59 DYE APPRENTICES the importance of on-site decisions – a design is always changing on site. That exposed all us young aspiring architects to the multitude of decisions, and hierarchy of decisions, in the construction process.” Curley says that it is Dye’s attitude to construction, and also to strategy, that is his greatest legacy to the industry. “His courses may not look like the great ones being built nowadays, but the philosophy is the same,” he says. “Everyone whoever worked with Pete always talks about angles. The majority of courses I worked on with Pete were treeless to start with. I never worked on a bowling alley course with Pete. There is a big difference between bowling alley golf and angle golf. Pete’s philosophy came from his UK experience in his early days. When he came back from the UK, he had a whole different approach to what a golf course looked like. The setups of courses by people who trained with Pete have a lot to do with that kind of philosophy. Pete opened up a window of fresh air that a golf course could look different. Pete’s courses looked rugged – his older courses have a very rugged look to them. There was less reliance on a formula with Pete. You don’t build to a plan; you build to a concept and a theory.” “Scotland opened his eyes to the variety that could exist in golf design,” says Liddy. “He saw golf holes that had evolved over hundreds of years, and it showed him that anything was possible.” Bobby Weed says that Dye taught him how to run a golf design business. “There aren’t any important aspects of the business that a Dyeciple doesn’t understand. You acquired detailed knowledge and hands-on experience of construction and all that it entails – which prepare you to communicate with credibility to both builders and owners, along with equipment operators. You learned how to incorporate design and creativity into a construction framework, and to interface with and establish relationships with clients. Pete (and Alice) handled all of the above in full view of the guys they were mentoring. I can’t imagine there could be any better on the job training than that. I also think that Pete and Alice’s fierce independence probably established the reality of what it meant to be in business for yourself. Any other avenue into design work – working in an office, working for a construction company – would likely leave one of those aspects unfulfilled.” The use of young associates as shapers, finishers and such like on golf courses meant that there are a lot of people who worked on Dye projects. Not all of them became successful golf architects. Like Doak, Coore & Crenshaw, and Hanse today, Pete and Alice mentored many young people hoping to get into the business. “Pete had a whole generation of aspiring architects that grew up with his ideal of golf design, and that generation was mostly more interested in a cool career than making a lot of money,” says Tim Liddy. “Many of the guys who worked for him did not become successful. Only a small percentage, with the proper educational background evolved into top golf architects.” Dye favoured an on-site approach to building golf courses, rather than sticking to plans. This has fed through to the architects that learned from him “ Everyone whoever worked with Pete always talks about angles” Photo: Pete Dye Golf Club
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