Every time I arrive at Sunningdale, I always get goose bumps which I must admit doesn’t happen very often to me these days after a lifetime of playing some amazing courses all around the world whilst playing on the European & Challenge Tours. So, I am excited that we will be ending our season at Sunningdale and wanted to share some of its history as one of the most popular courses in the world.
Sunningdale’s Old Course was designed by two-time Open Champion Willie Park Jnr and was opened in 1901. The land on which it was constructed belonged to St. John’s College, Cambridge and mainly consisted of heather, gorse and pine trees.
Bobby Jones had a great fondness for the Old Course and in 1926, during qualifying for The Open Championship (which he went on to win the following week at Royal Lytham), Jones shot a remarkable 66 & 68 and after his round said: “I wish I could take this course home with me back to The States”.
Many further amateur and professional events have been played on the Old Course including The World Professional Match Play, The European Open, The Walker Cup, Ladies Open Championship, Open Championship Final Qualifying and most recently the Senior Open Championship on two occasions and again next year in 2021.
The Old Course is today considered one of the greatest golf courses in the world and is regularly found in the top 30 of the world’s rankings. It will be a very special way for Variety Golf to finish off the 2020 season and celebrate the memory of one of our most celebrated Captains at our Sir Bruce Forsyth Classic on Thursday 29th October.
Take a look at: www.sunningdale-golfclub.co.uk.
If you would like to enter any events for the rest of the year, please feel free to get in touch ASAP to avoid missing out. I look forward to seeing you at an event soon.
By Jamie Little