Who's who: Arthur Hills

  • Torrey Pines - South course, host of the Farmers Insurance Open
  • Prince's GC, England
  • Torrey Pines - South course, host of the Farmers Insurance Open
  • Terras da Comporta, Dunas
  • Monte Rei G&CC
  • Marco Simone GC (Italy); host of the Ryder Cup 2023
  • Pebble Beach host of the US Open; US Women's Open; Pebble Beach Pro-Am
  • Marco Simone GC

Who's who: Arthur Hills

  • Name:

    Arthur Hills
  • Country:

    USA
  • Born:

    1930 in Toledo, Ohio.
  • Original/Home Club:

  • Occupation:

    Golf course architect
  • Turned Pro:

    n/a

Roll of Honour

President of the American Society of Golf Course Architects (1992-93).

Golf course design

Over the years, the best known golf course designs of Arthur Hills (either solo designs or those with his partners and associates) include, but are not limited to:

UNITED STATES:
Bay Harbor, MI (1997, with owner Steve Kircher) / Bighorn, CA (1991, Mountains course) / Black Gold, CA (2001) / Bolingbrook, IL (2002) / Bonita Bay, FL (1985, '89 & '94: Marsh, Creekside & Bay Island courses) / Boyne Highlands, MI (1999, Hills course) / Brandywine CC, OH (1967 ... Arthur Hills first design) / Camelback, AZ (1999, redesign of Padre course) / Chaska Town, MN (1997) / Chevy Chase Club, MD (1998, renovation) / Congressional CC, MD (2000, renovation of Gold course) / Coosaw Creek, SC (1993) / CrossCreek, CA (2001) / Cypress Head, FL (1992) / Deer Creek, FL (1971 & 2004, original design and later renovation) / Detwiler Park, OH (1969) / Double JJ Ranch, MI (1992, Thoroughbred course) / The Dunes GC, FL (1988, now closed) / Dunes West, SC (1991) / Eagle Trace, FL (1983; formerly TPC at Eagle Trace) / Fieldstone, MI (1998) / Forest Akers at MSU, MI (1991 & 1997, renovation of West & East courses) / Giant Oak, MI (1969) / Glacier Club, CO (1976) / Glenview, OH (1975) / Half Moon Bay, CA (1997, Ocean course; 2005, renovation of Old course) / Harbour Pointe, WA (1990) / HawksHead, MI (1996) / Heritage Harbour, FL (2002; formerly Stoneybrook GC at Heritage Harbour) / Heritage Palms, CA (1996) / Heritage Eagle Bend, CO (2000) / Heritage Ranch, TX (2001) / Heritage Shores, DE (2007) / Heron Creek, FL (2000) / Highlands at Dove Mtn, AZ (1997) / Hill Country, TX (1993 & 2005) / Indianwood G&CC, MI (1984, modifications) / Inverness Club, OH (1999 & 2015, renovation & modifications) / Island Pointe, TN (1991) / Journey at Pechanga, CA (2008) / Kenton County, KY (1992, Fox Run course; now closed) / Kirtland CC, OH (1991, modifications) / Lakes of Taylor, MI (1995) / The Legacy, NV (1989) / Legacy Ridge, CO (1993) / Legendary Run, OH (1997) / Lighthouse Sound, MD (2000) / LPGA International, FL (1997, Hills course) / Lyon Oaks, MI (2002) / Maryland National, MD (2002) / Maumee Bay, OH (1991) / Miami Beach GC, FL (2003, redesign) / Milwaukee CC, WI (2002, modifications) / CC at Mirasol, FL (2002, Sunset course) / Naga-Waukee, WI (1999, modifications) / Newport National, RI (2002) / Normandy Shores, FL (2008, renovation) / Oakland Hills, MI (1987 & 2014, modifications to South & North courses respectively) / Oakmont CC, PA (1984 & 1999 modifications) / Oneida G&CC, WI (2017, renovation, led by Shawn Smith) / Palencia, FL (2002) / Palmetto Dunes, SC (1988, Arthur Hills course) / Palmetto Hall, SC (1991, Arthur Hills course) / Pevely Farms, MO (1996) / Pine Trace, MI (1988) / Pipestone, OH (1990) / Quail Hollow, MS (1996) / Red Hawk, MI (1999) / Red Hawk Run, OH (1999, now closed) / River Strand, FL (2007) / San Ignacio, AZ (1989, South course) / Shaker Run, OH (1979) / Shepherd's Hollow, MI (2000) / Sienna, TX (2000, with Mike Dasher) / Siwanoy CC, NY (1997, modifications) / Stonewall Orchard, IL (1999) / Stoneybrook West, FL (2000) / Taylor Meadows, MI (1988) / TPC Treviso Bay, FL (2008) / Turnberry GC, OH (1991) / University of Michigan GC, MI (1994, renovation) / The Virtues, OH (1999; originally called Longaberger GC) / Walking Stick, CO (1989) / Washington County, WI (1997) / Waverly Woods, MD (1998) / Weatherwax, OH (1971; now closed) / White Clay Creek, DE (2005) / Windsor Parke, FL (1991) / Wolfdancer, TX (2006) / Wykagyl CC, NY (1993, modifications) / Yatesville Lake, KY (2004).

AMERICAS (beyond the United States):
Board of Trade CC, Ont. (1993, renovation; now called The Country Club) / El Conquistador, Puerto Rico (1993) / Essex G&CC, Ont. (1997, renovation) / Paraiso del Mar, Mexico (2009) / Silver Creek, Ont. (2010) / The Tryall Club, Jamaica (2003, renovation).

BEYOND NORTH AMERICA:
(
*Projects mainly led by Steve Forrest).
Forest Hills, Russia (2013) / Noria, Morocco (2014*) / Hills GC, Sweden (2005*) / Nikolayev, Russia (2010*, unsure if it ever opened?) / Oitavos Dunes, Port (2001) / Oslo GC, Norway (2008*) / Peterhof GC, Russia (2017*, with Greg Norman) / Sand GC, Sweden (2006) / Torrekulla, Sweden (2005, 12-hole course) / Vasatorp GC, Sweden (2008, Tournament course; 2013, renovation of Classic course) / The Vintage Club, Thai (1995).

Did you know?

One of the most renowned golf course architects of the modern era, Arthur Hills has left his stamp on over 300 golf courses during a career that has spanned more than 50 years. From the time of his first design (Brandywine CC in 1967), until he put down his designer's pen in 2020, Hills' firm was based in his hometown of Toledo, Ohio.

Establishing his design business in 1966, Hills was joined by Steve Forrest in 1979, the firm becoming Hills & Forrest from 1999. Shawn Smith joined the firm in 1998, becoming a Principal in 2010; the firm was renamed Hills-Forrest-Smith in 2018. Other lead designers who worked for Arthur Hills over the years include Mike Dasher (1980-96), Spencer Holt (1988-97), Drew Rogers (1992-2010) and Chris Wilczynski (1994-2010).

The prolific golf course design portfolio of Arthur Hills, his partners and associates, is mainly concentrated in the United States, with some occasional projects farther afield.

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Tournaments

The Masters: The 88th Masters Tournament at Augusta National sees LIV golfer Jon Rahm defend his title against the world’s best. Pressing hard will be world No.1 and 2022 champion Scottie Scheffler and world No.2 Rory McIlroy (April 11-14).

Chevron Championship: the women’s major championship season gets underway for the second year at its new Carlton Woods home outside Houston, Texas. World No.2 Lilia Vu defends (April 18-21).

Who's Who

Nelly Korda: records a perfect start to 2024 with five wins out of her last five starts on the LPGA Tour. Winning the Chevron Championship also brought the second major championship win of her career.

Scottie Scheffler: narrowly missed out on matching Nelly Korda's five wins in five starts, when he placed second at the Houston Open. Either side of that, he won The Arnold Palmer, The Players, and then The Masters and The Heritage.

Marco Simone Golf & Country Club

Marco Simone Golf & Country Club: With a clubhouse that might befit a Roman Emperor, and a golf course to match, you can be sure of a memorable outing at Rome's most talked about golf facility.

Jim Fazio's original layout was much changed to create a modern Ryder Cup course ... now one of the Eternal City's (and Italy's) most revered.

Prince's Golf Club, Kent (UK)

Here at Prince’s Golf Club you'll find 27 excellent holes of links golf. Just over the fence and sharing similar terrain is Royal St George’s; but Prince’s is far from overshadowed by its venerable neighbour. The three nine-hole loops at Prince's, laid out over gently undulating terrain, are sure to bring a smile of satisfaction to all lovers of links golf.

Stay&Play at Prince's: excellent onsite Lodge accommodation available

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