Wallasey was founded in 1891 by members from nearby Hoylake, perhaps because their links was becoming crowded or maybe because Wallasey was more convenient for the many Liverpool businessmen wanting to slip away to play golf.
Old Tom Morris of St Andrews, four times Open champion, laid out the links. An 1893 newspaper comment that “the greens were in excellent condition” has been repeated continuously ever since. Course improvements were made in 1901 by Alex ‘Sandy’ Herd, Open Champion 1902, and in 1913 by Harold Hilton, four times Amateur Champion and twice Open Champion.
The links had been affected by drifting sand in the early years, but after the October gales of 1917 sand inundated the holes closest to the sea. There was a real risk of golf being abandoned. On top of this there were problems with the local Council over the lease and their plans to develop the coastline. Fortunately these problems were resolved, a new coastal embankment checked the encroachment of sand, and the Club was able to consider restoring the links to its former glory.
In 1929 James Braid, five times Open Champion, was consulted on alterations which led to Wallasey being selected as a qualifying course for the 1930 Open. It was whilst Bobby Jones was playing in the competition that the famous portrait was painted by Wallasey member J. A. A. Berrie, R.A. Only two years later the first Stableford competition was played at Wallasey.
Although Wallasey was again an Open qualifying course in 1936, a new lease meant that the acreage was reduced and a new layout was required. This was designed by Hawtree and J. H. Taylor, with additional advice from James Braid. The Second World War interrupted this development and caused the loss of some holes for defences. It was not until 1952 that the full 18 hole links was available, and in 1956 the Open qualifiers were again held at Wallasey when the Open returned to Hoylake. As well as eventual winner Peter Thompson, the competitors included Henry Cotton, Gene Sarazen, Peter Alliss, and the 20 year old Gary Player.
1964 saw the retirement of club professional Bill Davies after 36 years service, during which he also managed 2 Ryder Cup appearances and several top ten Open finishes.
A film by Cookie Jar Golf
Wallasey Golf Course was laid out by esteemed course designer, Old Tom Morris, in 1891.
Morris worked as a greenkeeper, clubmaker, ballmaker, golf instructor, and course designer as well as playing match and tournament golf. He came second in the first Open Championship in 1860, and won the following year. He followed this up with further victories in 1862, 1864 and 1867. He still holds the record as the oldest winner of The Open Championship at 46. Also, he was part of the only father and son couple being winner and runner up.
Morris played a role in designing courses across the British Isles. Morris course designs include Carnoustie, Kirkcaldy, Prestwick, Muirfield, the Jubilee Course at St Andrews, Balcomie, Moray, Bridge of Allan, Royal North Devon, King Edwards Bay Golf Club, Castletown and Killermont.
The four original greens which have stood the test of time are marked by plaques commemorating this legendary designer.
He was an excellent golfer and with a handicap of plus 1 in 1907 he won the club championship at Royal Porthcawl. Earlier he had served as a surgeon in the Royal Army Medical Corps, and spent some years in South Africa.
His medical career brought him to Wallasey and he joined the golf club in 1914. During the 1914 to 1918 War he served as a major with the RAMC. He returned to Wallasey after the war, and records of 1922 show that his handicap had risen to 8.
His unique scoring method was born out of frustration with the bogey system of scoring at that time, where the player played against the bogey, or par, for the hole. The strong winds at Wallasey made nonsense of this system when players were unable to reach the long par 4s in regulation.
Stableford had experimented with a scoring system when briefly a member of Glamorganshire in 1898. He took the scores from a normal bogey competition and used a points system to identify a winner, but the system proved unsatisfactory and was not repeated. It was only many years later at Wallasey that he devised a formula that worked.
“I was practising on the 2nd fairway at Wallasey Golf Club one day in the latter part of 1931, when the thought ran through my mind that many players in competitions got very little fun since they tore up their cards after playing only a few holes and I wondered if anything could be done about it.”
Wallasey held the first Stableford competition on 16th May 1932, and it was an instant success. Five handicapper Frederick Lister took home the silver trophy with a score of 36 points. As an everlasting tribute, Wallasey introduced “The Frank Stableford Open Amateur Memorial Trophy” in 1969. Of course, the event is played as a Stableford, and it has become a major event in the amateur golfing calendar.
Stableford’s portrait by J. A. A. Berrie hangs in the clubhouse, a reminder to the members of the debt owed to the club golfer’s greatest benefactor. Also displayed is Dr Stableford’s own letter describing how his system was devised while practising at Wallasey.
“I doubt whether any single man did more to increase the pleasure of the humble club golfer.”
Henry LonghurstThe Frank Stableford OpensUndoubtedly the greatest amateur of all time, and to many the greatest golfer of all time, Robert Tyre Jones reached the pinnacle of his career by winning “The Grand Slam” in 1930. He won the Amateur and Open Championships of both the United States and Britain in the same year. He then retired, aged 28, having won thirteen major titles.
The 1930 Open was held at nearby Hoylake. Jones came through qualifying rounds played at Wallasey and Hoylake before going on to win the Open by two shots. An ex captain of Wallasey, Sir Ernest Royden, commissioned a portrait which was presented to the club and is still displayed in the main lounge. John A. A. Berrie, RA, artist and Wallasey member, painted the picture in oils.
Jones was so delighted with the work that he also signed the portrait, the only occasion he did this. He commissioned the artist to paint a replica which hangs in the famous Augusta Club in Georgia.
Bobby Jones was elected an honorary life member of Wallasey in 1931 for his enormous contribution to golf. He maintained contact with the club throughout his life.
Championship qualifying, world matchplay, course records and the invention of a scoring system. The events that shaped the links, drawn from the Club’s own heritage record.
Wallasey was founded by members from nearby Hoylake, perhaps because their links was becoming crowded, or maybe because Wallasey was more convenient for the many Liverpool businessmen wanting to slip away to play golf. Old Tom Morris of St Andrews, four times Open champion, laid out the links.
A newspaper comment that has been repeated continuously ever since.
Course improvements by the 1902 Open Champion, followed in 1913 by Harold Hilton, four times Amateur Champion and twice Open Champion.
Ball lifted eight Amateur Championships between 1888 and 1912, and became the first Englishman to win the Open Championship in 1890. He led Wallasey against the Oxford and Cambridge Golfing Society in the early matches.
Harold Hilton formed an entirely new 15th, which became the 9th between 1952 and 1967. No bunkers, no fairway, played from the current 9th tee to the 10th green, with nothing less than the perfect shot required. Bobby Jones classified it as one of his best 18 holes in the world, saying “No bunkers, none needed!”
After the October gales sand inundated the holes closest to the sea and there was a real risk of golf being abandoned, compounded by a dispute with the Council over the lease. A new coastal embankment checked the encroachment and the Club was able to consider restoring the links to its former glory.
Braid, five times Open Champion, advised on alterations which led to Wallasey being selected as a qualifying course for the 1930 Open.
Off a first round of 72 at Royal Liverpool, the reigning Amateur Champion shot 77 at Wallasey, enough to qualify. He went on to win the Championship by two shots. Ex Captain Sir Ernest Royden commissioned a portrait by fellow member John A. A. Berrie, R.A.; Jones was so delighted that he signed it, the only occasion he ever did so, and commissioned a replica which hangs in the clubhouse at Augusta National.
Played on 16 May. Devised by Dr Frank Stableford, later an Honorary Life Member, it was an instant success: five handicapper Frederick Lister took the silver trophy with 36 points.
Gene Sarazen, Alfred Padgham, Tommy Armour, Bobby Locke and Henry Cotton graced the Wallasey fairways. Club professional Bill Davies carded an opening 72 at Royal Liverpool to sit third.
Under the watchful eye of James Braid, thousands of tons of sand were moved within the interior of the course. Braid described the current 16th as a classic and claimed the 17th would soon become one.
The Second World War had cost the Club some holes to coastal defences. A new layout by Hawtree and J. H. Taylor, with advice from Braid, restored the links.
A third Open final qualifying brought Henry Cotton, Gene Sarazen, Max Faulkner, Bobby Locke, Sam Snead, Peter Alliss, Dai Rees and a young Gary Player. Joint leader Peter Thomson scored 71 here before winning the Open at Royal Liverpool for a third successive year.
Gene Sarazen met Birkenhead born Norman Sutton over 36 holes of matchplay on a cold, wet and windy day. Sutton took it 2 and 1.
Club professional from 1928, with two Ryder Cup appearances and several top ten Open finishes to his name.
A combined front nine of 67 against a par of 72. Both players halved the difficult 16th in twos, and Panton took the match 3 and 2.
Set by Peter Barber during European Open Championship qualifying.
A strong field for The Open at Royal Liverpool included a young Danny Willett, later the 2016 Masters Champion, alongside European Tour players Daniel Brooks, Marcus Brier and Matthew Nixon.
The links hosted the English Boys’ Under-18 Open Championship, won by Stiggy Hodgson. The same year the Club also staged the English Ladies’ Mid-Amateur Championship.
Wallasey played its part as a qualifying venue when the Boys Amateur Championship came to Royal Liverpool.
The English Boys’ Under-16 Open Championship was played over the links, won by Ignacio Puente.
One of the country’s leading women’s amateur events came to Wallasey, won by England’s Isobel Wardle.
The Club appointed golf course architects Clayton, DeVries & Pont to help shape a long-term plan for the course and practice facilities.
Wallasey was ranked among Golf Monthly’s Top 100 Courses in the UK and Ireland.
Wallasey co-hosted the 100th English Men’s Amateur Championship alongside Royal Liverpool, welcoming many of the country’s finest amateur golfers to the links.