Americas oldest golf courses

[Joel_Stewart]

1879-Olympic Club...San Francisco, CA

This is not really correct.  The Olympic Club is the oldest athletic club in the USA but they purchased the Lakeside Country Club (the golf course) much later which is now the Olympic Club.

It was my understanding the oldest golf course in California was the San Francisco Golf Club in its first location which was at the Presidio.  When it moved and the new course was built in 1915 the title went to Old Del Monte in Monterey.

[SPDB]

Re: Kent CC.

An interesting tidbit from another thread:

Anderson became the first two-time winner of the Western Open on 1st July 1904 with a four-stroke victory over Alex Smith. Anderson and Smith were pitted against each other throughout the tournament and ran away from the rest of the field at Michigan's Kent Golf Course, with Anderson claiming the $200 first prize. This course presented some interesting hazards and obstacles for the golfers, such as a windmill centred on a putting green and chicken wire strung across several fairways. One week later at the U.S. Open played over Chicago's Glen View Course, Willie didn't need a play-off this time as he prevailed by five strokes. Setting a U.S. Open record of 303 and his closing round 72 was also an 18-hole tournament record.

[RSLivingston_III]

Regarding Kent CC -
The club history says the club started as a tennis club (called the Country Club) in 1891 and had the Fisk Lake course (9 holes) built by James Foulis in March 1896. The current club property was purchased in 1899 and opened for play in 1901. It was design and built by E. C. Simmonds, but Cornish and Whitten has James Foulis revising 9 in 1900. It also has Ross adding 9 and revising 9, except it started out as an 18 hole course. The only difference in routing between the original plan and the 1938 USGS aerial is a tee and a green. There is no documentation on the bunkering changes.
The club history lists Wanikin Golf Club in Detroit and a Senator James McMillan's private course as existing previous to the Kent course, both NLE
Ralph

[Jonathan Cummings]

Golf was played at Charleston CC in the 1700s, it was not just a social club.  The course consisted of 4 holes and was located close to what is now downtown Charleston.(the "modern" CCC, built in the 1920s by Seth Raynor, is located to the south of town.)  Club records at CCC, attesting to active golf being played by the club, include a 1700s bill of laden.  The bill confirmed delivery from Scotland to Charleston an order of 400 gutta purty balls.

JC

[Mike_Cirba]

I don't know have all of the details at my disposal, but I do know that Dorset Field Club in Vermont is one of the oldest, still-active courses in the country.  

Shivas;

I wonder what George Bahto knows about Downers Grove??

[Stuart_Bendelow]

On the web site "Golfonline" in the History Section you will find a listing of The First 100 Clubs in America.  That list I believe was credited to GOLF Magazine as of January 1995.

[Michael Whitaker]

Here is a link to the Golf Magazine article:

"The First 100 Clubs In America"

[Jason Mandel]

i know chevy chase club stakes a claim as well to being one of the oldest...

[ChipOat]

Mike Cirba:

There is only 1 original hole left at Dorset Field Club from the original layout circa 1892??  It's the current 9th hole (uphill par 4 along the road if you know it).

Believe it or not, 8 of the 9 quirky, wonderful, old fashioned 9 holes on today's 18 hole course were built in 1954!!

Check the local real estate title records (the club historian did it).  As Casey Stengel once said, "you can look it up".

[Mike_Cirba]

Chipoat;

Any idea who did the work in 1954?  I've only seen the course from the road.  

Seems odd they would would see fit to change it almost entirely 62 years into existence!  

[Mike Worth]

I  have some knowledge about one of the courses on this list.  The Onteora Club started playing golf in the year indicated (1887).  5 holes were laid out in one part of the club.  The current 9 hole course was constructed in 1905 in a different location than the original layout (the old layout is now an arboretum and cemetary).  The 9 hole course was originally designed as 18 holes, but only 9 holes were built.  Too bad because in the mid-20s, a large lake was built in what would have become the 2nd 9 holes.  Interestingly, the current 9 hole course is almost exactly the same as when built nearly 100 years ago  At 3100 yards, par 35, the golf isn't bad and the scenery is the best in the US.  During the 1980s, the PGA pro constructed a number of alternate tees so each hole is different the 2nd time around; and on the second 9, the par is different for 2 of the holes, playing into the same green.  The architect is not known.

As one poster suggested, this particular club is/was a social club, and was founded for reasons other than golf.  More appropriately, Onteora is a Field Club.  However, the date indicated for golf is accurate and well documented in the Club History.

[Norbert P]

 I was all set to proudly proclaim that Gearhart Golf Links in Oregon was the first 'American' golf course on the West Coast but then I saw through the hyperlink above that Olympic in California predated it.  (!)  Then I thought, geez, that course in Cal isn't golf!  That's Horse and Cartball. (oy)

 There's a course in Vancouver, BC, perhaps a Canuck can help us out here, that dates to about 1890.  

[Joel_Stewart]

I was all set to proudly proclaim that Gearhart Golf Links in Oregon was the first 'American' golf course on the West Coast but then I saw through the hyperlink above that Olympic in California predated it.  (!)  Then I thought, geez, that course in Cal isn't golf!  That's Horse and Cartball. (oy)

What the hell does Horse and Cartball mean?  

Anyway the item placing Olympic is incorrect.  The downtown Olympic Athletic Club is correct, it is Americas oldest athletic club, founded in 1860.  The golf/country club is not correct, with Olympic purchasing the Lakeside Country Club in 1918.  In 1924 the existing courses were constructed.

[Daryl "Turboe" Boe]

I remember this article when it came out a few years back.  And I remember being blown away that Dakota Dunes CC in my home state of SD appeared on the list.  

This course is now called Two Rivers GC and although it is on SD dirt, I understand at some points in its history it was connected by a bridge across the river to North Sioux City, IA.  Obviously many people think of Dakota Dunes now as being the new Arnie Palmer design that the Nike Tour used for years out there.

What amazed me when you see that list was how that course could have come about in that remote area of farm country that long ago.  It just boggles the mind when you think that that was still pretty much the wild west back then.  You wouldnt think that there was enough civilization around there to support that back then.

[tywebb81]

The club dates from 1856.  The golf course opened around 1930 and is not one of the oldest courses even in Michigan.  

I believe Harbor Point GC in Harbor Springs in the northern lower peninsula is the oldest course in Michigan, from around 1896.

[Hunt]

Good call on Harbor Point, played it last year and jarred an approach from 150!

[TEPaul]

There's a very interesting sideline to some of these really old golf clubs and why they struggled to get golf going or have it continue which is what do you think they played with? TCC of Brookline is a good example of how that went. Clubs and particularly balls had to come from a long long way and were really rare. They didn't exactly have things like Wally Uehlein and Titleist back in those days!

[JohnV]

Gearhart says the following on their website:

Gearhart Golf Links began life about 1888 as a few simple golf holes strewn across the Gearhart dunes. By 1892 it was an established form of recreation for visitors to the resort. In 1901 through the efforts of Marshall Kinney, Gearhart officially opened with 9 holes. In 1913 it was expanded to 18 holes.

Victoria Golf Club was founded in 1893 and is supposedly the third oldest course still on its original site after Shinnecock and Newport (Soure PNGA 100th Anniversary book)

[A_Clay_Man]

Turboe- After seeing PBS this week, about the Native American indians and thier community spirit, I wonder if golf isn't well suited for them. It sure has not been taught with much spirit, here.

Tom P- Perhaps difficulty in acquiring I+B was why Max's ideal architecture, was less penal. i.e. Few trees, Few water hazards, and required more "line of charm" recoverable types of nastiness? Lesss likely resulting in losing one's piloto.