Thomas J. Fazio.

• Author: Brafford, Kevin
• Position: Golf - Golf Course Designer

No living designer has more credits on Golf Digest's list of America's 100 Greatest Golf Courses than Tom Fazio. His company has created 17 courses in North Carolina, among them Bright's Creek, named best new course for 2007 by the North Carolina Golf Panel. At 63, he says he has never felt better. "It's exercise and thinking young. Or maybe it's those occasional glasses of red wine."

Apprenticing under his uncle, George Fazio, in the 1960s: "We did one to two courses a year--tops--in the Philadelphia area where we lived. He was a good golfer who just happened to get into the business. We designed them, and we built them."

On his own: "My uncle kind of retired in the late 1970s when he moved to Jupiter, Fla., but there was never a stopping or starting point in my mind."

The economy today is bad but: "What we're going through is similar to what we faced in the early to mid-'70s. When we got a call in 1975 to do Pinehurst No. 6, that was a milestone for our company."

Principles of design: "Golf courses should reflect the natural beauty of their environments. I've got seven senior associates on my staff, and that's our starting point on every...