Additional information
| Author(s) | Hendren, J |
|---|---|
| Dustwrapper | |
| Illustrations By | |
| Irish Interest | |
| Pages | |
| Year of Publication |
The Knock Golf Club Limited, A History 1895-1982
Founded in 1895, Knock Golf Club began with the opening of a nine-hole course between the Knock Railway Station on the Belfast & County Down Railway line and the main road from Belfast to Gilnahirk on 6 May 1895. This course quickly proved to be too small for their needs and it moved to a nine-hole course at the south end of Shandon Park within three years and was opened for play on 30 April 1898. Their original (Edwardian) clubhouse which was built in 1904 was largely thanks to Mr. J.F. Peddie, a founding member, who prepared the plans and supervised the construction. The ornate clubhouse would later become a private residence named ‘Ben-Hur’ but was demolished by 2019.
In 1920 the Knock G.C. moved to its current location, 80 acres of the Summerfield Estate, a half mile from the terminus of the Dundonald tramway line, which was purchased from H.S. Lawther. where the course was designed by renowned golf course architects Messrs Colt, Mackenzie, and Allison. The Estate cost GBP10,946 and included a Georgian country mansion previously the residence of the Gordons’ one the oldest County Down families and this was, at considerable expense, converted to a clubhouse. The estate contained a chalybeate spring which was believed to have curative powers In 1921 the club had a ‘plebiscite’ to vote in favour (60%) of Sunday golf. In the forties, as part of the war effort they allowed, the 10th and 11th fairways to be tilled. The R.A.F. also built a signals shelter on the land and it was sold to the air ministry and it took another 20 years for the club to get it back into their possession and eventually demolished it in 1971.
The club had engaged Messrs Hawtree & Son to plan an layout on the basis of a substantial acquisition of land but in the end it never materialised. However a course extension on a smaller scale (11.5 acres) was carried out in 1956 as the greens committee co-opted John Glover and Dr. John Halliday to assist following the acquisition of neighbouring land from the Hospitals Authority.
The course is renowned for its challenging layout, featuring tree-lined fairways, strategically placed bunkers, and undulating greens. The par-70 course offers a stern test for golfers of all abilities, with the par-4 sixth hole often cited as one of the best in Ireland.
Knock Golf Club has hosted numerous prestigious tournaments, including the Guinness sponsored Irish Professional Championship, which was won by Ernie Jones (1964) and Christy Greene (1968) and the Ladies’ British Open Amateur Strokeplay Championship in 2016 which was won by Sophie Lamb (England).
Accomplished players include John Glover a member of the club when he won the British Boys Amateur Championship in 1950 as was Claire Robinson (nee Nesbitt), the Curtis Cup player and twice winner of the Irish Women’s Amateur Close Championship. A.G.H. Love the Irish Close Amateur Champion of 1956, Michael Sinclair winner of the North (1997) and East (2003) provincial titles and Katie Poots who secured a victory in the Fairhaven Trophy in 2022.
