Date posted: 18 February 2022, 1:05pm
Posted by: Peter Bennett
Have you ever wondered what Killiney Golf Club was like in 1911?
Alistair Smith, a long standing member of the club and a member of the Memorabilia Committee, has an amazing collecting golf memorabilia.
Part of Alister Smith's collection of golf memorabilia.
One of the items in Alister's collection is a rare, and I mean very rare, copy of The Irish Golfer's Guide for 1911 Edited by Lionel Hawson and published by the "Irish Field" 11 D'Oller St., Dublin.
The Irish Golfer's Guide for 1911. Part of Alister Smith's collection of golf memorabilia.
Here is the 1911 entry for Killiney Golf Club.
Killiney Golf Club (Co. Dublin)
Founded 1902. A nine hole inland course, within 11/4 miles of Killiney Station. Frequent trains from Westland row Station, D. and S.E.R., Dublin, to Killiney. Journey occupies about 30 minutes. Railway vouchers are obtainable.
HON. SECRETARY: S. Martin-Ashlin, Carrigrenane, Killiney
SECRETARY: L. F. Orr, Lisnacreine, Stillorgan Park. TELEPHONE - 191, Killiney.
CAPTAIN: J. L. Stirling.
COMMITTEE: C. Andrews, D. L. Pim, C. J. Mooney, L. J. Hill, B. A. Morrison, J. L. Stirling.
PROFESSIONAL: James Davies.
MEMBERSHIP FEES: Entrance – Men - £3 3s; Ladies, £2 2s. Annual Subscription – Men - £2 2s.; Ladies, £1 1s.
MEMBERSHIP: Men - 185; Ladies - 80.
VISITORS’ FEES: 1s. per day; 7s. 6d. per week; 2s. on Saturdays and Sundays; 5s. on Bank Holidays.
BOGEY: 76. RECORDS: (A.) C. W. Walshe, 75 ; (P.) J. Davies, 70.
Sunday play allowed. Affiliated to Golfing Union of Ireland.
The visitor is at once struck by the commodious clubhouse Killiney possesses. The ladies' club, which has a strength of 180 members, is separate, but shares the same clubhouse.
The nine hold course makes its way uphill, and then down again, and only three holes approach anything like flatness. On entering the club grounds I was struck by the excellent order everything was in, which state of things reflect great credit on the secretarial and other staff. Financially well off, the club can manage to do things well.
The bunkers are mostly artificial, though there are two holes where natural elements, such as rocks and furze bushes, have to be faced. The green is quite good, and in dry weather very fast. Straightness is not always essential, though there is generally bad punishment for either a slice or a pull, most often for the latter. The short hole is capital. In travelling round the golf course one is greatly struck by the various ideas of what constitutes a good short hole. The Killiney one strikes me as being the right thing, because you have a reasonably sized green to pitch on and bad punishment if you don’t. In some clubs the idea seems to be to make the short hole a well-nigh impossible one.
General improvement effected last winter.