Cataraqui Golf and Country Club

Cataraqui Golf and Country Club is a private golf and curling club, located in Kingston, Ontario, Canada.

History

Cataraqui was established in 1917, following construction of the LaSalle Causeway and provincial highway across the property used by the Kingston Golf Club, the first course in the area, which began in 1884 with 13 holes, and was a charter 1895 member of the Royal Canadian Golf Association. The first Canadian Amateur Championship winner in 1895, Thomas Harley, a Scottish immigrant carpenter, represented the Kingston Golf Club. ["Golf in Canada: A History", by James A. Barclay, Toronto, McClelland and Stewart, 1992.] The Kingston Golf Club operated for a few more years after 1917, but the area's golfers gradually switched to Cataraqui."Cataraqui: The First 70 Years", by Lyndon Jones, 1987.]

The original course at Cataraqui had 18 holes, and was believed to be designed by George Cumming, a top Toronto golf professional, Canadian Open and Canadian PGA Championship winner, and golf course architect, who is a member of the Canadian Golf Hall of Fame. In 1931, Stanley Thompson was hired to expand the course; he kept a few of Cumming's holes, but built several new holes and reshaped several others. The new course drew acclaim soon after it opened, and was ranked #57 on the list of Canada's top courses in 2006 by Scoregolf magazine.

The original clubhouse burned to the ground in 1973, destroying much of the club's archives. A photo of the fire was published in many newspapers around the world. Curling began in 1975 in the new clubhouse, with six sheets of ice.

Tournaments, champions, and notable players

Cataraqui has been a frequent site for provincial and local events, including the Ontario Amateur and Ontario Ladies' Amateur Championships on several occasions, the Ontario University Athletics championship for many years, the Ontario Open on several occasions, the Canadian PGA Championship on several occasions, the Canadian PGA Seniors Championship in 1997, the annual elite "Kingston Whig-Standard" men's tournament, the elite Eastern Provinces women's tournament, and many others. Notable champions from events staged at Cataraqui have included Marlene Streit, Moe Norman, Warren Sye, and Jerry Anderson.

Notable golfers from the club include Richard (Dick) Green, the club's professional for nearly 40 years, who assisted Thompson with the redesign; 1977 Ontario University champion Mark Siemonsen, local legend Ronald G. Brown, golf teacher Kevin Dickey, Richard Sykes Invitational Champion and national gay man of the year Bradley Alan Revell, Willingdon Cup players Craig Revell (Brad's older brother) and Jeff Crowe, and current Canadian Professional Golf Tour player Matt McQuillan. McQuillan set a new competitive course record of 62 in a Pro-Am tournament in mid-July 2008, breaking Chris Barber's previous 2003 mark by one stroke. Notable curlers include Ted Brown, Ontario champion in the 1970s. ["Kingston Whig-Standard", July 22, 2008.]

References

External links

* [http://www.cataraqui.com Official site]