Award-winning golf journalist and architecture authority to present at Firestone Country Club
AKRON, Ohio — The Robert Trent Jones Society has announced that Joe Passov, the Golf Writers Association of America award-winning journalist and respected voice on golf travel, history and course architecture, will serve as keynote speaker at the Society’s 22nd annual meeting, scheduled for Sept. 11-13, at Firestone Country Club in Akron, Ohio.
Passov’s keynote address, “In Praise of Golf Course Architecture’s Modern Era: 1945–1995,” will examine one of the most influential periods in golf course design and place it in context for Society members, whose annual gathering celebrates the legacy and continuing influence of golf course architect Robert Trent Jones, Sr.
The 2026 Annual Meeting will be hosted by Firestone Country Club, a renowned golf venue whose South Course was redesigned by Robert Trent Jones, Sr. in 1960 and whose North Course was also designed by Jones. The gathering will feature golf, fellowship, Society programming and opportunities to experience two of Jones’ noted works.
Passov was honored in 2019 by the American Society of Golf Course Architects with the Donald Ross Award, presented for contributions to golf and the profession of golf course architecture. From 2005 to 2018, he served as Managing Editor for Travel and Course Rankings at GOLF Magazine and GOLF.com, including service as chairman of the international panel that ranked GOLF Magazine’s Top 100 Courses in the World.
“Joe Passov brings a rare combination of deep architectural knowledge, storytelling skill and first-hand experience with many of the world’s great courses,” said David Leigh, President of the Robert Trent Jones Society. “His perspective on golf course architecture’s modern era will be especially meaningful for our members as we gather at Firestone Country Club.”
Passov has written about golf since 1991, with a specialty in travel, golf course architecture and history. Perhaps best known for his “Travelin’ Joe” columns, he has published more than 2,000 articles in nearly 100 publications across North America, the U.K. and Asia, including work for the Wall Street Journal, Sports Illustrated and LINKS.
Passov previously served as Editor-in-Chief of LINKS Magazine and as a senior staff editor at several major national golf publications. He is a past member of the Golf Digest National Course Ranking Panel and the Golfweek Course Raters team. He is currently co-host of the LINKS Magazine golf podcast.
An avid traveler, Passov has played nearly1,400 golf courses in all 50 U.S. states and 35 countries. His travels include 77 courses where Robert Trent Jones worked, including 51 original designs. As a media member, he has attended or covered 18 Masters, 13 U.S. Opens, seven Ryder Cups and many other significant professional and amateur golf events.
Passov is the author of eight golf books, including club histories for Hillcrest Country Club in Los Angeles, Enhance Anting in Shanghai, the Mirabel Club in Scottsdale and the Dunes Golf and Beach Club in Myrtle Beach. He also completed anniversary and restoration books for Lakeside Golf Club and Desert Mountain Club and contributed the golf chapter for the 50th anniversary book for Mauna Kea Beach Resort.
Passov graduated from the University of Arizona in 1984 and received his law degree from the University of Nebraska in 1988. He lives in Scottsdale, Arizona, with his wife, Betsy.
The Robert Trent Jones Society is committed to preserving how Jones expanded the game— for example, modern industrial construction techniques, use of statistics to shape course design for all players, care for the environment, improving turf conditions, and, of course, “heroic” shot values.
He supported municipal golf available to all, mentored countless architects, and expanded modern designs around the world across different climates. Most importantly, Jones pioneered a deep appreciation for the tapestry of the game.
He said it best himself in his autobiography, “Golf’s Magnificent Challenge”: “If I am to be remembered, I hope it is not just for the golf courses I built but for the other contributions as well to the game I love, to the game that has been my life.”