Born and raised in the Portland area, Jeff and his brother John (an internationally known golf course architect) learned the game of golf from their father.

An accomplished golfer during high school, Jeff became the Oregon State Junior Champion and Oregon State Amateur Medallist, before going off to college golf competition at Brigham Young University. After playing on the nationally ranked BYU team, he played briefly on the PGA mini-tour, before returning to Oregon and beginning his career in professional golf management.

Early positions as an Assistant Professional at Willamette Valley, Riverside and Waverly Country Clubs in the 1980's led to his selection as First Assistant Golf Professional at The
Oregon Club in the early 1990's during the growth phase of this new generation of golf clubs in the Pacific Northwest. At the Oregon Club, Fought met and worked with Peter Jacobsen, the jovial ambassador of golf to other professionals and celebrities. Fought notes that while working under Jacobsen's direction, he "learned the ropes of developing a new golf course and club while focusing on superior golf course maintenance and customer service" and that experience enabled him to land expanded opportunities with his next employer, O.B. Sports.

Langdon Farms, a high-end public course south of Portland, attracted Fought as Project Manager where he helped build business to profitable levels at this new course. By attracting corporate golf outings, regional tournaments, golf instruction and related merchandise, food and beverage sales he demonstrated his golf management abilities well enough to be promoted to Northwest Regional Manager for O.B. Sports. For the last two years, Fought spent most of the time traveling, overseeing development and opening of Trophy Lake Golf & Casting Club (Port Orchard, WA) and Washington National Golf Club ( Auburn, WA) while still monitoring management at Langdon Farms.

"In the last 10 years, I've seen the golf industry in the Northwest grow dramatically," Fought says. "I've been privileged to be part of this growth phase and now I'm looking forward to using the knowledge I've gained, to help golf flourish again at the Ranch." During the selection of a new Director of Golf, Helmly focused on candidates with skills in developing new courses and clubhouses and maintaining the courses at a higher level of quality, as this is important for improving the quality of the Ranch courses while building the new Big Meadow Clubhouse. However, the necessary skills of managing personnel, maximizing tee times, assuring profitable merchandise sales, golf instruction and marketing expertise were also prerequisites for consideration. The combination of experience, knowledge and talent which Fought possesses, combined with his genuine desire to be part of and build upon the golf tradition at Black Butte Ranch, ultimately won him the position.