Dick Phelps

Richard "Dick" Phelps has created different courses in 15 U.S. states and Canada, but his roots and heart are in his native state, Colorado. Dick and his son Rick, who joined his father's firm, Phelps Golf Design, have personally been involved in more than 400 renovation, re-modeling, expansion, and full design golf business projects.

Born and raised in Colorado Springs, Dick has been kind to golfers and the environment since he started his career as a golf architect. He graduated from Iowa State University in 1963 with bachelor's and master's degrees in landscape architecture.

Dick has been prolific in producing public courses, making them highly user-friendly to the average golfer. His philosophy is upfront, no blind shots. "I like to show golfers the trouble," he said. "They can flirt with danger all they want, but I'll do what I can to warn them first."

One of the main reasons Phelps loves working in Colorado is his love for the environment. "It's a thrill to work in Colorado. There's such a wonderful variability in sites," Dick said. "You've got a mixture of soils, tree coverage, and topography. And the micro-climates create a lot of variety in terms of what you can grow where."

Dick served as president of the American Society of Golf Course Architects in 1980. He has also been an affiliate member of the Rocky Mountain Golf Course Superintendent's Association for more than 40 years. From 1980 to 1984, he served on the U.S. Golf Association Section and the Colorado Golf Hall of Fame Board from 1999 to 2002.

Website: https://asgca.org/architect/dphelps/