Kokomo golfers who have played the Green Acres course frequently state that it is the best layout in the city. What they may not know is that its designer, Bob Simmons, was a native of Kokomo who left his mark across the country by designing or building almost 90 golf courses and facilities including 30 in Indiana. While Simmons did not keep good records, today’s internet tools allowed much of his work to be rediscovered. And what a treasure-trove of work it is!

Simmons was born into a poor household in Camden, Indiana, in 1908; the family moved to Kokomo when he was a little boy. As he got older, he caddied at the Kokomo Country Club for notable residents such as three-time Indiana Amateur champion Bob Resener and Dr A.W. Holcombe. He was greatly influenced by those he served as caddy. Simmons became an excellent player, setting five course records, and became a Professional Golf Association (PGA) golf professional serving at seven facilities including Kokomo’s American Legion course and the Kokomo Country Club.

In 1940, he built the Kokomo Driving Range where Rural King now stands on South Lafontaine Street and added a miniature golf course a year later. In 1951, the family, which now included wife Joan and children Cinda, Jill, Jan and Jack, moved to Houston, Texas. Soon he was asked by some entrepreneurs whether he could build a golf course and he confidently said “yes.” In 1955, he built that first course in Texas, called Jersey Meadow, and designing and constructing golf courses became the love of his life.

Simmons moved the family back to Kokomo in 1956. In 1957, Simmons met prominent American golf course architect Dick Wilson and began a working relationship as Wilson’s construction supervisor. The two men collaborated on 17 courses including such notable facilities as Royal Montreal, Doral and Bay Hill. “Dad had authority over design as well as construction on those courses,” daughter Cinda Rutherford said. “Wilson gave him much authority, and he trusted his judgement about modifying his designs.” Simmons was very proud of the enormous Royal Montreal project that – in 1957 - took 600 acres of land and converted it into 45 holes of golf in only five months. In 1962, Simmons began focusing on his own numerous designs and worked until his death in 1986.

In assessing Simmons’s work, golf architecture author Ron Whitten noted, “As a design-and-build specialist, Simmons was well ahead of his time in his profession.” In 1992, wife Joan wrote: “If Bob hadn’t been in the golf business, he surely would have been in show business. He was a happy, optimistic extrovert, and a story teller to equal Bob Hope or Danny Thomas. He had a sense of humor that kept everyone laughing long after the story had been told. Singing was also one of the joys of his life.” The family is proud that Simmons is now getting the recognition that he never sought but richly deserves. Cinda is a long-time volunteer for the Howard County Historical Society having received recognition for more than 20 years of service.