While enrolled at Sam Houston State University from 1976 to 1979, Rod Whitman worked on the grounds crew at the nearby Waterwood National Golf Club under the management of course superintendent Bill Coore. In addition to the normal maintenance practices, Whitman helped Coore renovate some of the golf holes and, in the process, learned to operate various pieces of construction equipment. The friendship that Rod and Bill would develop has lasted more than 40 years.

In the spring of 1981, Pete Dye was in Texas looking for a construction foreman to assist with his upcoming design of the Austin Country Club. Bill Coore, who was impressed with Whitman’s work ethic and understanding of the game, recommended him for the position. So, from 1981 to 1984, Rod served as an intern designer for Pete Dye and ran the construction crew for the Austin Country Club.

While working for Pete Dye at the Austin Country Club, Rod was offered the opportunity to design and construct an eighteen-hole golf course in his hometown. The offer came from Ryan Vold. Subsequently, Wolf Creek Golf Resort opened for play in 1984. The design received great praise throughout Canadian golf circles and stands as one of the first minimalist design efforts of the modern era of golf course design.

After graduating from Kansas State University with a Bachelor of Science degree in Agronomy and Turf Grass Management (1979-1983), Dave Axland began his career in golf course design and construction working under Bill Coore at King’s Crossing in Corpus Christi, Texas. The course was only Bill’s second solo golf course design.

From 1985 to 1986, Rod Whitman returned as a design associate for Pete Dye during the renovation of Crooked Stick in Carmel, Indiana. Here, Rod would rebuild the greens at one of Dye’s first courses.

In 1987, Rod Whitman reunited with Bill Coore for an overseas collaboration dubbed the Châteaux course at Golf du Médoc in France.

In 1988, Rod Whitman returned to work for Pete Dye during the renovation of Oaktree National in Edmond, Oklahoma.

Starting in 1989, Rod Whitman frequented Europe for his own solo design work. Located north of Bordeaux, and opening in 1991, the Vignes course at Golf du Médoc would be the second 18-hole layout on the property.

In 1992, Rod Whitman completed his second project in Europe when the 27 holes at Schloss Langenstein Der Country Club in Germany opened for play.

Founded in 1989, Bunker Hill Golf was the name given to the partnership of Dave Axland and Dan Proctor. The business was established when the two men were invited to Burnet, Texas to prepare a plan to build 18 holes for the City. The plan became known as Delaware Springs Golf Course, and the project was completed in 1992. Both Dan and Dave have remained a team for more than thirty years. 

Throughout 1993, Dave Axland and Dan Proctor worked with Bill Coore and Ben Crenshaw to complete some restoration work at the George C. Thomas Jr. gem in Pacific Palisades, California – Riviera Country Club.

From 1993 to 1994, Dave Axland served as one of the primary shapers, while also acting as the construction manager, in the creation of the legendary Sand Hills Golf Club in Mullen, Nebraska. Sand Hills tops ranking lists as the best golf course built in modern times (post WWII) and consistently charts within the top 20 on all lists of the top 100 golf course in the world.

Located in the middle of a rainforest jungle, the Klub Golf Rimba Irian is in Papua on the western half of New Guinea. Rod Whitman would spend two years leading this Coore & Crenshaw project, their first non-US design. Commissioned by PT Freeport, Indonesia’s largest gold and copper mine, the golf course serves as recreation for the mining company’s employees.

Opened in 1997, the two courses at Talking Stick Golf Club are owned and operated by the Salt River Rima-Maricopa Indian Community. The 36-hole, Coore & Crenshaw designed, golf complex was shaped with the assistance of Dave Axland and Rod Whitman.  Dave acted as Coore & Crenshaw’s design associate for both courses.  Rod’s focus was on the longer of the two layouts, The O’odham course (formerly the North course), which features a fascinating set of green complexes.

As the most notorious in the Bunker Hill portfolio, Wild Horse Golf Club emerged from the efforts of Dave Axland and Dan Proctor. Often ranked as one of the top public courses in the United States, Wild Horse opened for play in 1999. With a scattering of wonderfully natural blow-out bunkers, combined with tall wispy native fescue grasses waving in the prairie winds, the golf course is both fun and affordable. 

Located on the shores of Lake McConaughy, in the far western corner of Nebraska, Bayside Golf Club is another rugged and fun Bunker Hill project created by Dan Proctor and Dave Axland.

Opened in 2000, the Chechessee Creek Club is another Coore & Crenshaw project created with the help of design associate Dave Axland. Dave’s primary role was as construction manager. The golf course sits amidst towing oaks and pines in Okatie, South Carolina. Raised green complexes, imaginative putting surface contours, and jagged-edged bunkering enhance an already wonderful landscape. 

As one of the most lauded courses in the Coore & Crenshaw portfolio, Friar’s Head Golf Club shines among the stiff competition of Long Island, one of golf’s architectural meccas. Though given breathtaking sand dunes perched some 200 feet over the Long Island Sound, Bill Coore and Ben Crenshaw were challenged with integrating this better land with the potato fields in the south. Both Rod Whitman and Dave Axland were tasked with this responsibility, seamlessly blending the two distinct landscapes together to form one of the best golf experiences on the planet.

Located southwest of Edmonton and situated along the dramatic banks of the North Saskatchewan River, Blackhawk is widely considered one of Canada’s premiere private facilities. Created by Alberta’s own Rod Whitman, Blackhawk was among the first modern day, minimalist designs in the country. The golf course offers wide fairways, rugged bunkering, and dynamic green sites. Dave Axland would come to Canada to assist with the construction.

Old Sandwich Golf Club is a lay-of-the-land Coore & Crenshaw design that lies within an area of pine hills to the south of Plymouth, Massachusetts. Reminiscent of an English heathland design, the golf course features classic golf course concepts, interesting green contouring, and a sandy subsoil perfect for a variety of shots. Throughout 2003 and 2004, both Rod Whitman and Dave Axland assisted with the shaping.

From 2003 to 2004, Dave Axland assisted the Coore & Crenshaw team with the construction of Bandon Trails, the third of five courses at the highly rated Bandon Dunes resort in Oregon. Though not given the spectacular seaside property as the resort’s earlier offerings, Bandon Trails has developed a cult following among golf architecture aficionados.

Low key is how everything is done at Prairie Dunes Country Club in Hutchinson, Kansas. The hallowed design, which originated as a nine-hole Perry Maxwell layout in 1935, was expanded to 18 holes 20 years later at the hand of Maxwell’s son, Press. Prior to the 2006 US Senior’s Open at Prairie Dunes, Dave Axland worked with superintendent P. Stan George to add five bunkers that settled in perfectly with the bunkers already there. The seamless work, along with three new back tees and some minor changes to other tees, was undertaken in consultancy with long-time Prairie Dunes admirers Bill Coore and Ben Crenshaw. Dave Axland still works as a design consultant for the club.

Dave Axland spent most of the 2005 working season shaping the Colorado Golf Club for Coore & Crenshaw. Set in more than 1,700 acres of a former horse ranch, the golf course simply rolls across the rugged landscape. 

Sagebrush Golf Club, was constructed based on the principles of nature-based ‘minimalism’. The golf course is gently nestled onto natural benches on a hillside overlooking majestic Nicola Lake in British Columbia. Sweeping fescue fairways follow the natural contours of the land, and the massive greens artistically match the scale of the surroundings mountains.

Since its completion in 2008, the course has matured into unquestionably one of the finest layouts in North America thanks to the vision of Rod Whitman. Sagebrush was the first project on which Keith Cutten would start to learn from his mentor Rod Whitman.

When the 27-hole Wolf Creek Resort recieved a new 9-hole layout from architect Rod Whitman, the Links Course was born. The new design offered wide fairways, huge sandy waste areas, cleverly contoured green sites, and fescue laced bunkers.

From 2006 to 2008, Dave Axland assisted to the talented Coore & Crenshaw team in the construction of the Dormie Club in North Carolina. Another minimlaist creation, the golf course lies to the north of the Pinehurst Resort in a tract of sandy, wooded terrain that extends to just over 300 acres. Here, the wide and contoured fairways simply meld into the native sandy-scrub.

As the second course built in Tasmania at the Barnbougle Resort, Lost Farm is another Coore & Crenshaw treasure. Dave Axland would spend much of 2008 and 2009 down under working with the Coore & Crenshaw team.

The Streamsong Resort is located approximately one-hour south-east of Tampa, Florida. Located on the grounds of a former phosphate strip mine that was operated by the Mosaic Corporation, the three golf courses benefit from the main by-product of mining for phosphorus – sand. The original two courses were built simultaneously by the firms of Coore & Crenshaw (Red course) and Tom Doak’s Renaissance Golf (Blue course). Dave Axland would assist the Coore & Crenshaw team by setting up the job and enabling the creation of this surreal layout, on a property dotted with lakes and piles of spoil reaching more than 100 feet into the air.

Located in the town of Inverness on the northwest coast of Cape Breton, Nova Scotia, Cabot Links is Canada’s first and only true links golf course. This Rod Whitman design incorporates the rugged Nova Scotian landscape, dramatic seaside, undulating terrain, and sandy soil. Opened on June 29, 2012, Cabot Links features 18 holes of strategic links golf.

Cabot Links represents the first time that all three partners – Rod Whitman, Dave Axland and Keith Cutten – worked together on the same project. From 2008 to 2012 the trio worked with a small skilled team to methodically craft this seaside gem. Because of the 2008 recession, the team was able to take their time and produce an incredibly beautiful and strategic golf course, full of nuance.

Following the renovation of Pinehurst No. 2 at Pinehurst Resort in North Carolina, Coore & Crenshaw were tasked with moving and expanding the Thistle Dhu putting green. Dave Axland called to mind the legendary Himalayas Course at The Old Course in St. Andrews in the creation of the new putting surface. Thistle Dhu features 18 holes of mind-bending journeys designed to entertain everyone in the family, from the golfing beginner to the scratch player and everyone in between.

Commencing in 2013, the firm of Coore & Crenshaw were hired by Old Town Club in Winston-Salem, North Carolina to restore the features of this Perry Maxwell gem. Dave Axland ran the project and worked to restore the bunkering, green complexes, and hole strategies.

While completing a Master of Landscape Architecture degree from the University of Guelph, Keith Cutten worked simultaneously as the project manager during the renovation of Westmount Golf and Country Club in Kitchener, Ontario. Working for the contractor, Keith worked to implement the vision of golf course architect Doug Carrick on this Stanley Thompson treasure.

Situated half a mile north of Cabot Links, the Cliffs course occupies a more diverse landscape than its predecessor. Sitting atop bluffs that overlook the Gulf of St Lawrence, Cabot Cliffs offers golf that transitions seamlessly between woodland, wetland, dunes, and cliff. The layout is configured with three par threes, three par fours, and three par fives on each of the nines. Both Rod Whitman and Dave Axland played a major role in the shaping of the golf holes on this Coore & Crenshaw project. Prior to opening, Keith Cutten returned to Cabot to complete the construction of the bunkers.

In preparation for the 2018 US Open, Dave Axland worked with Coore & Crenshaw to ready Shinnecock Hills Golf Club for the world’s best. Over the course of this three-year project, starting in 2012, the course was restored to something more akin to William Flynnʼs 1931 design.

Founded in 1899, Austin Country Club is one of the oldest existing clubs in Texas. The current 180-acre site is the third home for the club. Designed by Pete Dye, and constructed by Rod Whitman, the course presents a good test of golf with deep pot bunkers and undulating turf. In Spring 2015, Rod Whitman was hired by the club to undertake a renovation of the golf course in preparation for the PGA’s WGC-Dell Match Play Championship.

Sand Valley Golf Resort, the latest Keiser family project, is in central Wisconsin and about as far away from an ocean as one can get. However, what the massive 1,700-acre site does offer is sand, some of it hundreds of feet deep in places. The Sand Valley course, the first at the resort, occupies a series of ridges and valleys, with one prominent dune formation known as ‘The Volcano’ used as the start and end point for each nine. Dave Axland worked with the Coore & Crenshaw team during the construction of the golf course.

The Farmington Country Club was founded in 1929 when Fred Findlay laid out the original 18-hole course (formerly known as the North and South nines and now called the Main Course). A shorter, ten-hole layout was added in 1965 and came to be known as the East course. In 2016, the East course was completely remodeled by Coore & Crenshaw. Selected to run the project and complete the design was Dave Axland. Dave remains Farmington’s consulting architect and has completed Phase 1 of a comprehensive Master Plan.

Throughout 2017 and 2018, Rod Whitman and Keith Cutten worked on the renovation of the historic Algonquin Golf Course in St. Andrews By-the-Sea, New Brunswick. The redesign has created an open and expansive golf course that takes full advantage of proximity to the ocean, in this case the waters of Passamaquoddy Bay. Trees have been cleared on the property and holes have been rerouted (and invented in one case) to provide more unobstructed views of the water and to bring players ever closer to the shore. The bunkers have also been redone, and with their wispy fescue borders, have taken on more of a links look.

Built in 2018 and unveiled in 2019, Ozarks National is set out on a series of ridges that offer sweeping views of the foothills characterizing the region. Once again, Dave Axland would assist the Coore & Crenshaw team by setting up the job.

Released to rave reviews at the end of 2018, The Evolution of Golf Course Design is the first book written by Keith Cutten. This massive tome encompasses material that has only scantily been covered in golfing literature. Unlike much of what has previously been written about the discipline of golf course architecture, Evolution examines the subject-matter through a broader lens. Specifically, the effects of world history, economics, prevailing artistic trends, social movements, and the inter-personal relationships of key designers, are illuminated and contrasted to reveal a more complete history.

Opening at the end of July 2020, The Nest is a Par 3, 10-hole short course perched on the highest point of Cabot Cliffs property. The goal of this Rod Whitman and Dave Axland design is to offer the excitement and thrills of a traditional golf round, but one that can be played with a handful of clubs in a fraction of the time.  Keith Cutten served as the project manager and lead shaper for the design team. The natural ground contours and the angle of the holes allows for interesting, fun, and varied golf. Importantly, the routing makes the most of the many rolls, dips and ridges which add interest to the game.

The partnership is made official! 

The firm of Whitman, Axland & Cutten Inc. (also known as WAC Golf) is incorporated.

Recognized as one of North America’s oldest clubs, Brantford’s layout was originally designed by Nicol and Stanley Thompson, before being renovated in the early 1960s by Robbie Robinson.

Through the development of a Master Plan, the entire facility was accessed to identify areas of possible improvement, in both design and maintenance. With its implementation our team will aim to improve infrastructure, add more enjoyment for golfers, and restore a look and feel to the course closer to the original style.

Cabot Pacific, at Revelstoke Mountain Resort, is the third property under the Cabot umbrella, a company co-founded by Ben Cowan-Dewar and Mike Keiser. 

“When we look for extraordinary golf sites throughout the world, we so rarely find the natural beauty that drew us to Cape Breton and Saint Lucia. I was immediately inspired by the grandeur of the mountains that surround Revelstoke and reminded why people have been drawn to the mountains for generations,” says Cowan-Dewar. “Revelstoke is the perfect place to bring Rod Whitman’s immense talents and the Cabot brand.”

The Tribute Club at Thornburgh will sit at the base of the Cline Buttes mountains, with sweeping views of the Cascade Range and the Three Sisters peaks. Vegetation on the near-2,000-acre property, which is untouched by development, includes sagebrush and juniper trees that are over 1,000 years old.

“It’s a site that seemed like it had all the things you’d hope for to build spectacular golf that would stand the test of time,” said Rod Whitman. “It spoke to us immediately.”

Bandon Dunes Golf Resort in Oregon has appointed Whitman, Axland and Cutten (WAC Golf) to design a new short course on sand dunes immediately south of the resort’s Bandon Preserve layout.

“This will not be a simple pitch-and-putt,” said Cutten. “All 19 par-three holes will be of a quality to
match the rest of the superlative offerings at Bandon Dunes Golf Resort. However, multiple teeing areas
will ensure that golfers of all abilities will have fun. There are more than 16 acres of connected turf –
highlighting incredible natural and shaped ground contours – which will add to the interest of this
design.”