Royal Liverpool Golf Club, Hoylake

The Royal Liverpool Golf Club is a leading golf club in Merseyside in North West England. It was founded in 1869 on what was then the racecourse of the Liverpool Hunt Club, and received the "Royal" designation in 1871 due to the patronage of the Duke of Connaught of the day, who was one of Queen Victoria's younger sons. Robert Chambers and George Morris (younger brother of Old Tom Morris) were commissioned to lay out the original Hoylake course, which was extended to 18 holes in 1871. Harry Colt, one of the world's leading golf course architects, redesigned the course early in the 20th century, and it has since been tweaked periodically, mainly as a response to advances in equipment.

Location

Despite the club's name, its clubhouse is located in the small town of Hoylake on the Wirral Peninsula, with the course itself extending between Hoylake and the neighbouring town of West Kirby, which is separated from the city of Liverpool by the estuary of the River Mersey. Consequently, the course is often referred to as Hoylake, after the town. It has a single 18-hole course, which is a seaside links.

The 2006 Open Championship was held at Royal Liverpool on 20-23 July, for the first time since 1967. The course had its routing changed slightly for the championship, so that the old 16th hole (a huge par 5) became the 18th, thus making the old 17th and 18th the first and second holes, respectively, with the former first hole now becoming the third, and so forth.

History

Hoylake has a long and distinguished history of golfing firsts. It was originator and host to the inaugural men’s amateur championship in 1885, which became The Amateur Championship. It was host to the first ever international match between Scotland & England in 1902. It hosted the first Home International matches, and the first transatlantic contest between GB&I and the USA in 1921, an event which became the Walker Cup the following year. In fact, it is Royal Liverpool Golf Club's contribution to the amateur game that has set it apart from all other clubs in England. Although, at the end of the nineteenth century, it was the Royal and Ancient Golf Club of St Andrews that took on the role of the governing body in golf as the game developed, it was at Hoylake that the rules of amateur status were laid down. The Open at Hoylake was also the scene of the second leg of Bobby Jones's historic Grand Slam in 1930. A young John Lennon used to walk across the course to visit his girlfriend and future wife Cynthia Powell who lived in Hoylake.

Superstar champions Ball and Hilton

The history of Hoylake would not be complete without mention of two of the club's most famous sons, Harold Hilton and John Ball. Between them they dominated the amateur game of their era, and the pair were also a major influence on the professional game, each of them winning the Open Championship as amateurs. Ball won the Amateur Championship eight times between 1888 and 1912, and was runner-up twice. He won the Open Championship in 1890, the first Englishman and the first amateur to do so, and also took the Amateur title the same year.

Harold Hilton's record was just as impressive. He won the Open twice, in 1892 (the first year the Open was played over 72 holes) and again five years later, making him the only amateur apart from John Ball and Bobby Jones to win the title. His victory at Hoylake in 1897 was marked 100 years later by the creation of a new, annual Harold Hilton Medal tournament open to amateur golfers aged 30 or more and handicap five or less. Hilton also won the Amateur Championship four times, was runner-up on three occasions, and won the U.S. Amateur Championship in 1911, the year in which he also held the British title. This feat made him the first to hold both major amateur titles simultaneously. In the same year he still found time to become the first editor of the new Golf Monthly magazine.

Character of the course

Many comments have been made over the years about the quality and toughness of the links. The legendary golf writer Bernard Darwin's quote: "Hoylake, blown upon by mighty winds, breeder of mighty champions" highlights one of the course's key defences. The wind was conspicuous by its absence during the benign Open week in 2006. However, such was winner Tiger Woods's respect for the need for strategic play that he only hit his driver once during the tournament, with the course baked out due to dry conditions, and playing very fast. The course is mostly level, but the holes nearest the coast run through sandhills.

Important events

Important tournaments staged at Hoylake include:

• The Open Championship: 1897, 1902, 1907, 1913, 1924, 1930, 1936, 1947, 1956, 1967, 2006
• Walker Cup: 1983
• Curtis Cup: 1992
• The Amateur Championship: 1885 (the inaugural event), 1887, 1890, 1894, 1898, 1902, 1906, 1910, 1921, 1927, 1933, 1939, 1953, 1962, 1969, 1975, 1995, 2000
• Ladies' British Amateur Championship: 1896, 1989, 1996

The course has also hosted a number of professional tournaments, both on the European Tour and before the foundation of that Tour in 1972; many tournaments for ladies, seniors and boys; and various regional and representative events. It hosted The Open Championship for the first time in 39 years in 2006 when Tiger Woods won his third Open Championships; he beat his fellow American Chris DiMarco by two strokes. This was an emotional victory for Woods, who had lost his father to prostate cancer just two months earlier.

Royal Liverpool hosted the 2010 English Men's Open Amateur Stroke Play Championship for the Brabazon Trophy from June 24-27, 2010; the event was won by Darren Wright. The links had earlier staged the Brabazon on four occasions. In 1961, Ronnie Shade was champion, followed in 1972 by Peter Moody, a former University of Cambridge captain. Sandy Lyle lifted the trophy in 1977, while the 1989 event saw a tie between Craig Rivett from South Africa and Neil Roderick from Wales.

For the first time in its history, Hoylake will also host the 2012 Ricoh Women's British Open, which will take place from September 13-16, 2012. The first Women's British Open was staged in 1976, and in 2001 it gained status as one of the women's majors.

The Open Championship

The R&A announced early in 2010 that the Open Championship will be held at Royal Liverpool in 2014 for the 12th time in its history.

Winners of The Open Championship at Royal Liverpool Golf Club, Hoylake:

• Note: Superscript number besides the player's name is the number of the Open Championship in their respective careers.

(a) denotes amateur

External links

• Official site
• Golf Club Atlas guide