First Courses Designed by Notable Modern Golf Architects

The names of golf’s most notable contemporary designers—Nicklaus, Coore & Crenshaw, Hanse, Doak, or others—immediately bring to mind an exceptional rolodex of courses or the latest projects that have just broken ground. Yet, each began their solo careers with projects that—at least for most—are lesser-known creations.

Where did they get their start? We recently sat down with nine of those creative minds to hear their fond memories from those first gigs and what about those projects still fills them with pride.

Robert Trent Jones Jr.

Princeville Makai—Princeville, Hawaii

Years before Robert Trent Jones Jr. was exploring the site on the north shore of Kauai, tasked with building 27 holes for the Princeville resort, he and his wife were gallivanting across Hawaii’s westernmost primary island on their honeymoon in 1962. “We flew to Lihue (Kauai) in a little tiny plane,” he recalls, “rented a pink and white jeep, set out on the last paved road in America, and fell in love with Hanalei Bay. It was absolute paradise.” Six years later, Jones Jr. was riding the site on horseback with his engineer, scouting the land for the best hole locations. “We walked to the edge of the headlands, saw the ocean and shaped our bunkers to resemble the crashing waves,” he says.

Today, Jones is most proud of the fact that the course “has stood the test of time,” and that it has remained “a top-rated course since its inception.” But he also takes pride in creating a course that sparked a new approach to golf experiences. “Thanks to the advent of jet travel, this beautiful remote location (along with Mauna Kea) started—and has since maintained—the concept of destination golf. Princeville put Hawaii golf on the map as an exceptional and worthy destination.”