Plus Four Podcast on Hickory Golf

The Ladies' Golf Union (LGU) was the original governing body for women's and girls' amateur golf in Great Britain and Ireland. It was founded in 1893 and was based in St. Andrews, Scotland until merging with The R&A in 2017.

In this episode, Lauren Beatty, a Collaborative Doctorate Partnership student enrolled at Glasgow Caledonian University and working with the R&A World Golf Museum in St Andrews, discusses her oral history PhD project exploring women’s participation in club golf during the period 1945-1995. Beatty's research intends to explore women’s personal experiences of playing golf post Second World War in Scotland and aims to make these stories available to the public through the collections of the R&A World Golf Museum.

Lauren's research blog can be found here.

Finally, you can read about the R&A's Women in Golf Charter here.

Images property of R&A World Golf Museum

Kevin McGimpsey is the British Golf Collectors Society’s Murdock Medal winner of 2004 for his seminal book, The Story of the Golf Ball. A former Captain in the Parachute Regiment, Kevin traded his red beret for a career in antique and collectible golfing memorabilia.

Collecting golf balls is a robust pursuit in the sport. In this podcast, we discuss why this area of collecting inspires so many people, why they seem willing to part with so much money to compile their collections, and how the evolution of the golf ball revolutionized the game of golf, and still does so today.

Click here for a link to my article (with photos) on the private collection of Mr. Dick Estey.

Alastair J. Johnston has traveled a long way from Glasgow since his days as a lad. One might say that he has had a knack of being in the right place and the right time, but he might caution—to some degree—that one makes his own luck. In this episode, we learn about Johnston's magnanimous and unprecedented recent donation to the R&A of the entire contents of his 34,000-volume golf book collection; of his unrivaled relationship with Mr. Arnold Palmer, to whom he served as representative at IMG, the global agency in entertainment, sports and fashion; and of the origins of the PNC Championship, held annually in December in Florida—Johnston's brainchild honoring the unique connection the game of golf provides to generations of families, and the bond it nourishes between parent and child.

Of the donation, Martin Slumbers, Chief Executive of The R&A, said, “We are very grateful to Alastair for this generous gift. We are excited to continue his vision and support his desire to display this collection in its entirety in Scotland. I can think of no more appropriate place than St Andrews to create the world’s most comprehensive library of golf books."

Your host wishes to thank Michael Morrison (author and historian), first, for tweeting an image of The Chronicles of Golf: 1457 to 1857, Johnston's 700-page chronology of the earliest legacies of the game. That tweet led me to discover Mr. Johnston's published works, including The Clapcott Papers, which is discussed in the episode; and Seattle-based golf book dealer, Peter Yagi, for making the connection for me to contact Alastair for the podcast.

As is mentioned in the pod, the Johnston library collection—I submit—represents a true legacy gift to golfers forevermore. 100 years from now, serious students of the game will wish, as many of us do today, that they could thank those (like Alastair) who so thoughtfully and carefully stewarded the tradition and history of the game in their time, for we are all better for it. Well played, Mr. Johnston.

Sometimes in life, you meet a kindred spirit. Peter Grunwell, co-owner of Fine Golf Books of St. Andrews, is just this person. He, along with his wife, Anke Bruxmeier, have been in the golf world for more than 55 years, combined. Peter was a British PGA professional and a member of the United States Golf Collector's Society. Anke, a native of Germany, was a PGA professional as well for over 25 years.

Together, they are living the modern-day dream. They live in St. Andrews, collect antique, rare, and new golf books as well as memorabilia, play golf in the epicenter of the royal and ancient game, and have unending opportunities to meet golfers and golf collectors nearly every day of their lives.

Fine Golf Books does more than just sell books—they also deal in authenticated autographs, support the independent publishing of important titles, sell varying valuable works on paper, and the occasional golf-related collectible. In this episode, host Robert Birman speaks with Peter about his journey to building one of the leading sites for antiquarian and rare golf book buyers, and his observations about the field, its avid collectors, and the variables that face book lovers, dealers, and publishers today.

The R&A World Golf Museum is a 'must-see' destination for every first-time visitor to St. Andrews. The modern-day successor of the former British Golf Museum, it raises its ambition to play a pivotal role in delivering on one of the R&A of St. Andrews' core objectives—to be a leading body within the world of golf that engages and supports activities to ensure golf is a thriving sport for all on a global scale.

Following three weeks of hickory golf throughout Scotland, podcast host Robert Birman had an opportunity to tour the Museum's newly-reimagined exhibitions, which were extremely impressive, and to speak with the longstanding and visionary director of the R&A World Golf Museum, Angela Howe.

This episode recaps the final week of our 21-day visit to the Glasgow are, Ayrshire, the Mull of Kintyre, the Highlands, Moray, Aberdeen, and St. Andrews, and highlights Ms. Howe's creative work leading the Museum and overseeing the collections of the R&A since 2009.

images used with permission courtesy of the R&A World Golf Museum

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 affiliations with Scottish national politicians.

FA (Frank) Fairlie was Captain of the Nairn Golf Club in 1901-02. Fairlie was fourth son of James Ogilvie Fairlie, the man who enticed Tom Morris from St. Andrews to Prestwick in 1851 a crucial factor in the establishment of the Open Championship in 1860.

Many hands have shaped Nairn golf course and in 1887 Andrew Simpson Keeper of the Green at Royal Aberdeen laid out the original design. In 1890, Old Tom Morris revised the course and extended it westward over the Earl of Cawdor’s property. Twenty years on, and the most prominent impact on the layout of the Championship course was from the five-time Open Champion James Braid (and the first to break 70 at Nairn with a 69 in 1901) altered tees and bunkers before creating new greens of singular subtlety. Then in 1920, new holes at Delnies were designed by the irrepressible Ben Sayers of North Berwick before, once more, Braid returned to contribute his expertise. And in 2018 the Club undertook a large renovation project of the Championship course from renowned Architects Mackenzie and Ebert.

We sat down during the 2022 World Hickory Open to speak to the newly appointed archivist at Nairn, Hugh Sutherland, about the collection, its importance, and the ways in which it informs the membership.

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, 1860. It also includes information from the archivist at Western Gailes Golf Club, Mr. Turner Bone, who's course boasts a decidedly different path towards becoming one of the great links in the nation.

Playing Prestwick and Western Gailes was enough of a joy for any man, but to sit and bear witness—particularly in the case of Prestwick—to the volumes of paper archives the Club has retained since 1851, including most (if not all) of Tom Morris' receipts for his wages, and an original set of clubs he made personally for one of the early members was a life-changing experience.

Some of the documents discussed at Prestwick can be seen in Geoff Shackelford's blog, here. There is also a great piece from Golf Illustrated here on the Prestwick Golf Club and it's legacy. You can click on the image of Mr. Lochhead to watch the Cookie Jar Golf film about the famed and beloved club.

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 and ends with six nights in St Andrews, with rounds every single day and— often— twice per day for those who are up for it.

Host, Robert Birman, outlines the itinerary for this journey and provides a sneak peek into some of the special interviews arranged during the epic trip-of-a-lifetime, including visits with archivists of numerous courses in Scotland, the owner/operators of Fine Golf Books in St Andrews, and the Director of the R&A World Golf Museum.

Courses on this trip include: Irvine Bogside, Western Gailes, Prestwick St Nicholas, Prestwick, Shiskine, Dunaverty, Machrihanish, Machrihanish Dunes, Fortrose & Rosemarkie, Traigh, Brora, Boat of Garten, Golspie, Nairn, Castle Stuart, Royal Dornoch, Cruden Bay, Cullen, Fraserburgh, Stonehaven, The Old Course, New Course, Eden, Jubilee, Renaissance Club, North Berwick, and others TBA.

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 pattern and small dimple balls appropriate for play with pre-1935 clubs. And like his predecessor, Chris McIntyre, he brings a relentless curiosity and scientific rigor to the process, from sourcing raw materials to creating the perfect systems and processes to replicate these precious items for thousands of players from here to Japan.

Brown is an avid runner and bicyclist, and frequent guest at tournaments throughout the U.S. and British Isles. He has represented America at the International Hickory Cup (now Freeman Cup) and is an enduring presence at the Hickory Grail tournaments, held every other year in a true Ryder Cup format; it's Europe vs. America for hickory Golf. He's one of the true gents in the gentlemen's game, and is quietly helping new generations to experience the sport we all love with a touch of the past.

Brown is a member of the Nebraska Hickory Golf association, one of the leading regional groups in the United States, and the only one that boasts a hickory golf Hall of Fame. In this episode, we'll explore the wide range of products that Dave oversees and travel vicariously through his exploits in the game.

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 Hickory Open in St. Andrews would be our moment—our triumphant 'return to normalcy' and the first, big international opportunity to reengage with our brothers and sisters from around the globe in a convivial and memorable summit.

As they say, the best laid plans... Scotland hadn't lifted the quarantine by the time decisions needed to be made. The 2021 W.H.O. was officially canceled.

Two intrepid players—cofounders of the Southern Hickory Golf Society in the U.S.A.—said, "phooey, we're going!" [Sanitized for your consumption] No W.H.O.? We'll chart our own plan. And what followed proved to be a magical experience among new friends and old, on some of the most hallowed grounds for golf, culminating in a final day on The Old Course to cap off what was already a trip of a lifetime.

Join us as we relive their trip and hear about the intricacies of planning and performing for 11 straight days in East Lothian and Fife, including 36-holes at Muirfield and the resplendent lunch with their members.

St. Andrews photos copyright of Foremost Golf Photography