Mike Keiser to receive USGA’s Bob Jones Award at the 2025 US Open

By Will Coughlin| March 3, 2025 0 Comments

Mike Keiser is set to receive the USGA‘s highest honor, the Bob Jones Award, during the 125th U.S. Open at Oakmont C.C. this June. Since 1955, the award recognizes those who personify the character, sportsmanship and respect for the game as its champion namesake.

Keiser is a native of East Aurora, N.Y., he started golfing at 9-years-old and worked as a caddie throughout his childhood. His love for the game grew as a member of the Amherst (Mass.) golf team and continued his time in the Navy and early career as the founder of Recycled Paper Greetings, an eco-friendly card company.

That passion for playing the game, both in the U.S. and abroad, led to a second career in golf course development, focused on preserving and honoring the natural landscapes that his courses occupy. His first project was The Dunes Club, a nine-hole layout in Michigan that he built to save its lakefront property from condominium and townhouse development in the mid-1980s.

Later, he would build and open Bandon Dunes on the Oregon Coast, expanding that signature property into a world-renowned destination resort with seven courses. Other golf properties in Wisconsin, Canada, the Caribbean and Australia followed.

“What inspires us about Mike is his love for what is pure and good about the game, his investment in golf that’s open to the public, his drive to promote recreational golf and the joy he feels when he plays – and those strong connections have never wavered,” said Mike Whan, CEO of the USGA, who made the announcement at the USGA’s Annual Meeting at Pinehurst Resort & Country Club. “We’re grateful for the example he’s set, which pushes the entire industry to think bigger.”

An innovator, conservationist and philanthropist, Keiser has channeled his love for golf into a legacy designed for the recreational golfer, intended to inspire and spark new ways of drawing people to the game.

“There’s a need for great but accessible courses,” said Keiser, who partners with golf architects who bring his philosophy to life through golf experiences that are walkable, natural and open. “If you build something pretty special, you want the public to play it.”

Previous recipients of the USGA’s Bob Jones Award include Francis Ouimet, Margaret Curtis, Richard Tufts, George H.W. Bush, Jack Nicklaus, Annika Sorenstam and Lee Elder. Tiger Woods was the 2024 honoree. Kieser will be honored on June 10, 2025, prior to the 125th U.S. Open.

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