Case Study

Donald Ross, perhaps the most revered golf course architect in American golf history, designed Pine Needles Lodge and Golf Club in 1928. While one of Mr. Ross’s favorites, time’s relentless march, and the almost monthly introduction of modern equipment into golf, threatened to pass Pine Needles by. The resort’s owners decided that a restoration, with modern construction techniques and some modest tee lengthening, was in order.

Restoring an old master work is a tedious process requiring months of research and a loving hand. John Fought was hired to assist the owners with this important project with the charge to bring the golf course into the 21st century while preserving Ross’s original work.

After months of study involving site inspections and old aerial photography, a set of concept plans (Ross Grid) were developed. Once a final budget was approved, detailed construction drawings were organized and a contractor was selected. Over a period of nearly four months, John visited the construction on a nearly weekly basis to refine the work and painstakingly approve the restoration.

The restored golf course, which hosted the 2007 U.S. Women’s Open, has received stunning reviews. David Gould, Editor of Links Magazine stated, “Playing it a week after it reopened, I found Fought & Company’s restoration work so careful and complete that slightly slow green speeds would have been, to a first time visitor, the only evidence of the overhaul”.