Pete Dye

Dye was born on December 29, 1925, in Urbana, Ohio. He was the son of Paul F. "Pink" and Elizabeth Dye. A few years before Dye's birth, his father became involved with golf and built a nine-hole course on family land in Champaign County called the "Urbana Country Club."[2] As a youngster, he worked and played that course. While attending Urbana High School, he won the Ohio state high school golf championship, and medaled in the state amateur golf championship, all before entering the U.S. Army at age 18 in 1944 during World War II.[3] Dye first moved to Delray Beach, Florida, with his parents in 1933 and eventually established his own winter residence there. With his brother Andy, he had attended the Asheville School, a boarding school in North Carolina at Asheville.[4] Dye entered the Airborne School at Fort Benning in Georgia to be a paratrooper in the 82nd Airborne Division, but the war ended while he was in training. He was stationed at Fort Bragg in North Carolina where he served the rest of his hitch as greenskeeper on the base golf course. Dye explained,

"I played the golf course at Pinehurst No. 2 for six solid months, and I got to know Mr. Donald Ross...(who) had built the Fort Bragg golf course. He would come over and watch us play golf, and most of the time the captain and colonel hauled me over there. They didn't know who Mr. Ross was, but the other fellow walking with him was JC Penney, and they all knew him."[1]

After Dye's discharge, he relocated to Florida and enrolled at Rollins College in Winter Park, northeast of Orlando, where he met his wife, Alice Holliday O'Neal. They were married in early 1950, and had two sons, Perry and P.B. (Paul Burke). They moved to Indiana to her hometown of Indianapolis, and Dye sold insurance.[1] Within a few years, he distinguished himself as a million dollar salesman, and was also successful in amateur golf. Dye won the Indiana amateur championship in 1958, following runner-up finishes in 1954 and 1955. At age 31, he qualified for the U.S. Open in 1957 at Inverness Club in Toledo, Ohio, but shot 152 (+12) to miss the cut by two strokes, as did Arnold Palmer;[5] seventeen-year-old amateur Jack Nicklaus was eight strokes behind them at 160.[3][5]

Dye made the decision to become a golf course designer in his mid-30s. Alice supported his career change and became partner in the new venture. In 1961, the couple visited and talked to noted golf architect Bill Diddle, who lived nearby. He warned them about the economic uncertainty of the profession, but they persisted.[3] The first design from Dye and his wife was the nine-hole El Dorado course south of Indianapolis, which crossed a creek thirteen times. Those nine holes are now incorporated into the Royal Oak course at Dye's Walk Country Club.[6][7] Their first 18-hole course was created during 1962 in Indianapolis and named Heather Hills, now known as Maple Creek Golf & Country Club.

Dye designed the Radrick Farms Golf Course for the University of Michigan in 1962, but the course did not open until 1965.[8] At the time, he was using the design style of Trent Jones, but after seeing the work of Alister MacKenzie, who designed the 1931 Michigan course, Dye decided to incorporate features from two greens into his next project.[1] Dye visited Scotland in 1963 and made a thorough study of its classic courses. The Scottish use of pot bunkers, bulkheads constructed of wood, and diminutive greens influenced his subsequent designs.[3]

Dye's first well-known course was Crooked Stick Golf Club in Carmel, Indiana, north of Indianapolis, begun in 1964. It hosted the PGA Championship in 1991, won by ninth alternate John Daly. In 1967, he designed The Golf Club near Columbus, Ohio, where he solicited input from 27-year-old Jack Nicklaus, an area local who won his seventh major (of 18) that year. The two worked together to design the acclaimed Harbour Town Golf Links in South Carolina, opened in 1969, the site of an annual PGA Tour event ever since.[9] Nicklaus credits Dye with significant influence on his own approach to golf course design.[10] Also in 1969, Dye designed his first course in Florida called Delray Dunes. In 1970, he designed Martingham Golf Course in St. Michaels, Maryland, now known as Harbourtowne Resort. The owners of the project went bankrupt and Dye went unpaid; the course was eventually finished, however, and had many of Dye's signature course characteristics such as deep bunkers, small greens, short challenging par fours, and railroad ties. In 2015, the property was purchased by Richard D. Cohen[11] who has entered into an agreement with Dye to update and redesign the course. The new owner agreed to pay the funds that were not paid during the original design.[12]

In 1986, Dye also designed a course in the Italian province of Brescia, near Lake Iseo, the Franciacorta Golf Club, recognized today as wine golf course. Dye is considered to be one of the most influential course architects in the world. His designs are known for distinctive features, including small greens and the use of railroad ties to hold bunkers. His design for the Brickyard Crossing golf course at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway utilized the dismantled outer retaining wall from the race track. He is known for designing the "world's most terrifying tee shot," the par-3 17th hole of the Stadium Course at TPC at Sawgrass in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida. Known as the "Island Green," it gained wide notice 41 years ago in 1982, during the first Players Championship at the new course.[13][14][15][16] Dye's designs have been credited with returning short & medium length par fours to golf. Many of the best young golf architects have "pushed dirt" for Pete, including Bill Coore, Tom Doak, John Harbottle, Butch Laporte, Tim Liddy, Scott Poole, David Postlewaite, Lee Schmidt, Keith Sparkman, Jim Urbina, Bobby Weed, Rod Whitman, and Abe Wilson.[1][17]

Dye received the Old Tom Morris Award in 2003 from the Golf Course Superintendents Association of America, their highest honor. In 2004, he was the recipient of the PGA Distinguished Service Award, the highest annual honor of the PGA of America, which recognizes individuals who display leadership and humanitarian qualities, including integrity, sportsmanship and enthusiasm for the game of golf. In 2005, Dye became the sixth recipient of the PGA Tour Lifetime Achievement Award. He was inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame in November 2008 in the Lifetime Achievement category.[18] The American Society of Golf Course Architects bestowed the Donald Ross Award on Dye in 1995.[19] Dye was named Architect of the Year by Golf World magazine, awarded a Doctor of Landscape Architecture degree from Purdue University, received Indiana's Sagamore of the Wabash award and was honored as Family of the Year by the National Golf Foundation.[1]

In the last years of his life, Dye suffered from Alzheimer's disease.[20] He died on January 9, 2020.[21][22][23]

A partial list of courses that Dye either designed alone or co-designed:[24]

• OD denotes courses for which Dye is the original designer
• R denotes courses reconstructed by Dye
• A denotes courses for which Dye made substantial additions
• E denotes courses that Dye examined and on the construction of which he consulted

Name	Contribution	Year Built	City / Town	State / Province	Country	Comments
Ancala CC	OD		Scottsdale	Arizona	United States
Red Mountain Ranch CC (Championship Course)	OD		Mesa	Arizona	United States
Carmel Valley Ranch GR	OD		Carmel Valley Ranch	California	United States
La Quinta Resort and Club (Dunes Course, Mountain Course)	OD		La Quinta	California	United States
Lost Canyons Golf Club (Shadow Course, Sky Course)	OD		Simi Valley	California	United States	Extinct
Mission Hills CC Pete Dye Course	OD		Rancho Mirage	California	United States
PGA West (Stadium Course)	OD		La Quinta	California	United States
The Citrus GC	OD		La Quinta	California	United States
The Hideaway GC Pete Dye Course	OD		La Quinta	California	United States
The Westin Mission Hills Resort & Spa (South Course)	OD		Rancho Mirage	California	United States
Trump National GC - Los Angeles	OD		Rancho Palos Verdes	California	United States
Copper Creek GC	OD		Copper Mountain	Colorado	United States
Glenmoor CC	OD		Cherry Hills Village	Colorado	United States
Gypsum Creek GC	OD		Gypsum	Colorado	United States
Plum Creek GC	OD		Castle Rock	Colorado	United States
Riverdale Dunes	OD		Brighton	Colorado	United States
The CC of Colorado	OD		Colorado Springs	Colorado	United States
TPC River Highlands	OD		Cromwell	Connecticut	United States
Wintonbury Hills GC	OD		Bloomfield	Connecticut	United States
Amelia Island Plantation (Ocean Links)	OD		Amelia Island	Florida	United States
Delray Dunes G&CC	OD		Boynton Beach	Florida	United States
Gasparilla Inn GC	OD		Boca Grande	Florida	United States
Gulf Stream GC	R		Gulf Stream	Florida	United States	Pete and Alice Dye - 2014 Remodel
Harbor Course	OD		Grand Harbor, Vero Beach	Florida	United States
Harbour Ridge Yacht & CC (River Ridge Course)	OD		Palm City	Florida	United States
John's Island Club (North Course)	OD		Vero Beach	Florida	United States	Pete and Perry Dye design
John's Island Club (South Course)	OD		Vero Beach	Florida	United States	Pete Dye and Jack Nicklaus design
Medalist GC	OD		Jupiter	Florida	United States
Old Marsh GC	OD		Palm Beach Gardens	Florida	United States
Palm Beach Polo (The Cypress Course)	OD		Wellington	Florida	United States
PGA Golf Club at the Reserve (Pete Dye Course)	OD		Port Saint Lucie	Florida	United States
River Ridge GC (Harbour Ridge)	OD		Palm City	Florida	United States	Treasure Coast – Florida Golf Communities
Southern Hills Plantation Club	OD		Brooksville	Florida	United States
St. Andrews Club	OD		Delray Beach	Florida	United States
Talis Park GC	OD		Naples	Florida	United States	Pete Dye and Greg Norman design
The Dye Preserve GC	OD		Jupiter	Florida	United States
The Moorings Club of Vero Beach	OD		Vero Beach	Florida	United States
TPC at Sawgrass (Dye Valley Course)	OD		Ponte Vedra Beach	Florida	United States
TPC at Sawgrass (Stadium Course)	OD		Ponte Vedra Beach	Florida	United States
West Bay Club	OD		Estero	Florida	United States	Pete and P.B Dye design
Atlanta National GC	OD		Alpharetta	Georgia	United States
Ogeechee Golf Club at the Ford Plantation	OD		Richmond Hill	Georgia	United States
Oakwood CC	OD		Coal Valley	Illinois	United States
Ruffled Feathers GC	OD		Lemont	Illinois	United States
Tamarack CC	OD		Shiloh	Illinois	United States
Yorktown GC	OD		Belleville	Illinois	United States
Crooked Stick GC	OD		Carmel	Indiana	United States
Dye's Walk CC	OD		Greenwood	Indiana	United States	formerly Eldorado CC and Royal Oak
Eagle Creek GC at Eagle Creek Park (Pines and Sycamore Courses)	OD		Indianapolis	Indiana	United States
Forest Park GC	OD		Brazil	Indiana	United States
Greenbelt GC	OD		Columbus	Indiana	United States
Harbour Trees GC	OD		Noblesville	Indiana	United States
Indianapolis Motor Speedway Brickyard Crossing GC	OD		Speedway	Indiana	United States
Maple Creek G&CC	OD	1961	Indianapolis	Indiana	United States	The very first course designed by Pete (and Alice) Dye in 1961, originally named 'Heather Hills.'https://www.maplecreekgc.com/
Birck Boilermaker Golf Complex at Purdue University (Ackerman-Allen Course, Kampen Course)	OD		West Lafayette	Indiana	United States
Mystic Hills GC	OD		Culver	Indiana	United States
Oak Tree GC	OD		Plainfield	Indiana	United States	Front nine
Plum Creek GC			Carmel	Indiana	United States
Sahm GC	OD		Indianapolis	Indiana	United States
The Bridgewater Club	OD		Westfield	Indiana	United States
The Camferdam Golf Experience	OD		Indianapolis	Indiana	United States	The Indianapolis Children's Museum
The Club at Chatham Hills	OD		Westfield[25]	Indiana	United States	Semi-private
The Club at Holliday Farms	OD		Zionsville	Indiana	United States
The Fort GC	OD		Indianapolis	Indiana	United States	Fort Harrison State Park
The Pete Dye Course	OD		French Lick	Indiana	United States
Woodland CC	OD		Carmel	Indiana	United States
Des Moines G&CC	OD		West Des Moines	Iowa	United States
Belle Terre CC	OD		LaPlace	Louisiana	United States
TPC of Louisiana	OD		Avondale	Louisiana	United States
Kearney Hill Golf Links	OD		Lexington	Kentucky	United States
Peninsula GC	OD		Lancaster	Kentucky	United States
Bulle Rock GC	OD		Havre de Grace	Maryland	United States
Rum Pointe Seaside Golf Links	OD		Berlin	Maryland	United States
The Links at Perry Cabin	OD		St. Michaels	Maryland	United States	formerly Harbourtowne Resort CC
Radrick Farms Golf Course at the University of Michigan	OD		Ann Arbor	Michigan	United States
Wabeek CC	OD		Bloomfield Hills	Michigan	United States
Boone Valley GC	OD		Augusta	Missouri	United States
Old Hickory GC	OD		St. Peters	Missouri	United States
Firethorn GC	OD		Lincoln	Nebraska	United States
Desert Pines GC	OD		Las Vegas	Nevada	United States
Paiute GC Resort	OD		Las Vegas	Nevada	United States	Snow Mountain, Sun Mountain, and Wolf Courses
Pound Ridge GC	OD		Pound Ridge	New York	United States
Cardinal by Pete Dye	OD		Greensboro	North Carolina	United States
CC of Landfall	OD		Wilmington	North Carolina	United States
Founders GC	OD		Southport	North Carolina	United States
Oak Hollow GC	OD		High Point	North Carolina	United States
Avalon Lakes	OD		Warren	Ohio	United States
Fowler's Mill GC	OD		Chesterland	Ohio	United States
Little Turtle GC	OD		Westerville	Ohio	United States
The Golf Club	OD		New Albany	Ohio	United States
Oak Tree CC	OD		Edmond	Oklahoma	United States
Iron Valley GC	OD		Lebanon	Pennsylvania	United States
Montour Heights CC	OD		Coraopolis	Pennsylvania	United States
Mystic Rock, Nemacolin Woodlands Resort	OD		Farmington	Pennsylvania	United States
Colleton River Plantation Club (Dye Course)	OD		Bluffton	South Carolina	United States
DeBordieu Club	OD		Georgetown	South Carolina	United States
Hampton Hall Club	OD		Bluffton	South Carolina	United States
Harbour Town Golf Links	OD		Hilton Head Island	South Carolina	United States
Heron Point	OD		Hilton Head Island	South Carolina	United States	formerly Sea Marsh
Kiawah Island Golf Resort (The Ocean Course)	OD		Kiawah Island	South Carolina	United States
Long Cove Club	OD		Hilton Head Island	South Carolina	United States
Prestwick CC	OD		Myrtle Beach	South Carolina	United States
The Dye Club at Barefoot Resort	OD		North Myrtle Beach	South Carolina	United States
Rarity Mountain GC	OD		Jellico	Tennessee	United States
The Honors GC	OD		Ooltewah	Tennessee	United States
AT&T Canyons Course of TPC at San Antonio	OD		San Antonio	Texas	United States
Austin CC	OD		Austin	Texas	United States
Stonebridge Ranch CC (The Dye Course)	OD		McKinney	Texas	United States
The Stonebridge Ranch CC	OD		McKinney	Texas	United States
Promontory Club	OD		Park City	Utah	United States
Pete Dye River Course of Virginia Tech	OD		Radford	Virginia	United States
River Course at Kingsmill Resort	OD		Williamsburg	Virginia	United States
Virginia Beach National	OD		Virginia Beach	Virginia	United States
Virginia Oaks	OD		Gainesville	Virginia	United States
Pete Dye GC	OD		Clarksburg	West Virginia	United States
Big Fish GC	OD		Hayward	Wisconsin	United States
Blackwolf Run (River Course, Meadows Valley Course)	OD		Kohler	Wisconsin	United States
Whistling Straits (Irish Course, Straits Course)	OD		Haven	Wisconsin	United States
Mission Hills Dongguan (Pete Dye Course)	OD		Shenzhen	Guangdong	China
Santa Barbara Beach Resort (Old Quarry GC)	OD		Willemstad	Kingdom of the Netherlands	Curaçao
Teeth of the Dog, Dye Fore, The Links	OD	1971	Casa de Campo, La Romana	La Romana Province	Dominican Republic
La Romana CC	OD		La Romana	La Romana Province	Dominican Republic
Las Aromas GC	OD		Santiago de los Caballeros	Dominican Republic	Dominican Republic
La Reunion Antigua Golf Resort (Fuego Maya GC)	OD	2008	Alotenango	Sacatepéquez	Guatemala
Pristine Bay Resort (Black Pearl at Pristine Bay)	OD	2010	French Harbour, Roatán	Bay Islands	Honduras
Caesarea G&CC	R/A		Caesarea	Haifa	Israel
Franciacorta GC	OD		Franciacorta	Province of Brescia	Italy
GC du Domaine Impérial	OD		Gland	Vaud	Switzerland

• Dye, Pete; Shaw, Mark (November 1994). Bury Me In A Pot Bunker. Addison-Wesley. ISBN 0-201-40769-8.

• Course Map
• Pete Dye Golf Club
• American Society of Golf Course Architects profile
• Bio from Dye Designs
• Time – Top 10 Most Difficult Golf Courses Pete Dye nickname Marquis de Sod (Doc D.)