150
HOYLAKE IS THE OLDEST of all the English seaside links with the exception of Westward Ho! in Devon, which was established just a few years earlier. Robert Chambers and George Morris were commissioned to lay out the original Hoylake course, which was extended from 9 to 18 holes in 1871. This was also the year in which the Club was granted
years historyof making
its Royal designation thanks to the patronage of The Duke of Connaught. Much time has passed since then, but
the Hoylake links, despite their at first glance flat and benign appearance, are still very much among the trickiest tests of a player’s shot selection and accuracy. What’s more, in recent years, the course has been lengthened and upgraded to
Proud of the past. Excited by the future. Royal Liverpool Timeline 1869
Liverpool Golf Club at Hoylake is founded and the Royal Hotel on Stanley Road - adjacent to what is now the 17th hole - is used as a clubhouse. For the first seven years of the Club’s life the links land continues to perform its original function, doubling as a golf course and a horse racing track - indeed, echoes of this heritage
can be found today in the names of the first and eighteenth holes, Course and Stand, while the original saddling bell still hangs in the clubhouse. The 1869 Autumn Meeting is the Club’s first competition.
2 ROYAL LIVERPOOL GOLF CLUB MAGAZINE 2019–2020 1885
Royal Liverpool stages an informal Open Amateur ‘Grand Tournament’, played during the Club’s Spring Meeting. This match play competition attracts 44 leading players ‘from recognised clubs’ of the time, and Allan Macfie beats Horace Hutchinson 7&6 in the final. The event proves to be such a success the Club proposes to the Royal & Ancient Golf Club that a formal Amateur Championship is established. The suggestion is taken up and the inaugural Amateur Championship is staged at St. Andrews the following year. However, in 1922 - and presumably to Mr Macfie’s great pleasure - the Hoylake tournament is recognised as the first Amateur.
A water-
colour of Allan Macfie c.1886
THE HOYLAKE LINKS CAN BE BEAUTIFUL, UPLIFTING, AWE INSPIRING AND, ON OCCASION, SOUL-DESTROYING. THEY WERE CREATED TO BE A DEMANDING TEST OF GOLF AND REMAIN SO, AND THEY LIE AT THE VERY HEART OF THE HISTORY AND DEVELOPMENT OF GOLF IN GREAT BRITAIN.
take on twenty-first century technology and increasingly athletic big hitters. This year,
the Club’s 150th birthday,
the Walker Cup returns to Hoylake having made its last appearance in 1983. The Match will be a wonderful addition to the celebrations of Royal Liverpool’s proud history and important role in the development of the amateur game.
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