Pete Dye Recieves Don A. Rossi Award

Pete & Alice Dye, ASGCA The two world-renowned Golf Course Architects, Alice and Pete Dye, were married in 1950. Golf Course Designer, Pete Dye was honored on 2/24/2015 with the 2015 Don A. Rossi Award from the Golf Course Builders Association of America (GCBAA). In regard to his wife, Alice winning the same award 20 years ago, Pete said, “I was chasing Alice in college and I’m still chasing her.” Young Alice Dye, (now a world-renowned golf course architect) is photographed here in the early days, “operating a dozer” while assisting her husband, Golf Course Designer, Pete Dye. Christmas 1961 with the Dye family - Pete, Alice, P.B., Perry and their pet dog.

Golf Course Designer, Pete Dye is honored with the 2015 Don A. Rossi Award presented by the GCBAA. (Golf Course Builders Association of America)

Golf Course Designer Pete Dye was honored with the Don A. Rossi Award by the Golf Course Builders Association of America (GCBAA) on 2/24/2015. In a press release The Golf Course Builders Association of America said,
“The GCBAA is pleased to announce Pete Dye as its recipient of the prestigious Don A. Rossi Award. With a reputation of being a creative genius and one of the most imaginative course designers in the world, many consider Pete Dye to be the most famous golf architect alive today.”

"In the history of the awards program, we have honored builders, architects, and celebrity golfers, and Pete encompasses all the aforementioned. He has been an amazing contributor to our industry and we are thrilled to bestow on him this special recognition," said Justin Apel, GCBAA executive director.
The Rossi award is given by the GCBAA to honor individuals who have made significant contributions to the game of golf and its growth and who have inspired others by example. It is named for Don A. Rossi, who served as executive director of the National Golf Foundation from 1970 to 1983, and was instrumental in forming the National Golf Course Owners Association and served as executive director of the GCBAA from 1984 to 1990.

Pete Dye Though a champion golfer, Pete's true interests were in the design and maintenance of golf courses, so he left the insurance business to design and build courses. Supported and accompanied by his wife, Alice, Pete built a nine–hole course called El Dorado, now titled Royal Oak Country Club, and an 18–hole course, Heather Hills, now named Maple Creek Country Club.
Pete's subsequent designs were impacted by a 1963 trip to Scotland. Touring Scottish courses, Pete was influenced by their features, and he began to incorporate such concepts into his own designs.
Pete's contributions to and understanding of the game of golf are evident in the impact his style has had on architecture for nearly three decades. Besides being unique and incomparable, his designs are also environmentally friendly.
The turf sessions Pete attended under Dr. William Daniel fostered his interest in course maintenance, and today his projects feature his drainage and irrigation designs and wetlands areas, which help recycle and purify water.

The Don A. Rossi Award was given at the 2015 Golf Industry Show which was held in San Antonio, Texas, Feb. 24 during the GCBAA Opening Reception at the Marriott Riverwalk Hotel.

Pete Dye Reading Florida Golf Magazine
World renowned golf course designer Pete Dye, ASCGA is pictured here reading Florida Golf Magazine at his home next to Gulf Stream Golf Club in beautiful Delray Beach, Florida.

About the GCBAA and the GCBAA Foundation:
The Golf Course Builders Association of America is a non-profit trade association of the world’s foremost golf course builders and leading suppliers to the golf course construction industry. It was founded in the early 1970s and its members represent all segments of the golf course industry. The GCBAA Foundation is the charitable arm of the GCBAA and a separate, 501(c)(3) organization. The GCBAA’s national executive office is located in Lincoln, Neb. For more information, visit www.gcbaa.org or call 402-476-4444.