John Abercromby designed golf courses are predominantly to be found in England. His best known work includes, but is not limited to: The Addington (1913) / Bovey Castle (1926) / Coombe Hill (1911) / Knole Park (1924; with Herbert Fowler) / Mill Hill (1923; with Harry Colt) / West Byfleet (1922; redesign) / Worplesdon (1908).

Born in 1861 in Cape Town, South Africa, John Frederick "Aber" Abercromby was one of the leading golf course architects of the early-1900s ... a period often referred to as the "Golden Age of golf course architecture" (*see below).

John Abercromby's layouts were mainly confined to England, and are rather low in number compared to some of his British contemporaries like Harry Colt (b.1869), Alister MacKenzie (b.1870), James Braid (b.1870), Harry Vardon (b.1870) and J.H. Taylor (b.1871). However, what "Aber" lacked in quantity, he certainly made up for in terms of quality and boldness of the designs.

The "Golden Age of golf course architecture" roughly spanned 1900 to 1935. This period saw around 20 renowned UK and North American designers (all covered in our Who's Who section) create some of the world's best loved and most enduring golf courses . Specific design concepts from their layouts have been incorporated into golf course designs ever since.
The legendary designers of the "Golden Age" typically include the following:
British-born architects: John Abercromby; Charles Hugh Alison; James Braid: Harry Colt; Tom Dunn; Herbert Fowler; Alister MacKenzie; John Morrison; Willie Park Jr; Donald Ross and Tom Simpson.
North American-born architects (USA unless stated): Devereux Emmet; William S. Flynn; Charles Blair Macdonald (Canadian-born); Perry Maxwell; Seth Raynor; George C. Thomas Jr; Stanley Thompson (Canadian) and Albert W. Tillinghast.