Charles Macdonald

Charles Blair Macdonald (1855–1939) was the father of American golf course architecture and a pioneering figure in establishing golf culture in the United States. After studying at St. Andrews University in Scotland during the 1870s, where he learned the game on the Old Course, Macdonald returned to America determined to recreate the strategic qualities of the great links courses he admired abroad.

His masterwork, the National Golf Links of America in Southampton, New York, opened in 1911 and remains one of the most celebrated courses in the world. Macdonald studied and sketched famous holes across Britain, then adapted their principles to American terrain, creating what he called "ideal holes." This template approach influenced generations of architects who followed.

Beyond the National, Macdonald designed or contributed to several other highly regarded courses including Chicago Golf Club, Yale Golf Course, St. Louis Country Club, and The Creek. He also advised on Sleepy Hollow's Upper Course and Piping Rock Club. As a player, he won the first official U.S. Amateur Championship in 1895 and was a founding figure in the U.S. Golf Association.

Sources: Wikipedia articles linked above; course list from Course Vaults.