“For me, Pinehurst is such a special place for golf,” says Fazio, who at 77 is still designing new courses and working on renovations of his earlier works. “Put Donald Ross in the equation and it’s even more special. It’s been an historical destination for over a century. There’s a special feeling — a feeling for golf and its tradition and history and longevity.”
Anyone who has ever teed it up in the Pinehurst area knows the name Donald Ross. A transplanted Scot, Donald Ross fused his home course knowledge (Royal Dornoch and its elevated, contoured greens) and his study at St. Andrews (strategic options) to become the most honored and most prolific early American architect. Between 1919 and 1926, six U.S. Opens were played on his designs. Pinehurst No. 2 was his masterpiece, but Seminole, Oakland Hills, Oak Hill and Inverness weren’t far behind. In the Sandhills alone, he crafted Pine Needles, Mid Pines and Southern Pines, among others. Less known about Donald Ross? He could really play.
In part 3 of a multi-part Q&A series with golf writer Brad King, Kyle Franz discusses the unique topography around the Sandhills and what it was like working at Southern Pines Golf Club during one of the coldest and wettest Februarys in recent memory.
In part 2 of a multi-part Q&A series with golf writer Brad King, Kyle Franz discusses the various eras of Ross’s design work around the Sandhills and how Ross’s golf course design work compares to the artistic musical genius of The Beatles.
With his ongoing improvement project at Southern Pines Golf Club, architect Kyle Franz is coming full circle renovating a variety of Donald Ross-designed golf courses in North Carolina’s Sandhills region.
As the “Home of American Golf,” the Pinehurst, Southern Pines and Aberdeen area has long held close ties with the U.S. Open. This is the final of a three-part series detailing some of our area’s connection with one of golf’s most storied events.
