St Andrews Golf Club, originally known as St Andrews Mechanics Golf Club, is a private members’

golf club A golf club is a club used to hit a golf ball in a game of golf. Each club is composed of a shaft with a grip and a club head. Woods are mainly used for long-distance fairway or tee shots; irons, the most versatile class, are used for a variety ...

located in

St Andrews St Andrews ( la, S. Andrea(s); sco, Saunt Aundraes; gd, Cill Rìmhinn) is a town on the east coast of Fife in Scotland, southeast of Dundee and northeast of Edinburgh. St Andrews had a recorded population of 16,800 , making it Fife's fou ...

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...

. The club is one of the oldest golf clubs in the world, having been established in 1843. The club does not own its own

golf course A golf course is the grounds on which the sport of golf is played. It consists of a series of holes, each consisting of a tee box, a fairway, the rough and other hazards, and a green with a cylindrical hole in the ground, known as a "cup". Th ...

, instead, members use the seven public golf courses in St Andrews, who are owned by the St Andrews Links Trust, they include; the Balgove, Castle, Eden, Jubilee, New, Strathtyrum and the Old golf courses. The courses are all shared with members of the St Andrews Golf Club, members of the public, and also a number of local golf clubs, including the St Andrews Thistle Golf Club,

The New Golf Club The New Golf Club is an exclusive golf club in St Andrews, Fife, Scotland. It is one of the three senior men's clubs in St Andrews, along with The Royal and Ancient Golf Club of St Andrews and the St Andrews Golf Club. The club was founded in 190 ...

, the Old Course (15th Century) Golf Club, the St Andrews International Golf Club, Strathtyrum Golf Club, Jubilee Course Golf Club, St Regulus Ladies Golf Club,

The St Rule Club The St Rule Club is a woman's golf and social club based in St Andrews, Scotland, and was established at the end of 1896, although it was not until 1898 when the golf section was established. It has a variety of activities for its members, whic ...

, and

The Royal and Ancient Golf Club of St Andrews The Royal and Ancient Golf Club of St Andrews is one of the oldest golf clubs in the world. It is a private members-only club based in St Andrews in Scotland. It was previously known colloquially as "The R&A", but in 2004, a new organisation kn ...

. Former members of the club have won

The Open Championship The Open Championship, often referred to as The Open or the British Open, is the oldest golf tournament in the world, and one of the most prestigious. Founded in 1860, it was originally held annually at Prestwick Golf Club in Scotland. Later th ...

, including

Old Tom Morris Thomas Mitchell Morris (16 June 1821 – 24 May 1908), otherwise known as Old Tom Morris, and The Grand Old Man of Golf, was a Scottish golfer. He was born in St Andrews, Fife, the "home of golf" and location of the St Andrews Links, and died ...

and

Young Tom Morris Thomas Morris (20 April 1851 – 25 December 1875), known as Tom Morris Junior, Young Tom Morris and also Tommy Morris, was a Scottish professional golfer. He is considered one of the pioneers of professional golf, and was the first young prodig ...

who both won the title on four occasions each. In total 11 members have won the title with 20 victories.

History

The St Andrews Golf Club was established by 11 local tradesmen on 29 September 1843 as the St Andrews Mechanics Golf Club. The founding members were: William Ayton (

Cabinet maker A cabinet is a case or cupboard with shelves and/or drawers for storing or displaying items. Some cabinets are stand alone while others are built in to a wall or are attached to it like a medicine cabinet. Cabinets are typically made of wood (s ...

), John Keddie (

Joiner A joiner is an artisan and tradesperson who builds things by joining pieces of wood, particularly lighter and more ornamental work than that done by a carpenter, including furniture and the "fittings" of a house, ship, etc. Joiners may work in ...

), George Morris (

Butler A butler is a person who works in a house serving and is a domestic worker in a large household. In great houses, the household is sometimes divided into departments with the butler in charge of the dining room, wine cellar, and pantry. Some a ...

) elder brother of

, Alexander Bruce (Cabinet maker), John Lynn (

Tailor A tailor is a person who makes or alters clothing, particularly in men's clothing. The Oxford English Dictionary dates the term to the thirteenth century. History Although clothing construction goes back to prehistory, there is evidence of ...

), Robert Patterson (

Slater A slater, or slate mason, is a tradesperson who covers buildings with slate. Tools of the trade The various tools of the slater's trade are all drop-forged. The slater's hammer is forged in one single piece, from crucible-cast steel, and ha ...

), Alexander Carstairs (Cabinet maker), Adam McPherson (

Plasterer A plasterer is a tradesman or tradesperson who works with plaster, such as forming a layer of plaster on an interior wall or plaster decorative moldings on ceilings or walls. The process of creating plasterwork, called plastering, has been u ...

), David Todd Junior (

Painter Painting is the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a solid surface (called the "matrix" or "support"). The medium is commonly applied to the base with a brush, but other implements, such as knives, sponges, and ai ...

), James Herd ( Mason), and James McPherson ( Dancing Master). In 1851 it was proposed by the then club captain, James Howie, that the club should change its name to St Andrews Golf Club or similar name. On 22 September 1853, the ''Fifeshire Journal'' reported that the Mechanics Golf Club had changed its name to the St Andrews Golf Club. In the second half of the 19th century the St Andrews Golf Club was the strongest golf club in Scotland, with members such as

Allan Robertson Allan Robertson (11 September 1815 – 1 September 1859) was considered to be one of the first professional golfers. Early years In the mid-19th century golf was played mainly by well-off gentlemen, as hand-crafted clubs and balls were e ...

, he is generally regarded as being the best golfer in Scotland from 1843 until his death. However he never had the chance to play in

. When Robertson died, no one knew who the best golfer was, and so a tournament was born to determine the name of the champion golfer of the year. Other members included

, who was a long-time member of the club,

and many others, who built the club's reputation in challenge matches, the early Open Championships and team games. The following members won 18 Open Championships in the 19th century, and a further 2 in the 20th century: Old Tom Morris (

1861 Statistically, this year is considered the end of the whale oil industry and (in replacement) the beginning of the petroleum oil industry. Events January–March * January 1 ** Benito Juárez captures Mexico City. ** The first steam-p ...

1862 Events January–March * January 1 – The United Kingdom annexes Lagos Island, in modern-day Nigeria. * January 6 – French intervention in Mexico: French, Spanish and British forces arrive in Veracruz, Mexico. * January ...

1864 Events January–March * January 13 – American songwriter Stephen Foster ("Oh! Susanna", "Old Folks at Home") dies aged 37 in New York City, leaving a scrap of paper reading "Dear friends and gentle hearts". His parlor song " ...

, 1867), Young Tom Morris (

1868 Events January–March * January 2 – British Expedition to Abyssinia: Robert Napier leads an expedition to free captive British officials and missionaries. * January 3 – The 15-year-old Mutsuhito, Emperor Meiji of Jap ...

, 1969, 1870,

1972 Within the context of Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) it was the longest year ever, as two leap seconds were added during this 366-day year, an event which has not since been repeated. (If its start and end are defined using Solar time, me ...

), Tom Kidd ( 1873), Bob Martin (

1876 Events January–March * January 1 ** The Reichsbank opens in Berlin. ** The Bass Brewery Red Triangle becomes the world's first registered trademark symbol. * February 2 – The National League of Professional Base Ball Clubs i ...

, 1885), Jamie Anderson ( 1877, 1878, 1879), Willie Fernie (

1883 Events January–March * January 4 – ''Life'' magazine is founded in Los Angeles, California, United States. * January 10 – A fire at the Newhall Hotel in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, United States, kills 73 people. * Ja ...

Jack Burns John Francis Burns (November 15, 1933 – January 27, 2020) was an American comedian, actor, voice actor, writer, and producer. During the 1960s, he was part of two comedy partnerships, first with George Carlin and later with Avery Schreiber. ...

( 1888), Hugh Kirkaldy ( 1891), William Auchterlonie (

1893 Events January–March * January 2 – Webb C. Ball introduces railroad chronometers, which become the general railroad timepiece standards in North America. * Mark Twain started writing Puddn'head Wilson. * January 6 – Th ...

Sandy Herd Alexander "Sandy" Herd (24 April 1868 – 18 February 1944) was a Scottish professional golfer from St Andrews. He won The Open Championship in 1902 at Hoylake. Early life Born in St Andrews, Scotland, on 24 April 1868, to a golfing family, He ...

( 1902), and

Jock Hutchison Jack Falls "Jock" Hutchison (June 6, 1884 – September 27, 1977) was a Scottish professional golfer. Hutchison was born in St Andrews, Fife, Scotland, the son of William and Helen (née Falls). His name was registered as John Waters Hutchis ...

(

1921 Events January * January 2 ** The Association football club Cruzeiro Esporte Clube, from Belo Horizonte, is founded as the multi-sports club Palestra Italia by Italian expatriates in First Brazilian Republic, Brazil. ** The Spanish lin ...

). Club members have also won U.S. Open titles too, with

James Foulis James Foulis (22 August 1871 – 3 March 1928), also known as James Foulis Jr., was a Scottish professional golfer who won the second U.S. Open in 1896. He also finished tied for third in the inaugural 1895 U.S. Open held at Newport Golf Clu ...

( 1896), Fred Herd ( 1898) and

Laurie Auchterlonie Lawrence Auchterlonie (8 December 1867 – 20 January 1948) was a Scottish professional golfer, a native of St Andrews. In 1902 U.S. Open (golf), 1902, representing the Glen View Club, he won the eighth U.S. Open (golf), U.S. Open at Garden City ...

( 1902). Allan Robertson and Old Tom Morris of the St Andrews Golf Club were an intimidating challenging team, occasionally called "the invincibles". Large sums of money for the matches was put up by sponsors, with the players who won also getting a percentage, but they also made their own bets too. Team matches are a tradition within the St Andrews Golf Club. The first match that was arranged was against

Leven Leven may refer to: People * Leven (name), list of people with the name Nobility * Earl of Leven a title in the Peerage of Scotland Placenames * Leven, Fife Leven ( gd, Inbhir Lìobhann) is a seaside town in Fife, set in the east Central ...

in 1849 with teams of 6 players on each side.

The clubhouse

Historically golfing societies and clubs would normally meet in either a local hotel or member's house close to the golf course. Official clubhouses became popular in Scotland from the mid-nineteenth century as the game's popularity increased. The St Andrews Golf Club's first purchased a clubhouse in 1905 in nearby Golf Place. In 1932, the club decided to purchase Links House for £2,700. It cost a further £2,000 to convert it to a clubhouse. The new clubhouse was officially opened on 20 July 1933. It was built at the end of the 19th century, and overlooks the 18th green on the Old Course at St Andrews and across from the Royal and Ancient clubhouse. It was listed as a Grade C building on 12 December 2001. The club has used Links House as their clubhouse since 1933.

Membership

Membership of the club has grown over the years from 11 at its foundation in 1843, to 535 in 1927, 1,013 in 1947 and to over 2,000 members in 1998. The main fee that is required to pay to become a member is $200,000 and after that first fee there is an annual payment of $28,100. This fee seems very expensive but it does not compare to

Liberty National Golf Club Liberty National is a country club in Jersey City, New Jersey adjacent to Liberty State Park on the Upper New York Bay. Its clubhouse, guest villas, teaching center, and "Cafe 12" halfway house were designed by Lindsay Newman Architecture and Desig ...

that has an initial payment of $500,000.

Honorary members

Bobby Jones became an honorary member in 1958. He was a winner of 13

major golf championships The men's major golf championships, commonly known as the major championships, and often referred to simply as the majors, are the most prestigious tournaments in golf. Historically, the national open and amateur championships of Great Britain a ...

and the only man to have won the

Grand Slam Grand Slam most often refers to: * Grand Slam (tennis), one player or pair winning all four major annual tournaments, or the tournaments themselves Grand Slam or Grand slam may also refer to: Games and sports * Grand slam, winning category te ...

, winning the U.S. Open,

U.S. Amateur The United States Amateur Championship, commonly known as the U.S. Amateur, is the leading annual golf tournament in the United States for amateur golfers. It is organized by the United States Golf Association and is currently held each August ov ...

, the British Open, and the British Amateur Championship all in the same year of 1930.

Jack Nicklaus Jack William Nicklaus (born January 21, 1940), nicknamed The Golden Bear, is a retired American professional golfer and List of golf courses designed by Jack Nicklaus, golf course designer. He is widely considered to be one of the greatest go ...

became an honorary member during the

1978 Open Championship The 1978 Open Championship was the 107th Open Championship, held 12–15 July over the Old Course at St Andrews, Fife, Scotland. Jack Nicklaus won his third and final Open championship, two strokes ahead of runners-up Ben Crenshaw, Raymond ...

whilst he was still halfway through the event at St Andrews. He is the winner of 18 major golf championships, including 3 Open titles, 4 U.S. Open titles, 6 Masters titles, and 5 U.S. PGA Championship titles.

Sir Michael Bonallack Sir Michael Francis Bonallack, OBE (born 31 December 1934) is an English amateur golfer who was one of the leading administrators in world golf in the late 20th century. Bonallack was born in Chigwell, Essex. He learned the game of golf under ...

became an honorary member in 1990 having won the

Amateur Championship The Amateur Championship (sometimes referred to as the British Amateur or British Amateur Championship outside the UK) is a golf tournament which has been held annually in the United Kingdom since 1885 except during the two World Wars, and in 19 ...

on fives occasions and

Paul Lawrie Paul Stewart Lawrie (born 1 January 1969) is a Scottish professional golfer who is best known for winning The Open Championship in 1999. He was a vice-captain for the European Ryder Cup team in 2016. Early career Lawrie was born in Aberdee ...

became an Honorary member on 6 October 1999 having won the

Open Championship The Open Championship, often referred to as The Open or the British Open, is the oldest golf tournament in the world, and one of the most prestigious. Founded in 1860, it was originally held annually at Prestwick Golf Club in Scotland. Later th ...

in the same year at

Carnoustie Golf Links Carnoustie Golf Links is in Carnoustie, Angus, Scotland. Carnoustie has four courses – the historic Championship Course, the Burnside Course, the Buddon Links Course and a free-to-play short, five-hole course called The Nestie. Carnoustie ...

Name of the club

During its existence there have been slight differences in the club's name: * The St Andrews Golf Club (including the prefix "The") - The official website (https://thestandrewsgolfclub.co.uk/) includes "the" in the URL, it also states "All Images © The St Andrews Golf Club", and "This is the website for The St Andrews Golf Club". * St Andrews Golf Club (excluding the prefix "The") In

Companies House Companies House is the executive agency of the company registrars of the United Kingdom, falling under the remit of the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy. All forms of companies (as permitted by the Companies Act) are i ...

it is registered as St Andrews Golf Club Limited (Company number SC629661), and the logo does not use "The" in the design. * St. Andrew's Golf Club (including an apostrophe "s") - The club published a handbook in 1910 with St. Andrew's Golf Club on the front cover.

References

External links

Official website
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Saint Andrews Golf Club 1843 establishments in Scotland Golf clubs and courses in Fife St Andrews