Residential Golf Course Architects, Part VI

FLORIDA: Estuary at Grey Oaks

The Bob Cupp portfolio extends beyond standard 18-hole courses
to include complete design of golf academy facilities and even
such added touches as the 18-hole putting course at The Estuary,
which Cupp built to USGA specifications. His full-size course at
this luxury Naples community is postcard-pretty but formidable
to try and score on—its top rating is 74.5 and its slope rating
is a hefty 143 from the back tees.
Click here for more information about Estuary at Grey Oaks!

Course developers have chosen Cupp for his vision and creativity
on open, easily shaped acreage and his engineering brilliance on
rugged, difficult terrain. After being named the 1992 Golf Architect
of the Year by Golf World magazine, he refined his style even further,
producing bold layouts with sharp playing angles and unconventional
land features.

GEORGIA: Reynolds Plantation

Few golf communities have won as many awards for course design
as Reynolds Plantation, starting with a “Top 10 New Course” accolade
from Golf Magazine for Bob Cupp’s Plantation Course in 1987. Cupp
wove in the input of tour stars Fuzzy Zoeller and Hubert Green to
create this landmark routing, which started the Reynolds golf tradition
20 years ago. For this project Cupp emphasized a rumpled and tilting
look to his fairways, which add visual subtlety and  require an
extra measure of shotmaking skill.
Click here for more information about Reynolds Plantation!
 
A former college golfer, he has kept shot values and strategic challenge
as his first priority. Golf community developers, who insist on courses
that make a splashy first impression, but remain interesting and stimulating
over a long timespan, have found in Bob Cupp the right blend of skills
to achieve this goal.

Known for its appeal to serious golfers, Woodside Plantation tabbed
Bob Cupp to build a complement to the Rees Jones layout that opened
there in 1987 and a later addition by Jack Nicklaus. Cupp’s 1989 vintage
Plantation Course is the longest of the three at 7,254 yards from the back
tees. Working on a generous site within the 2,300-acre property, Cupp
unfurled a strategically stimulating 18 that takes full advantage of the
naturally rolling terrain and graceful pine forests.
Click here for more information about Woodside Plantation!

Tom Jackson
Tom Jackson, who started a year or two before Cupp in the mid-1960s,
is also known for his ability to work effectively on varied terrain. Before
striking out on his own Jackson worked as an associate for Robert Trent
Jones, Sr. and George Cobb.
 
With degrees from the State University of New York and the University
of Georgia, Jackson entered his chosen field with a solid grounding
in land planning and site development. Once on his own, he soon began
earning awards and citations for his design work. Also like Cupp,
Jackson has learned the art of co-designing alongside a professional tour
player, most notably Raymond Floyd, in Jackson’s case.

 The first of the acclaimed Cliffs Communities occupies a mountaintop
setting that would become a breakthrough project for architect
Jackson. Upon its completion, The Cliffs at Glassy received
nominations for Golf Digest’s "Best New Private Course” of 1994.
It remains a thrilling course to play, with stunning backdrops and
fairways full of movement that require a shotmaker’s touch from tee
to green. Click here for more information about The Cliffs at Glassy!

With success has come choice assignments for Jackson, including
the chance to create a 27-hole showpiece within 5,000-acre Mt. Vintage
Plantation. Jackson’s design was unveiled there in 2000 and helped
the community earn a place in "America's Top 100 Master Planned
Communities" as selected by Where to Retire Magazine. It’s a charming
and sharp-looking collection of holes with just a faint resemblance to
the home course of The Masters, which is just a few miles away.
Click here for more information about Mt. Vintage Plantation and Golf Club!

Other Articles in the Golf Architect Series

I. The No. 1 Real-Estate Enhancer: Jack Nicklaus - Find out why
this golf course architect adds the most value to the real estate surrounding
the golf courses he designs: Click here!

II. Tom Fazio: Elevating Course Design--and Home Values

III. Arnold Palmer: His Brilliant Second Career

IV. Arthur Hills: Value-Adding Visionary

V. Robert Trent Jones II: Continuing the Legacy

VII. Pete Dye: Lifelong Innovator (Part-Time Intimidator)