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The very first Romsey Golf Course was
situated at Halterworth to the south east of Romsey. It came into being as
a club in 1900, in that it appeared in the Golf Year Book in that
year. It was laid down, or rather, just grew with no particular planning
into a nine-hole course. The club meandered along, to no real purpose, as
a place of recreation, rather than a hotbed of golf. The founder, a
Captain Maurice Suckling RN, died in 1924, and his heirs decided that the
course should to be returned to its original state as farmland. Consequently, two golfers named Guard, searched out a stretch of land in Nursling which had been used as a sort of golf course from as early as can be verified, 1863. They obtained the lease on the land from Colonel W.W. Ashley, and later Lord Mount Temple. The Stoneham professional, George Kirby and the Stoneham secretary, Colonel Waddle designed a nine-hole course. An old army hut was procured as a clubhouse and once again there was a nine-hole Romsey Golf Club.
The only claim to fame that the club had,
was that for many years the resident professional was Reg Horne, who was
later selected to play in America for the Ryder Cup Team, but
unfortunately, did not actually get a game. The club staggered along, invariably in
dire financial straits, though the war. As the war ended the club was down
to forty or at most fifty members. It required a great deal of courage to
keep it going and there was no thought of improvements or expansion until
the 1970's. The membership had grown by then, but it
was only through the persistence of the committee of that time and of one
man in particular, Charlie Wills, that a decision was taken to expand the
course into one of eighteen holes. The cost was a huge one in those days
of some £36,000. But even that was cheap compared to what should have been
spent and members have been paying out ever since for greens to be relayed
and some parts of the course have needed completely reconstructing. Of
course, there was an overlarge party of die-hards who could not see what
was to be gained by expansion. They were quite content with the course as
it was and fought tooth and nail against any hint of radicalism. The 'new'
course was finally opened for play with a great deal of publicity. The
Mayor attended along with our President, the late Earl Mountbatten of
Burma. The payment was not confined to the actual
cost of the new course. A bigger course inevitably meant a larger
membership. A larger membership required that clubhouse facilities needed
improving. The old tin shed, well known to golfers throughout Hampshire,
was inadequate, but still survived an assault on it which saw a new bar
and locker rooms added to one end of it. A great deal of foresight on the
part of the committee ensured that the new part of the building was
designed and built so that it could cope with further expansion upward and
outward. It was time to expand even further as the club started to hold it's membership and the financial situation, for the first time in the history of the club, could be called good. Offices and a ladies locker room were built on top of the old locker room and also contained a committee room. The old tin hut had, at last, disappeared, some say not before time, but it had become a landmark and there was more than one member who had mixed feelings about its demise. A new restaurant took its place, with a balcony overlooking the course. Membership soared when Captain, Mike Rees in 1994, opened it.
There was now a waiting list to join and
magazines such as Country Life placed the course within the top ten
in Hampshire. The course improved by leaps and bounds and the greens were
acknowledged by everyone as amongst the best. A sprinkler system was
installed to keep the course looking green and at its best during the
summer months, instead of the dry, brown, hard course that the members had
become accustomed to. There were only two dark clouds on the horizon. The
club was still leasing the land, but obtained a further 25 years. As the
course was based on clay, there were ongoing drainage problems. As one
part of the fairway was tackled, the problem would reappear on an adjacent
fairway. It is a constant problem and will probably take more years to
conquer. Not only did the club prosper on the course, but in the clubhouse too. It has become a truly social club, which is seldom empty, and it seems there is always someone there to strike up a conversation with. This very friendly atmosphere at the club is often remarked upon by visitors and golfers alike. Recently the club entered into a reciprocal
arrangement with 12 clubs whereby Romsey players can play their courses by
arrangement and visitors can come to Romsey to play too. A wide range of social events take place
regularly, ranging from discos, visiting groups, black tie dinners as well
as an annual dinner dance. All of which are always well supported and
organised. Romsey Golf Club is indeed one of which we members can be proud of. |
