Donald Ross
Donald James Ross (November 23, 1872 - April 26, 1948) was born in Dornoch, Scotland, but became a U.S. citizen and spent most of his adult life in the United States.
Donald Ross started his career by being an apprentice to Old Tom Morris at St Andrew's in Scotland around 1899. After moving to America, Ross got his first job at Oakley Country Club in Watertown, Massachusetts. He quickly rose to the position of golf professional at Pinehurst Resort in North Carolina, where he began his course designing career.
In his time as a designer, he is credited with roughly 400-course designs or redesigns between 1900-1948. Ross's most famous designs are Pinehurst No. 2, Aronimink Golf Club, East Lake Golf Club, Seminole Golf Club, Oak Hill Country Club, Glen View Club, Memphis Country Club, Inverness Club, Miami Biltmore Golf Course, and Oakland Hills Country Club.
In the 1930s, amongst other achievements Ross revolutionized greenkeeping practices in the southern United States when he oversaw the transition of the putting surfaces at Pinehurst No. 2 from oiled sand to Bermuda grass. He was a founding member and first president of the American Society of Golf Course Architects and was admitted to the World Golf Hall of Fame in 1977, a high honor rarely awarded for anything other than playing success.