Our History In 2017 the club was 125 years old and celebrations were held throughout the year to commemorate this event Mid Herts Golf Club was first established in 1892 when permission to play golf on Gustard Wood Common had been granted by the Lords of the Manor and seven months later the 9-hole course was opened for play. Horace T Rawlins who worked as a caddie at the Royal Isle of Wight Club, moved to become Mid Herts’ first Groundsman and Professional at the age of 18. Two years later Horace emigrated to the United States working as a Professional and in course design, including Springhaven Club in Philadelphia with which
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Mid Herts has a twinning arrangement. Horace T Rawlins occupies a unique position in the golfs history books: he was the winner of the very first US Open Championship in October 1895 at Newport Rhode Island and was runner-up in the 1896 US Open. He died in 1935 at the age of 60 and the statue of Horace by sculptor Ben Twiston-Davies, was placed near the Clubhouse as part of the 125th anniversary celebration. The clubhouse was constructed in 1897 on the current site and the course was enlarged to 18
holes in 1923 under the guidance of James Braid extending beyond The Slype and Kimpton Road. In 1935 the Club purchased Manorial Rights and became the owners of Gustard Wood Common, although the public retain the rights of ‘fresh air and exercise’ over the land. By the early 1960s golf became more difficult on the north of the Common due to increasing road traffic and the Club purchased 21 acres of farmland to accommodate three new holes and a practice area.
