First–hand experience with some of golf's greats has given Mike Benkusky a great foundation for his career in golf course architecture. Mike grew up working and playing on the Donald Ross–designed Cedar Rapids Country Club in Iowa. He then attended Iowa State University to study Landscape Architecture with an emphasis in golf design. While at Iowa State, Mike played on the varsity golf team, where he was introduced to talented architect Perry Maxwell, who designed Iowa State's home course. Prior to 2005, Mike worked as Senior Project Architect with Lohmann Golf Designs, Inc. While there, two of his designs were selected near the top of the annual Golf Digest Best New Course Lists for 2005: Canyata and Mattaponi Springs were chosen second in the "Best New Private" and "Best New Upscale Public" categories, respectively. In January 2005, Mike began his own design firm, Michael J. Benkusky, Inc. – Golf Course Architecture. The company's mission is to combine quality designs with a hands–on approach and a close working relationship to enhance their clients' golf courses. Mike has used over 20 years of experience in his work on hundreds of projects, which includes remodeling jobs and restorations of courses originally laid out by Donald Ross, Perry Maxwell, Seth Raynor, Tom Bendelow, Colt & Allison, Jack Nicklaus, and Pete Dye.