Gil Hanse is a difficult man to access. We know. We’ve tried. He has a firebrand of a gatekeeper that makes Hodor look cuddly. For three years, we’ve tried to interview the golf course architect, who trained with Tom Doak, who himself trained with Pete Dye, who himself trained with God. No luck. “He’s in Rio” Hodor said. “He’s in Pinehurst” Hodor said. “He’s in Nirvana” Hodor never said, but he might as well have.

And then, the clouds departed and the sun shone through. A friend of a guy who knows a fellow said, “you know, Hanse is pretty active on Instagram. You might get some ideas there.” Well, to heck with ideas, we grabbed the entire interview! Normally, you create the questions and send them to your subject. In this case, we had the answers, so we simply needed to create the questions to fit them, and look like brilliant journalists in the process.

We’ve blacked-out the other comments, so that the only words that appear, are those of the architect. Down the road, we might get that official interview, but until then, we have only this.

And so it goes. A unique part of our 2018 interview series is this Instaview with Gil Hanse.

 

Question 1: This might seem a bit disjointed for a first question, but who is one of your favorite, Golden-Age architects?

 

Question 2: What happens when you take time off from work?

 

Question 3: Rumors have flown about the abandonment of the 2016 Rio Olympic Course. Any Update?

 

Question 4: Your latest unveiling is the 3rd course at Streamsong (Florida). Have you been back recently?

 

Question 5: We played the #3 course at Pinehurst in 2014. This past year, its 1st hole was lost to a new concept, a short course called “The Cradle.” Adjacent to Thistle Due, the putting course, we hear it’s pretty. Your thoughts?

 

Question 6: You reworked the Blue Monster at Doral a few years back. Are you working presently on any PGA Tour courses of note?

 

Question 7: We’ve had a glimpse into your family life. What else do you do in your down time, to relax the mind and spirit?

 

Question 8: Many USA-based architects travel to the British Isles, for a refresher course on the origin of the game. Have you been lately? Was it memorable?

Question 9: What course would you most like to visit when the autumn colors are highest?