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Bobby Weed

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Bobby Weed
Born (1955-04-13) April 13, 1955 (age 69)
Irmo, South Carolina
NationalityAmerican United States
Alma materLake City Community College
OccupationGolf course designer
SpouseLeslie
ChildrenCarley, Haley & Lanier
Parent(s)Robert C. and Margie Johnson Weed
Awardsapplauded by resolution of the South Carolina General Assembly

Robert C. Weed, Jr., ASGCA (born April 13, 1955) is a golf course designer, builder, and protégé of Pete Dye. Weed's work includes Tournament Players Club courses, the Slammer and Squire at World Golf Village, and the redesign of the Mark Bostick Golf Course at the University of Florida. His designs are frequently included on lists of best courses in golfing publications.[1]

Early years

Bobby Weed was born in Irmo, South Carolina to parents Robert C. and Margie Johnson Weed. Robert, Sr. worked in construction, but his grandparents were farmers. The Weed family farm was large, and some of the land was sold to a developer who built the Coldstream Country Club. Bobby learned to play golf when he was ten, and while a teenager, convinced his father to allow him to use a family soybean field near the golf course to build a driving range because the club didn't have one. Bobby did much of the work himself. Thirty years later, the Weed family still owned it.[1]

He played varsity golf and baseball and graduated with the class of 1973 at Irmo High School. Weed played on the school's golf team while attending Presbyterian College, then transferred to Lake City Community College in north Florida,[2] where he enrolled in the Golf Course Operations and Landscape Technology program, recognized as one of the finest in existence.[3]

Apprenticeship

While working a summer golf internship at an Amelia Island Plantation course, Weed was introduced to golf architect Pete Dye, the most notable golf architect in the second half of the twentieth century,[1] who was revising the Amelia Links course. After graduating in 1977, Weed returned to Amelia as assistant superintendent. He was invited to join Dye's crew in 1980 at Hilton Head, South Carolina. As project supervisor, Weed hired interns Ron Farris, Scott Pool and David Savic from Lake City Community College, his alma mater. Pete's youngest son, P.B. (Paul Burke) and Tom Doak were also in the gang. In a Golf Digest article, "Real Secrets of Golf Course Architects", Ron Whitten wrote that the construction of Long Cove Club was "Animal House-builds-a-golf-course."[4] They had fun working, with impromptu three-wheeler races, dune jumping and chasing trespassing kids away with a bulldozer. Most evenings included a beer bash. What they lacked in experience they made up for with enthusiasm and energy. The guys worked and played hard, and with Dye's direction, created an entity that nearly thirty years later, is still ranked in GOLF Magazine's Top 100 Courses in the U.S.[5] They also became a new generation of golf course architects.[4]

Weed was named superintendent at Dye's famous Tournament Players Club at Sawgrass in 1982.[6] His association with Pete Dye lasted seventeen years and he credits his mentor with shaping his approach to golf course design and construction.[1]

PGA

In 1983, the PGA Tour hired Weed to supervise their golf course design and construction. He was promoted to Chief Designer of Design Services in 1987, where he worked with legendary golfers who contributed their expertise into course design. Among them were Arnold Palmer, Jack Nicklaus, Ray Floyd, Sam Snead and Gene Sarazen. Weed's designs include TPC Las Vegas, TPC at River Highlands, TPC at Summerlin and TPC Tampa Bay.[1]

Independent

File:BobbyWeedGolf.PNG
Weed Design Company logo

Weed started his own company in 1994--Bobby Weed Golf Design—and has designed or redesigned an impressive list of highly regarded courses. A partial list of his work follows:

Courses Built

  • Bent Creek Golf Course, Jacksonville
  • Cannon Ridge Golf Club, Fredericksburg, Virginia - Golf Digest’s 3rd Best New Public Course in 2004;
  • Cypress Links, Jupiter, Florida
  • Deltona Club, Florida
  • Olde Farm Golf Club, Bristol, Virginia - "Golf Digest's" Best new Private Course of 2000; Golfweek’s Top 50 Modern Courses in America
  • Fayetteville Golf Club, Georgia
  • Glen Mills, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania - "Golfweek’s" Best Public Course in Pennsylvania; "Golf Magazine’s" 5th Best New Places to Play in 2001; "Golf Digest’s" 7th Best New Public Course in 2001; "Golf for Women" – Ranked 33rd in Their Top 50
  • Golf Club At Fleming Island, Florida - "Golf Digest's" 5th Best New Public Course of 2002; "Golf Magazine's" Top 25 Affordable Courses in America
  • Hilton Head National Golf Club, Bluffton, South Carolina
  • Mito Kourakuen Country Club, Mito, Japan
  • Ocean Links at Amelia Island Plantation, Florida - Golf for Women ranked 11th in Top 50; Golf Digest’s Top 75 Golf Resorts
  • Slammer & Squire Golf Course at World Golf Village, St. Augustine - "Golf for Women's" Top 100; "Golf Digest's" Top 75 Golf Resorts
  • Spanish Oaks Golf Club, Austin, Texas
  • StoneRidge Golf Club, Stillwater, Minnesota - "Golfweek’s" Best Public Course in Minnesota; "Golf Magazine’s" Best New Places to Play in 2000; "Golf for Women's" Top 100
  • TPC at River Highlands, Cromwell, Connecticut
  • TPC at Summerlin, Nevada
  • TPC Las Vegas, Nevada
  • TPC Tampa Bay, Lutz, Florida

Courses Redesigned

Personal

Weed met his future wife Leslie Hale in 1989 at Amelia Island. The couple resides at Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida and have three daughters: Haley, Carley, and Lanier, who is autistic.[7]

HEAL

Because of Lanier's condition, Weed and his wife co-founded the non-profit organization, Healing Every Autistic Life (HEAL) in 2004.[8] The foundation issues grants to support autistic camps and educational programs. They also provide financial aid to families of autistic children.[9]

Each TPC location is required to "adopt" a local charity. Beginning in 2007, TPC Sawgrass selected HEAL. Valley of Dreams events have raised more than $1 million; most of which was used to support the organization's activities that help families. However, part of those funds are placed in an account to construct "the HEAL House," a permanent facility to provide multiple programs under one roof.[10] The first annual Bobby Weed/Pete Dye Charity Classic golf tournament was held June 30, 2007 at the TPC Valley course.[11]

Honors

The South Carolina General Assembly issued a resolution on April 23, 2003 which applauded the Irmo native for being named the 2003 South Carolina Golf Association 'Golf Week' Honoree "in recognition of his long and distinguished career in golf course design."[2]

Weed was recognized by "Golfdom Magazine" as one of their People of the Year for 2000.[2]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e Duncan, Derek: "Architect Interview: Bobby Weed Steps to the Forefront"
  2. ^ a b c "CONCURRENT RESOLUTION" South Carolina General Assembly, April 23, 2003
  3. ^ College Board Network: College & University search-Lake City Community College
  4. ^ a b Whitten, Ron: "Real Secrets of Golf Course Architects" Golf Digest, February 6, 2009
  5. ^ "GOLF Magazine's Top 100 Courses in the U.S." Golf Magazine, October 23, 2009
  6. ^ "Architect Bio Bobby Weed" TPC Las Vegas, News Archives
  7. ^ Lanier's Fundraising page firstgiving, Spring 2010
  8. ^ Roonie, Jackie: "It's hard to measure the cost, and benefit, of your children" Florida Times-Union, July 5, 2008
  9. ^ "Our Mission" HEAL website
  10. ^ Fitzroy, Maggie: "HEAL Foundation helps kids with autism have fun" Florida Times-Union, June 20, 2009
  11. ^ "TPC Sawgrass to host charity event" Jacksonville Daily Record, May 30, 2007
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