🇺🇸 Amy Alcott — The Player’s Eye in Golf Course Design
Champion | Architect | Storyteller of the Game
🖋️ Introduction
Few golfers have translated playing brilliance into design insight as gracefully as Amy Alcott.
A five-time major champion and member of the World Golf Hall of Fame, Amy has turned decades of competitive experience into a second career as a golf-course designer and consultant, bringing nuance, creativity, and empathy to the art of course creation.
Her design philosophy stems from a simple truth learned over a lifetime inside the ropes: great golf holes are felt as much as they are played.
“Good design isn’t about difficulty — it’s about discovery.”
— Amy Alcott
👩💼 Biography
Born in Kansas City, Missouri in 1956 and raised in California, Amy Alcott emerged as one of the defining figures of modern women’s golf.
She turned professional at 19, went on to win 29 LPGA Tour titles, including five major championships, and became known for her strategic intelligence and smooth, elegant swing.
After three decades on tour, Amy channelled her deep competitive experience into golf-course design, where she brought a rare dual perspective: the analytical mind of a champion and the creative curiosity of an artist.
In the late 1990s and early 2000s, she began working as a consultant and design partner, lending her player’s perspective to major projects in the United States and abroad
🌿 Design Philosophy
Amy Alcott’s design work is rooted in playability, visual clarity, and emotional engagement.
She believes that golf holes should invite strategy rather than demand power, and that the best designs speak to both the beginner’s enthusiasm and the expert’s imagination.
Her approach can be summarised in three principles:
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Player Empathy – Understanding how golfers perceive angles, hazards, and opportunities from experience, not theory.
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Strategic Variety – Encouraging creativity and risk–reward options over repetitive power play.
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Visual Rhythm – Using landscape, light, and flow to create memorable pacing across 18 holes.
“A golf course should move like a story — with tension, quiet moments, and a great finish.”
— Amy Alcott
🏗️ Selected Projects & Collaborations
| Course / Project | Location | Role | Notable Features |
|---|---|---|---|
| Indian Canyons Resort (South Course) | Palm Springs, CA, USA | Co-designer (with Casey O’Callaghan) | A thoughtful renovation blending desert aesthetics with playability |
| St. Anne’s Links | Ireland | Consultant / Design Partner | Strategic routing influenced by links traditions |
| Green Tree Golf Club | USA | Course Consultant | Input on layout, green design, and forward-tee balance |
| Olympic Golf Course (Rio 2016) | Brazil | Player Consultant | Provided insight on playability and tournament setup for women’s competition |
| Community and Youth Initiatives | USA | Mentor / Advocate | Promotes junior and women’s access to golf design and management careers |
Her hands-on, collaborative approach mirrors the mentorship she received in her own career — combining technical input with storytelling that connects land, heritage, and emotion.
🪶 Legacy
Amy Alcott belongs to a distinguished lineage of women who moved from competition to creation — a continuum from Marion Hollins and Alice Dye to today’s designers like Christine Fraser and Giulia Ferroni.
Her design work carries a signature warmth: golf that is beautiful, thoughtful, and emotionally intelligent.
Through her voice and vision, she has helped redefine what it means for an athlete to become an architect of experience.
“Amy Alcott has always designed something greater than scorecards — she designs moments.”
— Women’s Golf History Project