3 minute read
History
In 1883 South Hayling was described as a ‘parish watering place’, a village with a branch line from Havant, five miles East of Portsmouth. This connection supported investments for developing the island into a salubrious vacation destination for wealthy families, one of these being the Sandeman family, famous for their port and sherry business. One of the Sandeman brothers, Fleetwood Sandeman, had been introduced to golf through his friendship with the Rev J Cumming Macdona, who was a member at Hoylake and Pau in France. Macdona announced in ‘The Field’ magazine that Fleetwood Sandeman intended to form a new golf course on Hayling Island.
It was not until 3rd august 1883 that Hayling Island Golfing Club was formally inaugurated at a meeting in Whin Hurst, South Hayling, the home of John Glas Sandeman, and presided over by macdona who had travelled from Cheshire especially for the meeting. Fleetwood was elected Captain and his brother John Glas as Treasurer.
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the committee engaged a professional, ‘the General’ Joe Lloyd, from Hoylake, who won the uS open in 1897: he helped lay out the first 9 holes on Beach Common, to the east of the current club’s location.
a year later, in 1884, a full 18 hole course was realised when leases on Sinah Common allowed the course to be extended west. The Club acquired freehold of the land in the 1920’s. at that time the committee also formed Hayling Island Ladies Golf Club and appointed John Glas’s daughters maud as Lady Captain and ella as Secretary/ treasurer.
the club negotiated a long lease on Sinah Common in 1897, and it was then decided to build a clubhouse at a cost of £1000. It
was eventually built in 1899 and stayed for over 100 years.
In 1902 an exhibition match was held between Harry Vardon and James Braid and soon afterwards in 1905 J H taylor was commissioned to advise on course alterations for a Fee of £11.
the course has evolved over time, with a number of architects being involved in that evolution, including tom Dunn, JH Taylor and Harry Colt. But it was surely tom Simpson, the renowned golf course architect, who left his ensuring mark on the course when his changes in 1932 and after the war in 1946 made the course very much as it is today.
In 1938 the secretary mr a p patey started a programme of shingle extraction with the Hayling Coal and Transport Co. which created the lake near the clubhouse, provided a steady income stream, and more importantly a new source of water for the course.
the course has hosted many competitions over the years in particular the english Ladies Closed Championships in 1936, 1948, and 1966.
Fleetwood Sandeman, picture courtesy of Jon astle, Christians and norway.
maud Sandeman, picture courtesy of m.Z Fairtlough, from her book ‘Love, War and Ice-Cream’ copyright 2012.
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