A ‘legendary’ golfing home in Sydney’s north-west
The Richmond Golf Club, believed to be Australia’s oldest golf course still occupying its original site.
SOME legends of Australian golf have found a happy home in Sydney’s north-west . . . the Richmond Golf Club.
As the club, one of the oldest in New South Wales, begins to put on its make-up for the Australian PGA Seniors Championships in November, it again earns a place in the history books.
This will be the 10th year hosting this prestigious tournament and there are at least two more years to go.
And the event has put the spotlight on some of the finest golfers this country has produced.
In 2022, for instance, leading left-hander Richard Green won the PGA Seniors and then headed straight to the US for their seniors’ Q-School.
He earned his card over there and has since performed exceptionally well and banked plenty of US dollars.
Last year’s winner, Jason Norris, has already committed to return to Richmond to defend his title.
Other golfing greats likely to tee it up at Richmond from November 8th to 10th include former Australian Open champions Peter Lonard and Peter Senior alongside the likes of European Tour winners Peter O’Malley and Terry Price and US PGA Tour winner Andre Stoltz, who has been one of the form players among the seniors ranks this year.
The exciting news for Richmond is that the event will be televised on Fox and Kayo, giving golf fans an opportunity to see Richmond in all its glory.
According to Richmond Group Operations Manager Craig Hodge.
“We have upgraded a couple of bunkers on the course with ECO bunkers,” said Hodge.
“We have also added some more drainage to the 18th hole.
“This is all we have been able to squeeze into our budget now, but there are some big plans in the works over the next 12 months.”
Richmond volunteers at the 2023 Australian PGA Seniors celebrate alongside championship winner Jason Norris.
As with so many clubs these days, Richmond relies on the hours put in by volunteers to prepare the course for such a high-profile tournament . . . along with the greenkeeping staff as its all hands on deck to prepare for the Australian Seniors PGA.
“I have to give a massive thank you on behalf of our CEO Ms Kimberley Talbot and the Richmond Club board of directors to all our volunteers for their contributions that make Richmond Golf Club a great club to be part of,” said Hodge.
“And one man I’d like to give a special vote of thanks to is Frank Gal.
“Frank was presented with the Services to Golf Award at the 2023 NSW Golf Industry Awards from Golf NSW.
“Over the years Frank has served on the Richmond Golf Club’s board of directors, done a stint as Club Captain and other positions in between.
“Frank’s knowledge has been invaluable to us at Richmond.”
Membership at Richmond is blooming, despite these tough economic times and most would agree that golf is the perfect ‘escape’ and a must with so many other hindrances to a happy life.
Frank Gal is one of the valued volunteers which makes the PGA Seniors event run smoothly.
As this edition of Inside Golf goes to press, there are about 717 members at Richmond.
“We’re very happy with that considering the tough economical times we are subject to at the moment,” said Hodge.
“At Richmond we are fortunate that we aren’t as close to the river as some of our neighbouring clubs.
“Over recent years we have felt the impact of flooding from the Hawkesbury.
“We deal with the course issues well.
“It is the restriction whereby members and socials can’t get to the course due to flooding and fires with the road and bridge closures.
“We are also very fortunate to have a great relationship with Sydney Water and have access to recycled water direct into our holding dams.
“This keeps us in good stead during dry months, which we haven’t had much of over the last couple of years.”
Peter Lonard, competing at Richmond at the Australian PGA Seniors.
Yet, surprisingly, the Richmond Cup, one of the club’s elite events for the amateurs was a little down on numbers this year due to some heavy rains in April.
The club still had almost 100 starters for an event that was also impacted by rain in 2023.
Yet Richmond’s quaint atmosphere still truly reflects the history of the Hawkesbury as a rural district.
The par-70 5740m course offers a fairly flat walking and comparable playing surfaces, with slight undulations offset by great variety in design and bunkering.
What results is a course that offers plenty for newcomers to the game, but a fair challenge to more experienced players.
Visitors to the course have particularly noted the back nine – which boasts its own ‘Amen Corner’, where the water hazards come into play.
With some of the best greens in Sydney and well kept fairways helps Richmond Golf Course maintain it reputation as one of the Hawkesbury’s premier golf courses – a testament to the grounds staff, greenkeepers and a board’s committed to providing the best facility possible.
Jason Norris is expected to defend his Australian PGA Seniors title at Richmond in November.
It’s ‘originally’ the oldest
RICHMOND Golf Club is believed to be the oldest golf club in Australia still on its original site in Australia.
Here’s a club with a long and colourful history spanning almost 130 years – surviving two world wars and playing host to probably millions of rounds of golf.
The game was first played in the Hawkesbury in October, 1897 on a small nine-hole course located on the Hawkesbury Agricultural College paddocks and Richmond Common.
On March 15, 1899, the golf club was officially formed with 17 gentlemen and 10 lady members.
The first clubhouse, located where the 18th green is today, was only a bark shed with a tin roof and dirt floors.
Although this makeshift clubhouse was primitive, during the early days of the club, golf was a game reserved for the upper class, and an invitation to join was a significant rite of passage.
World War I had a large impact on membership as the men left to fight overseas.
The club went into recess and remained dormant for 12 years while a war barracks for soldiers was built where the present-day clubhouse is today.
By the 1930s, interest in golf began to grow and people from all backgrounds were encouraged to take up the sport.
Indeed 1933 was the most successful year yet for the club, with 41 registered members and a win in the inaugural Nepean District Inter-Club Finals.
The success was short-lived however, as World War II again put a strain on membership and drove the club into a second recess.
Although a new nine-hole course was opened in June, 1940, the war made money tight for both the club and residents of Richmond.
American servicemen took over the clubhouse to house soldiers, and in 1942 it was destroyed by fire.
At the end of the war in 1946, it was agreed that the course be taken over by local council and leased by the club to use.
In the early 1950’s, constant flooding closed the course again, although plans were in the works for extensions to the rebuilt clubhouse and an additional nine holes on the course.
By 1959, after thousands of hours of voluntary labour by members, the full 18-hole course and clubhouse, as they are known today, were officially opened.
