Interviews

Oakmont: An interview with Gil Hanse

With the 2025 US Open arriving at Oakmont, Richard Humphreys spoke with the architect, who renovated the course in 2023, about what to expect

Martin Ebert: Design journey

With a portfolio that includes eight of the ten Open venues, Mackenzie & Ebert occupies an enviable position in the golf design industry. Adam Lawrence spoke with principal Martin Ebert to learn how they got there

Designs for the big screen

Chad Goetz and Agustin Piza discuss their design decisions for the virtual holes that featured in the first season of TGL

Bob Harrison: Wizard of Oz

The Australian designer has had a long career and, like many of his countrymen, has spent much of it away from home. Adam Lawrence listened to his tales from the road

Ben Cowan-Dewar: Shock and awe

Golf development firm Cabot now has properties in six countries. Richard Humphreys speaks with co-founder and CEO Ben Cowan-Dewar about what makes a great site, selection of golf course architects, and more

Team building

Turfgrass has launched its US arm with the appointment of John Lawrence, Adam Moeller and Brad Owen. Richard Humphreys speaks with them, Turfgrass founder John Clarkin and director of agronomy Julian Mooney to find out more

Brian Curley: Life of Brian

The designer has surely clocked up more air miles than anyone else in the business. Adam Lawrence caught up with him in between flights to discuss his career and his new venture with Jim Wagner

Oakmont: An interview with Gil Hanse

With the 2025 US Open arriving at Oakmont, Richard Humphreys spoke with the architect, who renovated the course in 2023, about what to expect

Martin Ebert: Design journey

With a portfolio that includes eight of the ten Open venues, Mackenzie & Ebert occupies an enviable position in the golf design industry. Adam Lawrence spoke with principal Martin Ebert to learn how they got there

Designs for the big screen

Chad Goetz and Agustin Piza discuss their design decisions for the virtual holes that featured in the first season of TGL

Bob Harrison: Wizard of Oz

The Australian designer has had a long career and, like many of his countrymen, has spent much of it away from home. Adam Lawrence listened to his tales from the road

Ben Cowan-Dewar: Shock and awe

Golf development firm Cabot now has properties in six countries. Richard Humphreys speaks with co-founder and CEO Ben Cowan-Dewar about what makes a great site, selection of golf course architects, and more

Team building

Turfgrass has launched its US arm with the appointment of John Lawrence, Adam Moeller and Brad Owen. Richard Humphreys speaks with them, Turfgrass founder John Clarkin and director of agronomy Julian Mooney to find out more

Brian Curley: Life of Brian

The designer has surely clocked up more air miles than anyone else in the business. Adam Lawrence caught up with him in between flights to discuss his career and his new venture with Jim Wagner

Richard Humphreys
/ Categories: News

Brian Curley and Jim Wagner form new design partnership

Golf course architects Brian Curley and Jim Wagner have formed a new golf design firm, Curley-Wagner Golf Design.

Curley was previously a partner in Schmidt-Curley Design and Wagner was a senior design associate at Nicklaus Design. Their new firm will have its base in Paradise Valley, Arizona, and offices in Vietnam and the Philippines.

“With the retirement of Lee Schmidt a few years ago, I have been able to continue to explore new markets and have increased our workload substantially, necessitating the need for added help,” said Curley. “Rather than just add staff, I am looking at a long-term solution to not only best serve existing projects but continue well into the future with Jim’s vast experience. I spent a great amount of time looking for the perfect partner and have undoubtedly found just that with Jim.”

Wagner joins Curley after more than 20 years at Nicklaus Design, where he has worked on many projects in Asia. “I am very thankful for my years spent with Nicklaus Design and all the great courses I was able to work on with a great team,” said Wagner. “I am also very enthusiastic about the new venture and what that means for me in the years to come, working alongside a great new team with an incredible reputation for world-class courses.”

Curley has worked in Asia for more than 30 years, and continues to design new golf courses, including Dhoho Golf Club in Indonesia, which Wagner is now working on, too.

“Having Jim based in the Philippines will enable us to both accommodate our existing and future Asian clients but also free my time up to attend to the substantial and prominent workload I have recently acquired in the Middle East,” said Curley. “While I will continue to be based in Arizona, I can now focus more on domestic work as well.

“No doubt I needed help with the workload. And adding Jim is a great coup for me as he is a very accomplished designer with a passion for excellence.”

The pair have ongoing projects in eight countries, including Vietnam, Myanmar, Thailand, Laos and Cambodia.

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    Curley-Wagner Golf Design

    Brian Curley and Jim Wagner, formerly of Nicklaus Design, have formed Curley-Wagner Golf Design. The pair pictured on site in Indonesia for their Dhoho project

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Curley-Wagner Golf Design
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