John R. Van Kleek

(1888 - 1967)

Born: October 22, 1888, Auburn, New York

Died: February 18, 1967, Tyron, North Carolina, at age 70

John van Kleek graduated from Cornell University in 1912. The following year, 1913, he received his Masters in Landscape Design.

He was the first golf architect to graduate from Cornell.

He joined with architect Wayne Stiles in 1923, becoming a partner the following year. Van Kleek primarily worked out of Florida. In 1930 he left the firm to work for Robert Moses in New York.

He designed courses from South America to upstate New York, including private, public and municipal courses.