Crooked Stick Golf Club by Chris Wirthwein

The story of Crooked Stick Golf Club begins on the evening of February 17, 1964 when a small group of individuals gather for cocktails and dinner in downtown Indianapolis. After the meal, the listen as a young Paul (Pete) Dye, Jr. and four of his colleagues describe an ambitious plan to build the "finest golf course in this area."

Crooked Stick Golf Club recounts events leading up to and following that evening, but it is also the story of champion golfers and acclaimed course designers, Pete and Alice Dye.

After a golfing trip to Scotland in 1963, the budding course designers returned to Indianapolis energized and determined to apply their new-found knowledge and appreciation for the ancient game to a course of their own. Crooked Stick was and still is that course.

From scouting and acquiring the land, to hawking the idea to members, and digging in the dirt to bring the course to life out of shapeless farm land, Pete and Alice Dye have put nearly half a century of their care and genius into what they often refer to as their "firstborn." The result of this devotion speaks for itself.

"I've always felt that the countouring on those greens [at Crooked Stick] is the best I've ever done," says Pete.

Adds Alice, "Working with Pete, I see dirt, trees, ditches--just a mess. But Pete sees a green with grass, a fairway with grass, and a flag, He sees it finished."

As a golf club, the members of Crooked Stick have hosted six USGA National Championships, the 1991 PGA Championship, the 2005 Solheim Cup matches, and the 2012 BMW Championship.

The choice of Crooked Stick for these prestigious events is a testament to the tenacity of Pete Dye, the Club's founders and members, and the standing that Pete and Alice Dye's "firstborn" has achieved.

(176 pages, hard cover with full-color "coffee-table" format, ISBN: 978-0-9819869-0-6; 2009)

About the Author

Advertising executive Chris Wirthwein is a business book author, and a former newspaper sports reporter and magazine writer. He is a member of the Crooked Stick Golf Club, Carmel, Indiana and serves as the club's Historian. He is also a member of The St. Andrews Golf Club, St. Andrews, Scotland.

While hitting golf balls next to Pete Dye one day on the Crooked Stick practice range, Chris asked him about the history of Crooked Stick. Pete's answer became the genesis of this book.

He and his wife Sally, have two children and reside in Carmel, Indiana.