Golf Architecture 101: The Championship Setup Wars
From Designing Golf by Fried Egg Golf
May 21, 2026 · 1h 5m
About this episode
Garrett and PJ discuss the controversial aspects of championship golf course design and the history of setup wars in golf.
After a surprisingly controversial PGA Championship at Aronimink, Garrett brings on his Fried Egg Golf colleague PJ Clark to chat about championship golf course design and setup. First they discuss the factors that made Aronimink a polarizing venue: the lack of trees, the firm greens, the provocative pins, and the relatively low emphasis on driving accuracy. Then Garrett takes PJ through a brief history of the championship setup wars, starting with Robert Trent Jones’s “Open Doctor” shenanigans in the 1950s and 60s. Finally, Garrett and PJ both lay out what they’re looking for in a 21st-century major championship golf course. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
People in this episode
Host: Garrett
Guest: PJ Clark
Topics covered
- golf course design
- championship setup
- PGA Championship
- golf architecture
- driving accuracy
- golf history
Keywords
- golf architecture
- championship setup
- PGA Championship
- Aronimink
- Robert Trent Jones
- golf course design
- driving accuracy
Mentioned in this episode
Organizations: PGA Championship
Places: Aronimink
More episodes of Designing Golf
- Great Architects: William Flynn · June 11, 2026 · 1h 18m
- Great Courses: Shinnecock Hills · June 4, 2026 · 1h 52m
- Great Architects: Donald Ross (feat Bradley Klein) · April 30, 2026 · 1h 31m
- The Economics of Golf Course Construction (feat. Bruce Hepner) · April 16, 2026 · 1h 25m
- The Original Augusta National (feat. Brian Schneider and Josh Pettit) · April 2, 2026 · 1h 12m
- Golf Architecture 101: Routing · March 19, 2026 · 1h 9m
Explore listener stats, chart rankings, contacts and more on the Designing Golf podcast page.