coming architects
« Reply #17 on: May 22, 2018, 10:15:39 AM »
In the past month I had the chance to play both Winter Park and Sweetens Cove on back to back weekends( My wife is a saint). The work that has been done there by King/Collins in Tennessee and Rhebb/Johns in Florida is absolutely spectacular and each in their own unique ways.


Most impressive to me is that they did such great work with the limitations of an existing course for their canvas. Every time I drive past a mediocre golf course, I think to myself that with the right architect and some vision it could become something much more interesting and better. I agree with earlier comments that the future of golf course design may largely be based on architects reworking many of the underwhelming courses around the country.


I have a feeling that there will be many courses changing hands again when the next inevitable recession comes upon us. That my open the floodgates for renovations and re-imagining of properties during the recovery that will follow. Hopefully that will lead to opportunities for this most impressive new generation of architects.

Eric Strulowitz

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Re: Next G: Best up and coming architects
« Reply #18 on: May 22, 2018, 11:40:28 AM »
Bill Bergin.  Look him up.


Agreed, a really great designer who has fallen under the radar.  Love the work he did at Pine Tree and Chattanooga CC.  Great renovations and original desgins,been lucky to play a number of his courses

A.G._Crockett

  • Karma: +0/-0
Re: Next G: Best up and coming architects
« Reply #19 on: May 24, 2018, 10:01:30 AM »
Bill Bergin.  Look him up.


Agreed, a really great designer who has fallen under the radar.  Love the work he did at Pine Tree and Chattanooga CC.  Great renovations and original desgins,been lucky to play a number of his courses
Eric,I'm glad you enjoyed those; I got to play both Pinetree and Chattanooga with Bill after he finished, and it was an education, to say the least.  He's staying pretty busy, I think, because he brings his renovation work in on time and at or under budget. 

And fwiw, he was and is a really good player.  AA at Auburn, played on Tour for awhile, then taught for a couple of years before he went to work for Bob Cupp and then out on his own. 
"Golf...is usually played with the outward appearance of great dignity.  It is, nevertheless, a game of considerable passion, either of the explosive type, or that which burns inwardly and sears the soul."      Bobby Jones

Wade Whitehead

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Re: Next G: Best up and coming architects
« Reply #20 on: May 24, 2018, 05:06:05 PM »
Only time will tell, but Zac Blair may end up on this list...
WW

Jay Mickle

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Re: Next G: Best up and coming architects
« Reply #21 on: May 25, 2018, 08:31:19 AM »
While  he doesn’t have any original work yet to show Kyle Franz deserves inclusion for his masterful restoration of Mid Pines.  Since then he has transformed Pine Needles and done other work at CC of Charleston, Minikahda, Woods Hole and likely others of which I am unaware.  I believe it’s only a matter of time until someone with land and a dream recognizes his talent and gives him an opportunity for an original design
@MickleStix on Instagram
MickleStix.com

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