About
Nugent designed the Dunes Club in Michigan, the only 9-hole course ever ranked among Golf Digest’s Top 100 courses.
Dick Nugent was a renowned American golf course architect, whose career spanned over four decades and left a lasting mark on Midwest golf architecture. A University of Illinois graduate and former football player, Nugent began his career under Robert Bruce Harris before establishing a successful partnership with Ken Killian that led to the influential design of Kemper Lakes Golf Course, host to the 1989 PGA Championship. Nugent eventually formed his own firm and crafted or revised over 90 courses across 12 states, with many prominent layouts in Illinois and beyond, including Harborside International, Dunes Club, and Koolau Golf Course. He served as president of the American Society of Golf Course Architects and was inducted into the Illinois Golf Hall of Fame in 1999. Nugent's legacy includes not only premier tournament venues, but also mentorship of future leading architects and a role in reclaiming and transforming unwanted land for golf development.
