By Design – Issue 51, Winter 2020

20 INTERVIEW You are based in Phoenix, but what is your background? Where did you grow up? I was born in Burbank, California. My father founded Richardson Camera Company, which became known for making specialty optical equipment for Hollywood, NASA and observatories around the world. Eventually he got tired of the hassle of running a business in California, so he moved to Phoenix. My mother was a career educator. She taught secondary education, which is basically teaching teachers how to teach. She received her PhD in the 1970s. I have one brother, who was actually the first person to take me out to a green grass course. While growing up, a number of golf course architects were players and/or spent a fair amount of time doodling golf holes on notebook paper. Do either of these describe a young Forrest Richardson? Of course, and it’s a common trait we have as golf designers. For my eighth birthday I got eight cubic A deep respect for golf course architecture’s past with an eye clearly on the future describes ASGCA President Forrest Richardson. He shares his views in a Q&A with Marc Whitney Past, present and future An early study of sand for Forrest with his mother, Edna, in 1960; Right, getting a taste for golf