The Five Most Important Things We Learned From Our Mentor Arthur Hills

At the 2026 GCSAA Conference and Trade Show, Golf Course Industry and Aquatrols Company debuted the “Excellence in Mentorship” Awards, honoring golf maintenance professionals who helped shape the lives and careers of their associates. It was no surprise that publishers Guy Cipriano and Matt LaWell had more than enough nominations.

This caused my Hills • Forrest • Smith partner Shawn Smith and me to consider the role our mentor, Arthur Hills, played in influencing our thoughts and actions as professional golf course architects. I was able to spend a remarkable 42 years with him until his passing in 2021 at age 91.

Fourteen American Society of Golf Course Architects members (current and former) benefitted from Arthur’s tutelage. And there are likely many one-liners from Arthur they can share. There were everyday-life tips such as the correct reply to “thank you” (“you’re welcome”) or learning that red lights are merely “traffic control devices” that need to be heeded only when certain conditions are present. All of Arthur Hills’ associates will smile when reminded of those idiosyncrasies.

The humor and accompanying smiles evoke warm memories. There were also many practical applications to the profession of golf course architecture that Arthur Hills instilled in his apprentices. Here are the five most important:

1) Strategic golf course design can be explained with three straight lines.

The three lines include a vertical line (the centerline of the hole) plus two diagonal lines set at opposing 45-degree angles. The diagonal lines represent the alignments of the fairway hazard and the greenside hazard. It’s the classic risk-and-reward relationship—carry the far end of the first diagonal and the second diagonal opens up the green for the approach. Augusta National hole No. 1 is a prime example of this principle.

 

2) Place hazards close to targets to create strong shot values.

Good players don’t miss by much. If they are to be challenged, the hazard needs to be as close to the target (the fairway or green) as the course’s maintenance practices will allow. Hazards located well away from targets will penalize only higher-handicap players. That makes for longer rounds and reduces player enjoyment of the course.

3) Don’t be redundant.

If the primary hazard is well-placed, there is no need for a second. If a bunker is behind a tree, either cut down the tree or remove the bunker. A bunker between a green and a water hazard only reduces the strength of the shot value. (See application #2 above.)

4) Fifty bunkers are enough.

If the above principles are properly applied, a regulation-length, 18-hole golf course can be “challenging, yet playable” without needing a sea of bunkers. On average, that’s roughly 2.5 bunkers on the par-3s and 4s plus 3.5 bunkers on the par-5 holes. Fewer bunkers result in lower construction and maintenance costs for ownership plus more fun and faster rounds for players. And all those items result in increased profits for the facility.

5) Never stop improving.

“Back in the day,” Arthur Hills’ associates were encouraged to take Dale Carnegie Courses (for sales training), attend Toastmasters (for public speaking), go to art classes (for sketching skills) or take golf lessons (to gain client respect). Beyond the personal achievements, Arthur Hills applied the improvement principle to his golf course designs. He wanted to identify the weakest hole in a routing and make it one of the strongest.

At grand openings for new courses, he would tour the holes with a note pad in hand and recommend to the client ways to make the golf course better. While Hills’ associates and even clients would sometimes ponder the novel idea, “getting it right the first time,” the reality was Arthur never stopped trying to make his golf courses and clients as successful as possible. If removing a tree on the right side of the first fairway accomplished that in some small way, then it should be done.

Thank you, Arthur! “You’re welcome, Team.”

Photo Credit: Tony Roberts