Despite entrants having to endure trips from Nowra and Sydney with less than pleasant driving conditions, e.g. flood, rain & fog, 7 hardy hickory exponents fronted for the event. The course had received 9mm of rain in the previous 24 hours but was in good shape and played accordingly with greens accepting our approach shots, and requiring many repairs to the putting surfaces. The course lived up to its claim as one of the best wet weather venues on the South Coast.

The first 9 holes, we were interrupted by a short shower but for the last 9 the weather was kinder and no rain was experienced. After 9 holes, the scoring revealed  Andrew (our host) leading with 15 points closely followed by Rob Downie on 14, and Tom Moore on 13. The rest of the field ranged from 11 to 4 with first time hickory player Robert Jaeger leading that group. A drink and nourishment seemed to affect some players dramatically with some falling back, others maintaining their scoring & one individual “firing”.

The second 9 holes and the checking of the cards revealed a close finish with Andrew Wilson and Tom Moore with 26 points, Robert Jaeger with 22, Stephen Fletcher with 19, but the leaders had accumulated 27.

The result at the end of 18 holes was a tie on 27 points between Rob Downie and AGHS captain Ross Howard. Between the 11th & 17th holes, a very creditable 18 points were scored by the eventually winner on countback, Captain Ross. Interesting to note that at the match in Wagga on 19th April for the Al Howard Memorial Trophy, Ross had been seconded to play for Victoria, and was defeated by Rob by 7 holes to 5.

So at the end of the day, the son gets to have his name engraved on the father’s trophy (Al Howard’s hickory shafted putter) at Kiama, a course Al redesigned and increased to 18 holes many long years ago. If it was Ross’ driving that helped get him over the line, it should be noted that he learnt to drive Dad’s FE Holden on this very course as it was being redesigned.

Thanks go to Andrew Wilson for organising the event at his home course, and to those who participated. It is pity the numbers were down on previous annual events but the weather no doubt played its part in the attendance. We all look forward to a larger field in 2016.

– Ross Howard

AGHS Captain

On the afternoon of Friday 24 April, a day described by ABC TV weather presenter Jenny Woodward as ‘postcard weather’, thirteen Australian Golf Heritage Society members assembled for a nine hole stableford competition over the front nine at Royal Queensland Golf Club.

The event was won by AGHS Secretary Ross Haslam with 20 stableford points off a handicap of 11. Runner-up with 15 points off a handicap of 1 was Chris Cooper, on a countback from Ross Bishop with 15 points off a handicap of 10.

For this event, Ross Haslam kindly provided a selection of left and right-handed pre-1900 long nosed wooden clubs and replica gutta percha balls for our fraternity to test. This was a wonderful opportunity to experience the feeling of golf as it was played in the half century following  1849 when the ‘guttie’ was introduced. Ross suggested we use a short- to medium-length par three for this experience, because most players can’t hit such a ball much farther than 100 metres with these clubs.

RQGC kindly prepared the spare par three on the east side of its course (Hole 4A) for our exclusive use to run a nearest-the-pin event using Ross’ age-old equipment. This event was won by Vince Creagh with a majestic stroke using a genuine 1890s semi-long nosed brassie.

Vince’s prize comprised a pair of replica  balls: the first a pre-1900 ‘line-cut gutta percha’ ball and the other a ‘mesh-patterned’ ball as used between 1905 and the 1930s.

The earlier of these balls, traces its history to 1849 when a student of the University of St. Andrews, Rev. Dr. Robert Adams Paterson, melted some discarded gutta percha packaging and formed it into a golf ball. Gutta percha is the milky sap of various Malaysian trees of the sapodilla family (genera Payena and Palaquium). Being more resilient than the ‘feathery’ ball it replaced, the surface of a ‘guttie’ could be scored to make it fly farther and truer. It was also significantly cheaper to produce and was a key reason for the explosion of golf as a popular sport around the turn of the twentieth century. The mesh pattern of the latter ball was made possible by the improved processes forced upon manufacturers as a result of the game’s increased popularity around that time.

A wonderful afternoon was had by all and a unanimous expression of thanks was voiced to Ross Haslam for the loan of the oldest and most precious items from his extensive collection of early golfing equipment.

– Andrew Baker