George Peper, editor-in-chief of Golf Magazine for a quarter of a century and author of 17 books on golf and golf courses, was chosen to receive the 2008 Donald Ross Award from the American Society of Golf Course Architects (ASGCA). He will accept the award during ASGCA's 62nd Annual Meeting on Apr. 3 in St. Andrews, Scotland.
The award is given annually to an individual who has made significant contributions to golf and golf course architecture. President Steve Forrest, ASGCA will present the award to Peper at the group’s Donald Ross Banquet at the Rusacks Hotel in St. Andrews.
“George Peper is one of the most knowledgeable voices in golf, respected for his prolific journalistic and publishing career and his respect for and knowledge of golf courses,” Forrest says. “He continues as editor-at-large for ‘Links’ Magazine and lives in St. Andrews. I will be honored to present this award to a man who has devoted his career to understanding and promoting golf and golf courses.”
Long career in golf and golf publishing
Peper is a graduate of Princeton University, and went on to study for his Ph.D. in comparative literature at Yale University. He left that program to join the staff of Golf Magazine. Under his stewardship, the magazine became the most widely-read in the industry and began publishing the first “Top 100 Golf Courses in the World” lists. While there, he also published a number of books on the game, including “The World’s 500 Greatest Golf Holes,” “Golf Courses of the PGA Tour,” “Golf in America” and most recently “Two Years in St. Andrews: At Home on the 18th Hole.”
Peper is a member of five clubs in Scotland, including the Royal & Ancient Golf Club of St. Andrews, where he is the first American on the Club Committee. His “The Need System” was adopted by the USGA as the recommended method for allocating handicap strokes across 18 holes, and he has worked with clubs worldwide on pace of play. He is also a partner in Golf Magazine China Consulting, which matches golf architects with development projects in China.
The Donald Ross Award was established by the ASGCA board of governors in 1976 and is given annually to an individual who has made a positive impact on golf and golf course architecture. Its first recipient was one of ASGCA’s Founding Fathers, Robert Trent Jones. ASGCA’s Donald Ross Award Committee is led by past president Rees Jones, ASGCA.
Peper will be the 33rd winner of the Donald Ross Award.
