The History of Alberta Golf
Banff - Golf Club House - Showing old time tally ho before motor cars came - 1911
The Alberta Golf Association was formed in 1908 and incorporated as a society in 1912 to serve the best interests of its member clubs and to help grow the fledgling game. There were only five clubs as members in 1912 they being the Lethbridge Country Club; Fort Macleod Golf Club; Calgary Golf and Country Club; Calgary’s St. Andrews Golf Club and the Edmonton Country Club.[1]
One of the early tasks of the volunteer based association was to conduct the provincial amateur championship as well as interclub competitions of the member clubs. C.W. Hague of the Calgary Golf and Country became the first champion in 1908 while the Edmonton Country Club’s Miss Brown claimed the ladies title. Interestingly, a mixed championship was also staged and it was won by Miss Nora Polkinghorn and Mr. Arnison of the Calgary Golf and Country Club.[2]
The association held long drive competitions in the early years where in 1908 G. Shaw won the contest with a prestigious stroke of 270 yards while a Miss Mathieson’s drive of 160 yards captured the ladies long drive event.[3]
Incorporated in 1912, the first executive of the Alberta Golf Association was: President A. McMahon of Calgary; Vice President Dr. Cobbett of Edmonton and Secretary-Treasurer T. Gillespie of Granum.[4]
In 1914, the Victoria Park Golf Club in Edmonton became the first public golf course in Canada. It was followed by the construction of the Shaganappi Golf Club in Calgary in 1915.
“Golf boomed after the conclusion of World War I with the number of clubs in Canada doubling from 114 in 1919 to 228 in 1922. The newest clubs offered the latest in architectural design (courses and clubhouses) to entice potential members into joining.”[5] The scene in Alberta mirrored the national front with construction of many new courses and the further evolution of existing tracks.
The Canadian Ladies Golf Union was formed in 1913 and an Alberta branch developed in 1922 with the mandate to organize and implement provincial women’s programs. The Alberta branch would successfully meet their mission for the next seventy eight years before merging back with the men’s Alberta Golf Association in 2000.
Over the decades the associations were led by dedicated volunteers committed to delivering golf industry goodwill through the delivery of course ratings and golf championships. In the 1980’s the provincial men’s and ladies associations expanded their services dramatically, introduced professional staff members to assist a strong volunteer base and grew into multi-faceted organizations that could meet the challenges of their burgeoning memberships.
[1],[2],[3],[4] — Sport in Early Calgary, William M. McLennan
[5] — The Calgary Golf and Country Club Centennial Book, Tyler Trafford
