Garden City Golf Club

Club information
LocationGarden City, New York
Established1899
TypePrivate
Total holes18
Events hostedU.S. Open
U.S. Amateur (4 times)
Walker Cup
Designed byDevereux Emmet
Walter Travis
Par73
Length6,926 yards
Course rating74
Slope rating141

The Garden City Golf Club is a private golf course in Garden City, New York. The club was founded in 1899, and is also known as the "Garden City Men's Club" or simply the "Men's Club" to distinguish it from the Garden City Country Club, and Cherry Valley Club, all of which are located in Garden City, NY. It remains one of the few men-only golf clubs in the United States.[1]

The course first opened on May 29, 1897 as the Island Golf Links, a nine-hole layout for guests of the Garden City Hotel.[2][3] Designed by Devereux Emmet, it was soon expanded to eighteen holes with a total length of over 6,000 yards (5,500 m), making it the longest course in the United States.[4] The expanded course was incorporated as the Garden City Golf Club on May 17, 1899. Its club house was designed by Richard Howland Hunt.[5]

Garden City Golf Club hosted the U.S. Open in 1902, which was won by Laurie Auchterlonie. It marked the first time that a player had shot lower than 80 in all four rounds.[6] Amateur Walter Travis, a founding member of the Garden City Golf Club, finished second in the tournament. A few years later, Travis redesigned the layout of his home course, adding numerous bunkers and modifying the greens.[7] During the U.S. Amateur at the Garden City Golf Club, Travis hit a ball into a new pot bunker near the eighteenth green, which led to his defeat in a semifinal match against Jerry Travers.[8] In addition to hosting the U.S. Amateur in 1908, Garden City Golf Club also hosted the tournament in 1900, 1913, and 1936.[9] Garden City was also the host of the Walker Cup in 1924.[10]

After the death of Walter Travis, the Garden City Golf Club renamed its Spring Invitational to the Walter J. Travis Invitational in 1927. Held annually since 1902, it has now become one of the premier mid-amateur golf tournaments in the New York metropolitan area.[11]

In 2013, the Garden City Golf Club was ranked 26th overall in Golf Magazine's list of the Top 100 Courses in the U.S., 47th in Golf Magazine's list of the Top 100 Courses in the World, 55th in Golf Digest's list of America's 100 Greatest Golf Courses, and 9th among Golf Digest's golf courses in New York City.[12][13][14]

  1. ^ O'Keefe, Michael (11 June 2003). "Pol: No Women, No Tax Breaks". Daily News. New York. Retrieved 8 January 2017.
  2. ^ "Garden City Golf Club". Links Magazine. Archived from the original on 5 July 2008. Retrieved 7 September 2009.
  3. ^ Quirin, William L. (2002). America's Linksland: A Century of Long Island Golf. Chelsea, MI: Sleeping Bear Press. p. 46. ISBN 1-58536-087-2.
  4. ^ "For Longer Golf Courses; Many Clubs Are Preparing to Have the Full Eighteen Holes Next Season". The New York Times. 19 December 1897. Retrieved 7 September 2009.
  5. ^ Smith, Mildred H. (1998). Garden City, Long Island, in Early Photographs, 1869-1919. New York: Dover. p. 38. ISBN 0-486-40669-5.
  6. ^ Anderson, Dave (14 June 2009). "For the 22nd Time, The U.S. Open Is the New York Open". The New York Times. Retrieved 6 September 2009.
  7. ^ "Garden City GC". GolfClubAtlas.com. Retrieved 7 September 2009.
  8. ^ "The Greatest Long Island Golf Moments". United States Golf Association. 5 June 2009. Archived from the original on 9 January 2017. Retrieved 8 January 2017.
  9. ^ "List of Past Champions". United States Golf Association. Retrieved 7 September 2009.
  10. ^ "Match Results: 1922 to 2007" (PDF). Merion GC Walker Cup Committee. Archived from the original (PDF) on 20 March 2009. Retrieved 7 September 2009.
  11. ^ Herrmann, Mark (18 May 2008). "Walter Travis Remains an Honored Name in Golf". Newsday. Long Island.
  12. ^ "Golf Magazine's Top 100 Courses in the U.S." Golf Magazine. September 2013. Retrieved 22 April 2014.
  13. ^ "Golf Magazine's Top 100 Courses in the World". Golf Magazine. September 2013. Archived from the original on 9 June 2014. Retrieved 22 April 2014.
  14. ^ "2013-14 Ranking: America's 100 Greatest Golf Courses". Golf Digest. February 2013. Retrieved 22 April 2014.