Russell Frederick Breeden

(1917 - 2008)

Born: March 15, 1917, Albemarle County, Virginia

Died: November 13, 2008, Chesapeake, Virginia at age 91

Russell Breeden served as a Marine in World War II.

He is known for designing courses that are friendly and easy for anyone to play.

Breeden moved his family out of their home state of Virginia to Greenville, South Carolina so that he could become an assistant to Fred Findlay, a legend in golf architecture.

Eventually, in 1961 he ventured out on his own to begin constructing courses and became known for the hands-on approach he had. He has been described as someone who preferred to be in a bulldozer than at the drawing board. Eventually, his sons, Glen and Andy, would work with him in golf course design and take it over after the 1980s when Breeden left the business to retire.