Bobby Weed Golf Design Honors Pete Dye

(PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Florida) – Bobby Weed Golf Design sends its sincere condolences to the family of Pete Dye, legendary golf course designer, who died Jan. 9 at age 94. Bobby Weed’s professional relationship and close personal friendship with Dye, his wife, Alice, and sons, PB and Perry Dye, extended through decades.

Weed reflected:

I first met Pete in the 1970s at Amelia Island Plantation. That was the start of a 45-year relationship. We built Long Cove together in 1981, and I’ve been building golf courses ever since. I can hardly approve a feature without feeling Pete’s influence. Pete was always ahead of his time. How many golf course designers could that be said about? As much of a legacy as his courses will be, the impact he had on those fortunate enough to work with him may be more enduring. The stories and memories are plentiful but seem insufficient. We all have someone who took hold of us and set us on life’s path, maybe without our even knowing it. For me, that was Pete. Everything I hold dear in golf took root from my relationship with him. Not bad for someone who lived to be half of 188! 

Weed specializes in design, renovation and repurposing. His work features a balance of visual appeal, sustainability and playability, all informed by an environmentally-sensitive aesthetic and an exceptional hands-on, holistic approach.

Weed began his professional career with an extended apprenticeship with Pete Dye, launching a collaboration of nearly 45 years’ duration and a lifelong friendship. Hired in 1983 by the PGA Tour as the Golf Course Superintendent at TPC Sawgrass, Weed went on to become the Tour’s in-house designer from 1987-1996. He was responsible for the design of many of today’s best-known TPC venues, which continue as host sites for prominent Tour events.

Weed also was able to collaborate with many of golf’s most familiar names, including Sam Snead, Gene Sarazen, Arnold Palmer, Jack Nicklaus, Raymond Floyd, Jerry Pate and Chi Chi Rodriguez – a rare cross section of experience.

In 1994, Weed’s career reached an apex with the formation of his own design firm, where he continues to “handcraft” golf courses. Today, Bobby Weed Golf Design has amassed an impressive list of new and renovated courses that consistently are ranked at the top of their respective categories, including The Olde Farm Golf Club, Spanish Oaks Golf Club, The Golf Course at Glen Mills, Medalist Golf Club, Timaquana Country Club, GROVE XXIII and Quail Ridge Country Club.

Bobby Weed Golf Design also is a leader in golf course repurposing – a means to update layouts through redesign and reallocation of partial acreage for higher value land uses. Repurposing helps clubs and communities preserve golf while surmounting economic and other challenges. Weed’s skill, vision and business acumen coalesce to result in successful, refined and durable golf course design.

Bobby Weed is a member of the American Society of Golf Course Architects. He also is a 40-year member of the Golf Course Superintendents Association of America, was a former Certified Golf Course Superintendent and is a member of the Florida Turfgrass Association.

For more information on Bobby Weed Golf Design, see www.bobbyweed.com.