Design Philosophy

Fry/Straka seeks no stylistic labels. We don’t court the company of others, past or present, in any particular golf course architectural “school”. While we insist upon unity and coherence within any 18-hole routing, we never wish to be known for a specific look, pattern or genre. Instead, our firm relies on limitless varieties and variabilities of terrain. We lean on our keen appreciation for classic golf course design principles, while never running from the modern or novel. In making these artistic decisions, we place great faith in our decades of collective design experience — and the indomitable F/S spirit — to produce singular golf course architecture wherever our work takes us.

This is what we mean by “Creative Distinction.” There’s no other way to describe and account for such a wide variety of award-winning, sustainable, visually arresting, tournament-ready designs in so many distinct, natural environments:

  • Erin Hills GC in the Kettle Moraine of southern Wisconsin, host of 10 USGA Championships by 2039, including the 2017 U.S. Open, 2025 U.S. Women’s Open, and the 2035 & 2011 U.S. Amateurs.

  • The upland Canadian classics at Devil’s Pulpit and Devil’s Paintbrush

  • The magnificent but utterly distinct layouts at Calusa Pines and Naples National, each located in Southwest Florida, just 11 miles apart

  • The angular South Course at Arcadia Bluffs, which captures the simplistic nature of the early days of golf in America, located less than one mile from the gusty shores of Lake Michigan

  • Shelter Harbor GC in the rocky, wooded parkland of Rhode Island

  • The mountain classics at Le Diable in Quebec and Phoenix Hill in China’s Zhejiang Province

  • The strategic desert oases at the Ambiente Course at Camelback Resort in Arizona and Yas Acres in Abu Dhabi

  • The quite incomparable Union League National in the sandy pine forests of southern New Jersey

This ability and determination to create distinctive, sustainable, strategic architecture extends to Fry/Straka’s expansive renovation portfolio. Hundreds of Donald Ross courses have undergone refurbishment. None, however, have re-emerged so visually and strategically striking, while hewing closer to the Scot’s original plans and intents, as Belleair CC in Clearwater. Belleair had never been a ratings darling. However, following the restoration by Fry/Straka, the West Course became the 4th best private course in Florida and #77 on the list of Top 200 Classic Courses in the U.S. according to Golfweek.

At Kenwood CC in Cincinnati, the club sought to restore the grandeur and scale of its 1929 Bill Diddel design. Fry/Straka delivered on this subtle brief, while removing 3,000-plus trees, equipping the entire 18-hole footprint with modern drainage capability, and re-building each bunker in a muscular, flat-bottomed style that would make Mr. Diddel proud. Eighteen months later, Kenwood played host to the LPGA Tour’s inaugural Kroger Queen City Classic.