December is an important milestone in the history of Palmer Course Design Company. The relationship between Arnold Palmer and Ed Seay began in December 1971 and has now spanned 30 years.
It all started on 25th September 1971 at a golf exhibition in Clemmens, North Carolina, just outside of Winston-Salem. Arnold Palmer was impressed with the design of the golf course and asked who was responsible. It just so happened that on site was Ed Seay, the young architect who had designed the course, while working with Ellis Maples. The two men met, walked the course and agreed to work together. That walk was the beginning of both an extremely successful business and a lifelong friendship.
The Manago Country Club in Tochigi, Japan, was their first design together and it was opened in 1974. Next followed the Shimotsuke Golf Club, also in the Tochigi Prefecture.
Together they founded Palmer Course Design Company in January 1979, locating the office in Ed Seay’s home town, Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida. Palmer Course Design Company started with only three employees. It has grown to a staff of twenty-three in the now expanded office building at Ponte Vedra Beach. In 1998, a satellite office in Malaysia was opened to service the company’s clients in the area of the Pacific Rim.
Palmer Course Design Company has been involved in more than 350 projects world-wide, with more than 150 golf courses open for play in 36 states and 20 countries.
Not only has the relationship between Palmer and Seay grown into a successful golf course architectural firm that is a leader in the industry, but it has also allowed two incredibly talented individuals to become the best of friends and trusted business partners.
Palmer Course Design www.palmerdesign.com