Tom Doak Golf Courses and Signature Design Features

Golf course architect Tom Doak has designed world-renowned courses in the U.S., Tasmania, New Zealand, and beyond. Best known for his designs at Bandon Dunes Golf Resort, Doak and his minimalist approach to designing golf courses thrill both public and private golfers with his accomplishments all over the world. A student of the great Pete Dye, Doak brings his own genius into his layouts with nods to Dye and Alister MacKenzie.

Doak is also an accomplished author with four books on golf course design to his credit. In total, Tom Doak is approaching 50 golf courses to his name, counting new construction and renovations. He also has several projects in progress, so by the end of 2023 there will be more Doak tracks up for consideration in the top 100 in the world. According to Golf Magazine, Doak currently has six such courses on its "Top 100 Courses in the World” list.

About Tom Doak

Tom Doak was born in New York on March 16, 1961, but he grew up in Stamford, Connecticut. After attending MIT for one semester, Doak went to Cornell University (also the alma mater of renowned golf course architect Robert Trent Jones) where he graduated and won the Dreer Award from the Department of Floraculture and Horticulture.

That awarded him the opportunity to travel to Great Britain and Ireland to study golf courses. He even caddied at St Andrews in the summer of 1982. Just four short years later, Doak had his first solo design, but not until he honed his craft working with Pete Dye and his sons.

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Today, Tom Doak operates Renaissance Golf Design, where four associates help him create the stunning courses that are synonymous with Doak's name. While there are many players who know Doak’s every course, the casual golfer recognizes his name because it’s attached to Pacific Dunes, Old MacDonald, and Streamsong.

Tom Doak Design Traits

If you asked 10 golf architecture enthusiasts to describe Tom Doak’s work, you'd probably get 10 different answers. Doak’s courses have been called every complementary and critical name in the book. If you read any of his books, he doesn’t seem to mind. Doak’s unapologetic designs speak for themselves and as you’ll see from his course list below, there are plenty of reasons to rank him among the greatest to ever move Earth.

On the Renaissance Golf website, Doak says "The purpose of design is not to punish bad shots with hazards, for that would make the game unrelenting for the average golfer. Instead, we dare players to make great shots, then sit back and watch both hubris and cowardice take their toll.”

The main consistency in Tom Doak golf courses is that he comes from a school of minimalism. His preference is to always let the land dictate the hole, from a layout and routing standpoint. Some common traits of a Tom Doak course include:

• He has built several courses on sand dunes and takes advantage of natural elements
• Links courses that are designed truly represent Scottish layouts
• Walkable courses with short distances between tees and greens
• Bail-out areas near just about every green
• Difficult angles to greens for players who utilize safety shots
• Plenty of break around hole locations to make players earn birdies

Tom Doak Golf Courses

Here are Tom Doak’s golf courses. While it might be difficult for the average player to get to a lot of his private tracks, we encourage you to cross off as many of his public courses in your travels as possible.