BROOKFIELD, Wis. – Few people have done more to showcase public golf than David Fay. During his 21-year tenure as the executive director of the USGA, David Fay changed the landscape of the U.S. Open by bringing the national championship to public courses around the country and showcasing the game’s accessibility and popularity as a game for all to enjoy.
His contributions make him a worthy recipient of the 2025 ASGCA Donald Ross Award. The organization’s highest honor recognizes an individual who has made a significant contribution to the game of golf and the profession of golf course architecture. Fay will receive the Donald Ross Award during the American Society of Golf Course Architects Annual Meeting in Cape Cod, Massachusetts, on Oct. 27.
“Nearly 75 percent of golf courses in the U.S. are public facilities,” said ASGCA President Brian Costello. “David Fay made sure to shine a bright light on the accessibility and enjoyment of these courses, while maintaining the integrity of the national championship as the ultimate test of golf.”
Under Fay’s leadership, the USGA conducted the U.S. Open at numerous courses that are open to the public: Pinehurst No. 2, Pebble Beach, Torrey Pines South, Chambers Bay, Erin Hills and most notably, Bethpage Black.
The linchpin of Fay’s legacy was his ability to transform his vision of holding the national championship at the municipally owned Bethpage State Park in New York into a successful 2002 U.S. Open, won by Tiger Woods. Known as the “People’s Open,” this championship catapulted Bethpage Black into a perennial host of golf’s biggest events, including the 2025 Ryder Cup later this year.
In building or shaping Bethpage Black and other public U.S. Open courses over the years, Fay had help from many ASGCA past presidents, Rees Jones, Robert Trent Jones Jr., Bruce Charlton, and Mike Hurdzan; as well as ASGCA members Bill Coore and Dana Fry.
A native of New York and graduate of Colgate University, Fay’s nearly four-decade career in golf began at the Metropolitan (N.Y.) Golf Association. He spent 32 years with USGA in several roles, including tournament relations manager, director of program management and assistant executive director. In 1989 he was named executive director, a position he held until his retirement in 2010. To casual golf fans, Fay is also recognized for his years spent providing rules commentary and analysis during television broadcast of USGA events.
Past Donald Ross Award Recipients
2024 Robert Trent Jones Jr., ASGCA, golf course architect
2023 Frank Jemsek, Jemsek Golf
2022 John Lawrence, The Toro Company
2021 Ben Crenshaw and Bill Coore, ASGCA, golf course architects
2020 Renee Powell, golf pioneer/player/course owner
2019 Joe Passov, golf writer
2018 President George Herbert Walker Bush, U.S. President
2017 Alice Dye, ASGCA Fellow, golf course architect
2016 Michael Bamberger, golf writer
2015 Bradley S. Klein, golf writer
2014 Maj. Dan Rooney, founder, Folds of Honor Foundation
2013 Rees Jones, ASGCA, golf course architect
2012 Bill Kubly, golf course builder
2011 James Dodson, golf writer/editor
2010 Tim Finchem, PGA Tour Commissioner
2009 Ron Dodson, sustainable golf advocate
2008 George Peper, golf writer
2007 Dr. Michael Hurdzan, ASGCA, golf course architect
2006 Jim Awtrey, chief executive officer, PGA of America
2005 John Singleton, irrigation pioneer
2004 Thomas Cousins, philanthropist, urban golf developer
2003 Bill Campbell, president, USGA, captain, Royal & Ancient Golf Club
2002 Byron Nelson, professional golfer
2001 Jack Nicklaus, ASGCA, professional golfer, golf course architect
2000 Jaime Ortiz-Patino, owner and president, Valderrama Golf Club
1999 Arnold Palmer, professional golfer
1998 Judy Bell, president, USGA
1997 Gene Sarazen, professional golfer
1996 Ron Whitten, golf writer
1995 Pete Dye, ASGCA, golf course architect
1994 James R. Watson, agronomist
1993 Brent Wadsworth, golf course builder
1992 Paul Fullmer, ASGCA executive secretary
1991 Michael Bonallack, secretary, Royal & Ancient Golf Club
1990 John Zoller, executive director, Northern California Golf Association
1989 Dick Taylor, editor, “Golf World” magazine
1988 Frank Hannigan, executive director, USGA
1987 Charles Price, writer, “Golf World” magazine
1986 Deane Beman, commissioner, PGA Tour
1985 Peter Dobereiner, “London Observer” columnist, author
1984 Dinah Shore, sponsor of women’s golf tournaments
1983 Al Radko, director, USGA Green Section
1982 Geoffrey Cornish, ASGCA, golf course architect, historian
1981 James Rhodes, governor of Ohio
1980 Gerald Micklem, captain, Royal & Ancient
1979 Joe Dey, executive director, USGA
1978 Herb and Joe Graffis, founders, National Golf Foundation
1977 Herbert Warren Wind, “The New Yorker” columnist, author
1976 Robert Trent Jones, ASGCA, ASGCA founding member
ASGCA Background
Founded in 1946 by Donald Ross, Robert Trent Jones and 12 other leading architects, the American Society of Golf Course Architects is a non-profit organization comprised of experienced golf course designers located throughout North America. Members have completed a rigorous application process that includes the peer review of representative golf courses. ASGCA members are able to counsel in all aspects of golf course design and remodeling and comprise many of the great talents throughout the golf industry.
For more information about ASGCA, including a current list of members, visit http://www.asgca.org or call (262) 786-5960.
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