The History of St. Marys Golf & Country Club
Rich in history and long-standing golf traditions
The St. Marys Golf & Country Club, established in 1931, is both an annual member and pay-as-you play championship golf course.
Visitors to St. Marys are captivated by the town's landscape, architecture and touches of Scotland, allowing the town to proudly hold true to its motto ‘The Town Worth Living In’. The original Scottish settlers brought a strong, colourful culture and a strong work ethic to the town. Along with them, they brought the game of golf as a unique form of recreation.
Beginning in the late 1920's, golf was originally played in St. Marys on a farmer’s field. Tired of competing with livestock and often being forced to pick up from an unplayable lie, a newly formed and dedicated group of golfers packed up their gear and regalia and moved to the present site. The original nine holes, the 'Ainslie Nine' were established in 1931.
The Dirty 30’s took their toll on the financial resources of the club. To mitigate some of the financial struggle, the St. Marys Lions club took over the course in the 50's. Local citizen shareholders joined forces with the Lions Club in 1963 to provide additional funding to build the present club house.
As popularity of the game of golf grew rapidly in the 1980’s, pressure grew to expand the course. The course was purchased under private ownership in 1993 by local entrepreneurs Dave Ainslie, Ted Courtnage, Rob and Earl Staffen, and Rick and Sandy Fifield. In 1994, an additional nine holes, the ‘Gowanbrae Nine’, were constructed, at a cost of almost one million dollars.
Over the years, the course has gained its reputation as one of the more challenging and picturesque courses in Southwestern Ontario.
Designed by David Moote, of Moote and Associates, the new layout utilizes the rolling St. Marys topography and maintains the degree of difficulty associated with the original course via two additional ponds, in addition to the two creeks already in play on the golf course.
The St. Marys Golf & Country Club has been highly rated in many newspaper articles and magazines, has hosted numerous OGA events, including a qualifier for the Ontario Amateur, has been host to the Mid-Western Optimist Junior Golf Championships since 1998, and has become the home course for the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame, also located in St. Marys. The Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame Celebrity Classic Golf Tournament, hosted every June, includes Candian celebrities with each foursome and tournament participants come from Stratford, London, Kitchener, Waterloo, Toronto, the GTA, all over Canada, as well as the United States. In 2009, the inductees included, Larry Walker, Ernie Whitt, Bernie Soulliere, and Roy Miller.