Name Lester George | Role Golf Course Architect | |
Similar People Vinny Giles, Rees Jones, Donald Ross |
Lester george on a pace of play case study independence golf club
Lester George is an internationally renowned golf course architect who was born in Wiesbaden, Germany in 1955 while his father was stationed there by the United States Air Force.
After attending The University of Richmond, where he founded the school’s orienteering team, George settled in Richmond, Virginia. Following college graduation in 1977, he spent four years in the army as an artillery officer, subsequently received his Master’s Degree from the United States Army Command and General Staff College and remained in the Army Reserves until retiring a Lieutenant Colonel in 2003. This military career coincided with the development of his career as a golf course architect.
Prior to opening his own firm in 1991, George studied with other golf course architects at Golf Services International learning all aspects of golf course design and construction. He attended the Harvard Design School, Golf Course Architecture in 1992, which launched his solo career. George's company, George Golf Design, Inc., is located in Midlothian, Virginia, just outside Richmond. George is a member of the American Society of Golf Course Architects.
George has developed a niche in renovating and restoring classic golf courses designed by some of the most revered golden age architects such as MacDonald, Raynor, Tillinghast, Ross, Flynn, Tull and Wilson - and he has worked with many of the most historic and well-regarded golf facilities on the East Coast (see project listings below).
Lester George donated much time and effort to the First Tee Program designing and overseeing construction of The First Tee of Chesterfield, the premiere 18-hole First Tee course in the United States.
Using abandoned landfills as a canvas, George successfully transforming two brownfields into golf courses—converting overgrown hazardous areas into plush, green recreational turf. One of these courses, Lambert's Point Golf Course in Norfolk, Virginia, won an Affinity Award for Environmental Stewardship from the Golf Course Builders Association of America.
George's renovation of the Raptor course at Langley Air Force Base posed a challenge when thousands of unexploded bombs were discovered on the site once excavation began.
George’s projects have won numerous awards:
Ballyhack Golf Club, Roanoke, VA
The Colonial Golf Course, Williamsburg, VA
Kinloch Golf Club, Manakin‐Sabot, VA
The James River Course at The Country Club of Virginia, Richmond, VA
Lamberts Point, Norfolk, VA
Lakeview Golf Course, Harrisonburg, VA
The Newport Bay Course at Ocean City Golf & Yacht Club, Berlin, MD
The Old White Course at The Greenbrier, White Sulphur Springs, WV
Providence Golf Course
Rock Manor Golf Course, Wilmington, DE
Willow Oaks Country Club, Richmond, VA
Lester George
Lester George's golf course designs include the following: