Beware of bones: seven wonders of the Hong Kong Golf Club
The Hong Kong Golf Club has a storied history, with its early years steeped in a colonial aura that brings to mind images of men with bushy mustaches and ladies in frilly petticoats. The history of the club is more or less the history of golf in Hong Kong, so close are the two intertwined, especially during the early years. And while the stories of how the club started inside the Happy Valley racecourse and its move to Fanling are well documented, some offbeat tales of the individuals and situations facing the early pioneers stand out.
The Hong Kong Golf Club has a storied history, with its early years steeped in a colonial aura that brings to mind images of men with bushy moustaches and ladies in frilly petticoats.
The history of the club is more or less the history of golf in Hong Kong, so close are the two intertwined, especially during the early years. And while the stories of how the club started inside the Happy Valley racecourse and its move to Fanling are well documented, some offbeat tales of the individuals and situations facing the early pioneers stand out.
The Hong Kong Golf Club’s original home was in Happy Valley within the racecourse that still thrives to this day on most Wednesday nights. Like now, the ground back then was multi-purpose and other sports such as football and cricket were played.
As expected, much patience and understanding was required, with the cricketers sometimes having to accommodate the golfers during their games and vice versa. A remark from the club’s 1903 annual meeting with regard to the final of the Club Championship read: “The thanks of the Players are due to the Cricketers who so kindly stopped their game to let the Golfers through on each round.”
In 1904, the ground was made exclusive to golfers except on Wednesdays and Saturdays when the football and cricket boundaries were marked out for the army and navy.