For more than two decades, Aaron Bridgewater has been a devoted Golden Tee player. He has spent countless hours competing, sketching hole concepts, and even posting content to his YouTube channel Scantron 5K. But in 2025, his passion for the game earned him something few fans can claim: a place in Golden Tee history.

Bridgewater was named the winner of the 2026 Design-a-Hole contest, our annual contest that lets players submit their dream creations for a chance to appear in the next release of the game. His winning design, fittingly named The Legend, will live on as Hole 16 of Gunnison Gap.

The name itself came from a lighthearted inside joke. “A buddy of mine always jokes with my wife and calls me ‘The Legend,’” Bridgewater laughed. “When I was running out of names, I just said, ‘Alright, let’s go with that.’ It stuck.”

While the title started as a joke, the design behind it was anything but. Bridgewater wanted something bold. The elevated, risk-and-reward par 5 gives players multiple paths to the green. The hole challenges players with a sweeping elevation change, an intimidating canyon carry, and a high, elevated green that punishes anyone who fails to stick their shot. “I love the idea of risk,” he explained. “If you take the chance, you can eagle it. But if you miss, you’re rolling off the back of a cliff. That was my mindset.”

Like many of his past entries, The Legend began with nothing more than a pencil and paper. “I’ve been submitting holes for years, and I always start sketching by hand. I’ll crumple up plenty of paper until I find something that works. It usually takes me about an hour, and then I’ll add color to bring it to life,” Bridgewater said.

Look back at Aaron Bridgewater's announcement about winning Design-a-Hole 2025 here

The dedication finally paid off. After watching his design rise through the top ten and into the finals, the winning announcement sent his phone ringing off the hook with messages from friends and fellow players. For Bridgewater, though, the real prize wasn’t the new Golden Tee PGA TOUR cabinet he won, it was seeing his work included in the game he loves. “It’s about being etched into the game forever,” he said. “That’s the sweetest part. A piece of me is in there forever.”

Golden Tee’s community has always embraced creative course designs, and Bridgewater is excited to see how top players approach his hole. “I think most people will go for the safe route, but I can’t wait to see someone figure out something I never imagined. That’s part of the fun,” he said.

He admits he’ll be playing Gunnison Gap “a ton” once Golden Tee 2026 launches. “All my buddies are already planning on upgrading their machines just to play it,” he said. “I’m absolutely going to play the hell out of that course.”

Despite finally claiming first place, Bridgewater has no plans to stop entering. “I’ll keep competing every year. I love doing this. Now that I know it’s possible, I’d love nothing more than to win again,” he said.

From an inside joke between friends to a permanent part of Golden Tee history, The Legend is now just that. And for Aaron Bridgewater, it cements a legacy more than 20 years in the making.

We caught up with Aaron after this interview to show him the screenshots of how his creation came to life and he followed up with some more insight on how he feels about the win!

Hearing the recent news that my Design-A-Hole will be featured as the 16th on Gunnison Gap will have me going straight for that course right off of the rip.

"I still can't believe that a desperate attempt at a name ultimately ended up being "The Legend"… a name that my friend calls me just to piss off my wife. Now I have the reassurance that it will deliver eternal eye rolls from her every time I pour a drink and tee off on my favorite trackball game of all time.

It's an absolute honor to be a part of the Golden Tee legacy (which is the best part by far) and I can't wait to see how players take on the hole. I'm looking forward to all of the 2026 courses as well as the new shot styles. I can't thank IT enough for putting on such a killer annual contest! 

My ultimate goal would be to have another Design-A-Hole win under my belt and if it's named "Christine," you'll know why."