Inspired Designs – ASGCA Design Excellence Recognition Program

Below are excerpts from By Design magazine published by the American Society of Golf Course Architects (ASGCA).

Arcadia Bluffs Golf Club in Arcadia, Michigan, already had one highly-ranked golf course, which was operating at full capacity. The club wanted to add a second course on land with far less natural interest than the lakeside bluffs on which its first course is situated.

Dana Fry, ASGCA, and Jason Straka, ASGCA, were appointed to create an inspirational design that would give public golfers a compelling alternative to the resort’s existing layout.

“Arcadia Bluffs is not only located on one of golf’s greatest landscapes but is also one of golf’s most successful operations in America,” says Fry. “Its location provides stunning views from the bluffs of Lake Michigan and the terrain creates an exhilarating round of golf. With the course being at full capacity, the owner desired to add a second venue. But the chosen land, one mile inland, had none of the grandeur of the original. The challenge was to create a golf experience, on a significantly less dramatic canvas, to rival the acclaim of the original course.”

For their design of the South Course, Fry and Straka took inspiration from America’s private clubs, and two of the leading designers from the early twentieth century, an era described as the ‘Golden Age’ of golf course architecture. “The South Course was inspired by the work at Chicago Golf Club by early American golf course architects CB Macdonald and Seth Raynor,” says Fry. “It’s a testament to the challenges and emotions experienced at only a few select, classic private courses from golf’s earliest days.”

Click here to download the full article (PDF, 5.8 MB).