In 1887, Robert Finlay became a benefactor and founder member of the Nairn Golf Club. He was President from 1911-1929. Horace Hutchinson, who won back-to-back Amateur Championships at St. Andrews and Hoylake in 1886-87, is associated with Nairn. The Nairn Golf Club archive has helped to trace back the details of Hutchinson’s link, which involved […]
Podcast: Plus Four Podcast
Prestwick, Western Gailes, and the Ayrshire and Kintyre coasts of Scotland
The first podcast from our 21-day journey in Scotland features week one in Glasgow, Ayr, and Campbeltown, getting to know golf on the west coast of Scotland. This episode features conversations with the archivist at Prestwick Golf Club, Mr. Andrew Lochhead, just prior to the official 150th anniversary of the first Open on October 17, […]
Preview: 2022 World Hickory Open
The World Hickory Open returns in October 2022, after a two-year hiatus due to COVID-19. A group of ten intrepid hickory golf enthusiasts from the Pacific Northwest are making their way to this year’s event at Royal Dornoch, Nairn, and Castle Stuart, following a 21-day itinerary that begins on the Glasgow coast at Western Gailes […]
Dave Brown & McIntyre Golf Company
Precision is a word that aptly applies to Dr. David Brown, owner of McIntyre Golf Company, the leading manufacturer of replica golf balls in the world. (He even plays Nicoll Precision irons from the mid-1910s.) An orthopedic surgeon by training, specializing in knees and overall sports medicine, he meticulously crafts gutta percha balls, brambles, mesh […]
Karl Nagy & Deal Hudson
Their 2021 Trip to East Lothian and Fife While enduring the pandemic, hickory golfers everywhere dreamed of a return to the links and the prospect of getting back to international competition, camaraderie, and travel. Many of us suffered months of travel bans and course closures. Lingering for many was the potential that the 2021 World […]
Jeffery Ellis: The Clubmaker’s Art
Jeffery Ellis began collecting golf clubs at an early age and found that the literature that was available for up-and-coming collectors of antique golf instruments was sorely lacking. What is an ambitious and enterprising person to do, but set one’s mind to creating the most definitive and authoritative publication of antique golf clubs and their […]
Carolina Hickory Golf Association
The Carolina Hickory Golf Association is dedicated to preserving the traditions of the ancient game of golf. Conceived in 2004, and formalized in 2005, it is one of the first—if not THE first—regional hickory golf association in the United States. The fortunate few who call the Carolinas their home know what it’s like to play […]
Florida Hickory Golfers, with Mike Stevens, Bill Geisler, and Richard Grula
The Florida Hickory Golfers are a regional group of golfers dedicated to preserving the pureness and authenticity of golf by playing with hickory shafted clubs on traditional golf courses. At over 65,000 square miles, the state covers a vast territory, yet this group manages to build success upon success, now boasting a groundbreaking partnership with […]
Kelly Leonard, Clubmaker
There aren’t many people devoted to the craft of hand-making longnose clubs as they were made in the 19th century. Kelly Leonard is one of those rare exceptions. Based in Canada, Kelly is a one-man show. By day, he makes his living in construction, but in his free time, he’s passionate about hand-shaping wood, horn, […]
Tim Alpaugh: Innovation, Creativity and the Metropolitan Hickory Society
Author, inventor, craftsman, and bon vivant—Tim Alpaugh has an unassuming manner about him, but don’t let that fool you. He possesses a keen eye for detail, and a passion for history. In this episode, we’ll hear about Tim’s journey from the fast-paced corporate world to a life-changing decision in the 1980s to give it all […]