Brian Costello, ASGCA, of Belmont, California, was elected president of the American Society of Golf Course Architects (ASGCA) at the organization’s recent 78th Annual Meeting in San Francisco.
Costello graduated from the University of California-Davis in 1983 with a degree in Landscape Architecture. A native of the San Francisco Bay Area, at the age of 8, Costello was introduced to golf by his father. He soon became a caddy and competitive golfer, exposed to the renowned public and private golf courses throughout the Bay Area. This early exposure to the game and the historic courses of his home have strongly influenced Costello’s fondness for classic and traditional layouts.
After college, he joined Hargreaves Associates, a renowned landscape architecture and planning firm based in San Francisco. During his five years there, Costello developed an appreciation for the powerful experiences which can be created through sculptural landforms and contextual landscapes. His golf designs reflect a commitment to experience the game as defined by its’ setting with a dramatic “wow factor” and have been described as “modern classics.”
In 1989, Costello joined JMP Golf Design Group and became a Principal of the firm in 1994. Some of his noteworthy designs around the world include: Whiskey Creek Golf Club, Ijamsville, Maryland; Callippe Preserve Golf Course, Pleasanton, California; Palo Alto Hills Golf & Country Club, Palo Alto, California; The Gorge at Skamania Lodge, Stevenson, Washington; Blackstone Golf & Resort, Jeju, Korea;Blackstone Golf Club, Icheon, Korea; 360° Country Club, Yeoju, Korea;Belnatio Golf Club, Tokamachi, Japan; Nasu Chifuriko, Tochigi, Japan; Golden Palm Country Club, Kagoshima, Japan; and Fazenda da Grama Golf Club, Itupeva, São Paulo, Brazil.
“ASGCA members are ambassadors of the game, whether we are crossing county lines, state lines or international date lines,” Costello said. “I always considered it a responsibility to represent myself, my firm, and by extension, the ASGCA in the best light. Having the “comma ASGCA” following your name has value. Having the ASGCA letters and logo on your work product, business card, letterhead, and social media presence have value. It identifies a significant achievement and is representative of the favorable impact that our membership has on the golf industry.”
A Registered Landscape Architect in California, Costello became an ASGCA member in 2001. He and his wife, Sandra, live in Belmont, California. He is a father to two sons and stepfather to one daughter and two sons.
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 comprising 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 include 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.
