19 considerations. Those are decisions made with experience and time in the field. If we begin outsourcing that level of thinking, then we’re moving away from what we’ve been trained to do as architects. At that point, you’re no longer designing; you’re directing.” “Golf course design blends engineering and art,” says Kevin Norby, ASGCA. “AI will be able to help with renderings and maybe conceptual layouts, but I don’t think it will have a great impact on the routing of new courses. As golf architects, we have to consider the somewhat more intangible concepts like strategy, shot options, aesthetics and safety as well as drainage, cart circulation, playability and agronomic issues. These considerations don’t show up on an aerial photo or topographic map.” Danner adds: “Could AI eventually reach a point where it can generate viable routings? Possibly. But even then, interpretation and decision-making would still be critical. For now, I see far more value in using AI to support the process, improving efficiency and communication, while keeping architectural judgment firmly in the architect’s hands. “It allows us to test ideas more quickly and communicate them more effectively. But it doesn’t replace the architect’s role. If anything, it sharpens the distinction. AI can generate an image, but it doesn’t understand whether that image represents something that works from a golf course architectural standpoint. Understanding how a golf hole functions, how landforms read in the field, and how decisions affect playability still requires professional judgment and experience. That’s not something you arrive at through prompts.” • Create a photorealistic image in landscape orientation of a completely unique par-four golf hole, based on an entirely flat and featureless piece of land but using Golden Age principles of design Make the hole longer and add fairway bunkers and a small stream, and make all the bunkering more rugged Change the perspective so it is viewed from a little higher, and change the time of day to late evening on a sunny day, but with some clouds in the sky And then the final prompt, which resulted in the image used for the cover and opening pages of this article: Make the image another half hour earlier in the evening, and alter the holes in the background so you can see the transition from the main green to the next tee. Remove the golfer. The making of a cover The cover image for this issue of By Design was created in just ten minutes using Adobe Firefly and the below series of prompts. “ Could AI eventually reach a point where it can generate viable routings? Possibly.”
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