Cataraqui Golf and Country Club

Last updated
Cataraqui Golf and Country Club
Location961 King Street West
Kingston, Ontario, Canada
Information
Established1917
Club typeDedicated Ice
Curling Canada region OCA Zone 4
Sheets of iceSix
Rock coloursBlue and Yellow   
Website http://www.cataraqui.com/Curling.aspx

Cataraqui Golf and Country Club is a private golf and curling club located in Kingston, Ontario, Canada. It was founded in 1917.

Contents

History

Early golf in Kingston, the Kingston Golf Club

Cataraqui G&CC was established in 1917. Its founding arose from development pressures in downtown Kingston. The new club was built on land that was then on the western edge of settlement for the city and district, following the World War I-era construction of the LaSalle Causeway and provincial highway, across the Cataraqui River as it feeds into Lake Ontario, in downtown Kingston.

This new highway also crossed the property used by the Kingston Golf Club, disrupting the flow of play there. Kingston had been a military centre since its founding as Fort Frontenac by French explorers in 1673, on the site of an aboriginal settlement known as Cataraqui, and the military base was being expanded to large extent, with the world war, necessitating the causeway and highway construction. [1] The Kingston Golf Club, located on the Barriefield Common, just north of the Royal Military College of Canada and Fort Henry, just west of the village of Barriefield, and just east of the Cataraqui River, was the first golf course in the area. The Kingston Golf Club operated from 1886 to 1887, and then again from 1891 to 1925, eventually with 13 distinct holes, and was a charter 1895 member of the Royal Canadian Golf Association. The Kingston Golf Club has been identified as the fourth oldest golf club in North America. [2] [3] The first Canadian Amateur Championship winner in 1895, Thomas Harley, a Scottish immigrant carpenter and stevedore, employed on the dockyards at RMC, represented the Kingston Golf Club. [4] The Kingston Golf Club operated until 1925, with a modified layout, but the area's golfers gradually switched to Cataraqui in the years prior to 1925. [5]

Early years of Cataraqui G&CC

The original course at Cataraqui was located past the western edge of the city at that time, on Lake Ontario. It had six holes; the club gradually acquired more land and expanded to 13 holes by 1921; by June 1925 the course had 18 holes. [6] One of the original designers was likely George Cumming, a top Toronto golf professional, Canadian Open and Canadian PGA Championship winner, and golf course architect, who is a member of the Canadian Golf Hall of Fame. Nine different course routings, using different sections of land, were used from 1917 to 1932. [7]

Thompson redesigns the course, 1931-33

In 1931, Stanley Thompson, already a world-famous golf course architect, was hired to redesign the course. The club was selling some land (and losing several holes, to facilitate the construction of grain elevators and other development) near Lake Ontario, while acquiring new land, the former Gravelle Farm, to the north and west of its holdings. [8] The western boundary became the marshlands around the Little Cataraqui Creek. Thompson used the new, much larger property to design and build several new holes, including most of the present back nine. He kept several of the existing holes, and reshaped several others. Thompson had left Kingston before the new course was completed; his work was finished by the club's professional, Richard H. (Dick) Green, likely assisted by Thompson's employee C. E. (Robbie) Robinson, an apprentice golf course architect. The new course, opened in May 1933, drew acclaim from the beginning. [9]

Cataraqui began hosting important events soon after its redesign, and was ranked #57 on the list of Canada's top courses in 2006 by Scoregolf magazine. The 15th hole, a very challenging 206-yard uphill par 3, christened 'Plateau', has often been ranked among the top holes in Canada. The routing plan from Thompson's 1931 redesign has remained intact.

1973 clubhouse fire

The original clubhouse, opened in 1922, burned to the ground on August 16, 1973, destroying virtually all of the club's archives and many of its trophies, but with no loss of life. A photo of the fire was published in many newspapers around the world.

Canadian golf course architect Doug Carrick has been consulting to the Club for the past dozen years. Carrick's work has seen the bunkers completely refurbished, and several new fairway bunkers added, notably on holes 5, 9, 10, 16, and 17, tightening the driving zones. From the back tees, with new tees having been constructed on holes 4, 10, 13 and 16, the course currently plays to a maximum length of nearly 6,600 yards, par 70. Cataraqui celebrated its centennial in 2017, and successfully hosted the 2017 Canadian Junior Boys' Championship, from July 31 to August 3. [10]

Golf: tournaments, champions, and notable players

Cataraqui has been a frequent host site for national, provincial and major local events, including the Ontario Amateur Championship (1939, 1952, 1963); the Ontario Ladies' Amateur Championship (1937, 1965, 1977, 1996); the Ontario Open (1955, 1958, 1966, 1973, 1979); the Canadian PGA Championship (1936, 1938); the Canadian PGA Seniors Championship in 1997; the Ontario Junior Match Play Championship in 2009; the Ontario University Athletics championship on several occasions, including 2011; and the 2017 Canadian Junior Boys Championship. [11] Major annual local events include the elite Kingston Whig-Standard men's tournament, and the elite Eastern Provinces women's tournament. Notable champions from events staged at Cataraqui have included Sandy Somerville, Marlene Streit, Moe Norman, Warren Sye, Jerry Anderson, and Brooke Henderson.

Notable golfers from the club include Richard H. (Dick) Green, the club's professional for nearly 40 years, who assisted Stanley Thompson with the 1931-33 redesign; Mark Siemonsen (1974 Ontario Juvenile champion and 1977 Ontario University champion); local legend Ronald G. Brown; 1981 Ontario Junior champion Barry Wood; Canadian Professional Golf Tour event champion John Colwell; 2002 Willingdon Cup players Craig Revell and Jeff Crowe; two-time Ontario Junior champion Brad Revell; Ontario University Athletics women's champion (2006 and 2008) Danielle Green; 2011 Ontario Women's Mid-Amateur champion Patti Hogeboom; and Canadian Professional Golf Tour event champion Matt McQuillan. McQuillan, who earned PGA Tour playing privileges in December 2010 for the 2011 season, and who was also a PGA Tour member in 2012, set a new competitive course record of 62 in a Pro-Am tournament in July 2008, breaking the mark set in 2003 by Chris Barber (a former Cataraqui member and several times Ottawa Zone CPGA champion) by one stroke. [12] McQuillan's achievement was celebrated by the Club on December 21, 2010; he received an honorary membership; he split the 2012 season between the PGA Tour and the Nationwide Tour. Current Cataraqui Club professionals include Canadian former Tour players Malcolm Trickey and Kevin Dickey, and 1998 Ontario Ladies' Amateur champion Kristen MacLaren.

Curling

The club's curling program was begun in 1961, with six sheets of ice installed in an addition to the clubhouse. With the arrival of curling, the club became a year-round operation. Curling was retained in 1975 with the opening of the new clubhouse, again with six sheets of ice. [13]

Provincial curling champions

Notable curlers include Ted Brown, third on the Ontario Tankard champion (Dr. Alex Scott, skip) rink 1975-76, and also skip of the Ontario Mixed champion rink that same year.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kingston, Ontario</span> City in Ontario, Canada

Kingston is a city in Ontario, Canada, on the northeastern end of Lake Ontario. It is at the beginning of the St. Lawrence River and at the mouth of the Cataraqui River, the south end of the Rideau Canal. Kingston is midway between Toronto, Ontario, and Montreal, Quebec, and is also near the Thousand Islands, a tourist region to the east, and the Prince Edward County tourist region to the west. Kingston is nicknamed the "Limestone City" because it has many heritage buildings constructed using local limestone.

Stanley Thompson was a Canadian golf course architect, and a high-standard amateur golfer. He was a co-founder of the American Society of Golf Course Architects.

Matt McQuillan is a Canadian professional golfer. He has played on the Canadian Tour since 2003, and won one tournament there. McQuillan earned 2011 playing privileges on the PGA Tour with a strong performance in stage three of Q-School, on his first attempt at the finals. His best career PGA Tour finish is a tie for third in the 2011 John Deere Classic.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lambton Golf and Country Club</span> Golf and tennis club in Toronto, Canada

The Lambton Golf and Country Club is a private golf and tennis club in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The golf club was established by Albert William Austin in 1902. The golf club is presently members with Golf Canada, and the United States Golf Association., and has hosted a number of competitions including the Canadian Open, and the Canadian Amateur Championship.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gary Cowan</span> Canadian golfer

Gary Cowan is a Canadian golfer who has achieved outstanding results at the highest class in amateur competition.

Garrison Golf & Curling Club is a golf and curling club, located within CFB Kingston in Kingston, Ontario, Canada.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ottawa Hunt and Golf Club</span>

The Ottawa Hunt and Golf Club, often referred to as Ottawa Hunt or the Hunt Club, is a private golf and curling club in Canada, located in Ottawa, Ontario. Founded 115 years ago in 1908 as a hunting club, it has hosted many world-class professional and amateur golf tournaments, along with many high-profile Canadian curling events.

Weston Golf and Country Club is located in Toronto, Ontario. Designed by Willie Park, Jr., it was home to Arnold Palmer's first PGA Tour victory in the 1955 Canadian Open.

James Grattan, nicknamed "Jimmy the Kid" is a Canadian curler from Oromocto, New Brunswick. He currently skips his own team.

The Scarboro Golf and Country Club is a private club in eastern Toronto, Ontario, Canada, located in the former city of Scarborough. Until 2018, it had facilities for curling and has an 18-hole golf course that is ranked among the top courses in Canada.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2011 The Dominion Tankard</span> Curling championship in Canada

The 2011 Dominion Tankard, southern Ontario men's provincial curling championship was held February 7–13 at the Peach King Centre in Grimsby, Ontario. The winning team of Glenn Howard will represent Ontario at the 2011 Tim Hortons Brier in London, Ontario.

Gregory Balsdon is a Canadian curler from North York, Ontario. He currently skips a team on the World Curling Tour.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Brantford Golf & Country Club</span>

The Brantford Golf & Country Club is a private golf course and curling club located in Brantford, Ontario, Canada. It is the fourth oldest golf club in North America having been founded in 1879. The course is ranked 46 in 2010 Scoregolf Top 100 Courses in Canada.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2013 The Dominion Tankard</span> Curling championship in Canada

The 2013 Dominion Tankard, southern Ontario's men's provincial curling championship, was held from February 4 to 10 at the Barrie Molson Centre in Barrie, Ontario. The winning team of Glenn Howard will represent Ontario at the 2013 Tim Hortons Brier in Edmonton, Alberta.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2014 Travelers Tankard</span>

The 2014 Travelers Tankard, southern Ontario's men's provincial curling championship, was held from January 27 to February 2 at the Smiths Falls Community Memorial Centre in Smiths Falls, Ontario. The winning Mark Bice team represented Ontario at the 2014 Tim Hortons Brier in Kamloops, British Columbia.

The Westmount Golf and Country Club is a private sports and country club located in Kitchener, Ontario, Canada. Its grounds span the municipal boundary with Waterloo. The club features golf, curling and tennis facilities.

The 2017 Recharge With Milk Men's Tankard, better known as the Ontario Tankard was the 2017 edition of the Ontario men's provincial curling championship to determine who will represent the province of Ontario at the 2017 Tim Hortons Brier, the national curling championship of Canada. In 2017, the Tankard was contesteded in conjunction with the 2017 Ontario Scotties Tournament of Hearts, at the Cobourg Community Centre in Cobourg, Ontario, January 29-February 5, 2017.

Jamie Robert Alexander Brannen was a Canadian curler and a six-time New Brunswick Tankard champion.

Rafael Alarcón is a Mexican professional golfer who played on the PGA Tour.

Jonathan Beuk is a Canadian curler from Kingston, Ontario.

References

  1. ↑ Jones, 1987
  2. ↑ The Evolution of Cataraqui Golf Course, by John D. Smith, 2002, Heinrich Heine Press at Grass Creek, Kingston, Ontario, ISBN   0-919234-03-8, p. 1
  3. ↑ Barclay, James A. (1992). Golf in Canada: A History. Toronto: McClelland & Stewart. pp. 41, 97. ISBN   978-0-7710-1080-4.
  4. ↑ Barclay, pp. 96–7, 105–6
  5. ↑ Cataraqui: The First 70 Years 1917-1987, by Lyndon Jones, 1987, Belleville, Ontario, Mika Publishing Company, ISBN   0-921341-10-5; Smith, 2002
  6. ↑ The Evolution of Cataraqui Golf Course, by John D. Smith, 2002, Heinrich Heine Press at Grass Creek, Kingston, Ontario, ISBN   0-919234-03-8, pp. 1-27
  7. ↑ Smith, 2002
  8. ↑ Smith
  9. ↑ The Evolution of Cataraqui Golf Course, by John D. Smith, 2002, Heinrich Heine Press at Grass Creek, Kingston, Ontario, ISBN   0-919234-03-8, pp. 37-75
  10. ↑ golfcanada.ca, competitions calendar
  11. ↑ History of Golf in Canada, by L.V. Kavanaugh, 1973, Fitzhenry and Whiteside Ltd., Toronto, ISBN   0-88902-014-0, pp. 170, 186-193.
  12. ↑ Kingston Whig-Standard , July 22, 2008.
  13. ↑ Cataraqui Golf and Country Club: The First Seventy Years 1917-1987, by Lyndon Jones, 1987, Belleville, Ontario, Mika Publishing Company, pp. 61-74

44°13′30″N76°32′06″W / 44.225°N 76.535°W / 44.225; -76.535

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.