Madinaty, Egypt: Aashish Vaishnava has become the first Indian golf course architect to win Golf Course Designer of the Year at the World Golf Awards, sharing the 2026 world title with English design partner Jon Hunt under the banner Aashish Vaishnava & Jon Hunt – AV IDG.

The award was announced at the programmeʼs 13th annual gala ceremony at Madinaty Golf Club.

The official World Golf Awards winners list names ‘Aashish Vaishnava & Jon Hunt – AV IDG’ in its World section, confirming the global designer category rather than a national or regional award.

In the history of this award – recorded annually from 2015 through 2026 – no individually named Indian golf course architect had previously been listed as a winner. The published roll of honour names Ernie Els (2015), Sir Nick Faldo (2016), Jack Nicklaus (2017), Gary Player (2018), Colin Montgomerie (2019), José María Olazábal (2020), Henrik Stenson (2021), IMG Golf Course Design (2022), Greg Norman (2023), Peter Matkovich (2024) and Sir Nick Faldo again (2025).

Vaishnava said: “For me, this is a moment to put Indian golf design in the international conversation. It belongs to the people who have trusted our ideas, our team and the partnership Jon and I have built. I hope it encourages more young Indians to see golf as a profession in which they can contribute on the world stage.”

The partnershipʼs expression of that collaboration is ‘Designed Together. Honoured as One’: Indian design ambition and British design experience working as one practice.

AV IDG brings together AV from India and International Design Group (IDG) from Bristol, England – golf design, luxury real estate masterplanning, golf resorts architecture and aesthetically appealing landscape, built over a 20-plus-year India–UK relationship. The IDG Team includes Vaishnava, Bob Hunt, Jon Hunt and Andrew Craven.

Jon Hunt said: “Our partnership brings different perspectives to the same ambition: golf courses with character and a strong sense of place. Sharing this recognition with AV is a chance to celebrate what sustained collaboration between India and the UK can achieve.”

Beyond the designer title, 2026 also delivered further World Golf Awards recognition: Prestige Golfshire Club won Indiaʼs Best Golf Course, and Al Dhannah Golf Club won Middle Eastʼs Best 9 Hole Golf Course.

Across the verified archive from 2014 to 2026, projects associated roles total 33 wins – 14 on design-credit work and the designer title, and 19 on associated projects where AV IDG held project management or rebuild roles or consulting.