Winnetka Local History Digital Collections

Winnetka Weekly Talk, 30 Jul 1927, p. 15

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July 30, 1927 WINNETKA TALK EE EEL TE LEE EU EL TEE LULU THT TTT CRE EERE EL North Shore Golf Clubs UU TREE ETE ETE TEE TET LEER LTE EEE LE TE ET . rr EE CRETE TT CE TE Briargate, 7056 Yards Long, a Difficult Course Long Drivers Get a Thrill at Deerfield But "Old Man Par" at 71 Eludes All Members, Only Two "Pros" Having Beaten Him This is the ninth article of a series telling about the great golf clubs of the north shore. It de- scribes the Briargate course which is only six years old. Another article will appear next week. By RAY C. PEARSON RIVE north on Waukegan road and arriving in Deer- field you'll easily find the Briar- gate Golf club. Then after find- ing it wander through the grounds, take a peek at the course and finally step into the clubhouse and hear what the boys have to say. They'll tell you lots of things about Briargate, but we'll set down just a few here as the most interesting and im- portant: 1--The course is the longest in the Chicago district, the yardage being 7056. It is well trapped and so difficult to negotiate that no member of the club has been able to break par of 71. Two players have accomplished the trick, but both were professionals. 2--The slogan of the club is "golf for golfers." That means no "rocking chair golf." 3--The dining room is one of the "biggest" things at Briargate. An official of the club supplies the in- formation that the club actually turns a profit on food service which is unique, for we are told that most golf clubs finish the sea- son with an "eats" deficit. Club Six Years Old Briargate is six years old. Back in 1921 William Reay, whose residence in Deerfield was surrounded by eighty acres of nice rolling land got together with some friends and decided it would be just the spot for a golf course. Having decided that, the next step was taken, that of organization. Then one more step, the purchase of an additional eighty acres, was taken. The construction of the course quickly followed and Briargate took its place among the great golf clubs of the North Shore. Frank Stippe who can talk for hours about Briargate, likes to dwell on the story of two Scotchmen (not the two Irishmen). "When our club was organized we decided to construct a real honest-to- goodness course," says Mr. Stippe. "So a = a THE PICTURES: The Briargate clubhouse (top) --Arthur H. Harri- son, club champion (inset) --a group enjoying the sunshine at a tea table, those pictured being (left to right) Mrs. Thomas J. Cochrane, Miss Ethel Cochrane, Mrs. T. J. Junior of New York, Mrs. John R. Murphy, Mrs. W. B. Johnson, Miss Lillian Ryan-- Mrs. William Cook, club champion (bottom). we imported a couple of Scotchmen who had a reputation for building golf courses. What they did was plenty. They laid out a 'golf course' all right. Go out and play on it and you'll see why shooting for par is like chasing the well known rainbow. When their job was finished the two Scotchmen went back home and they'd better not show up around Briargate again, or some member is liable to knock 'em for a row of sad dreams. Old Man Par Is Elusive Fairly rolling, well trapped and long - the course is a paradise for long hit- ters. They call it the wooden club course. Asked if any one hole was more difficult to negotiate than the others, we were told that "any par 4 hole is tough." One member has entered the "Hole in one club" by shooting number eleven in one effort. Briargate is playable at almost any time, because it lies high and is never under water. The fairways are fine. Al Espinosa and Bob McDonald are the professionals who clipped par Both are long drivers. Harrison is the at Briargate. Arthur I. club champion. For three years mn a row he has annexed the title. Among the star players are numbered Arthur Har- rison, Jerome Bowes, Thomas Sheehe and Fred Brown. Mrs. William Cook is the woman champion. Mrs. George Rossetter 1s also a good player on the difficult course. Mrs. J. B. Garnett is chair- man of the woman's golf committee. Others active in affairs of the club are Mrs. William W. Geary, Mrs. Dr. C. M. Robertson, Mrs. Rollo Gullickson, Mrs. H. S. Marshall, Mrs. Orval Simp- son, Mrs. W. R. Jones, Mrs. R. D. Hessey and Mrs. A. W. Torbet. As golf comes first at Briargate, the members still use the Reay residence for the clubhouse. This had been con- siderably enlarged, two additions 'hav- ing been built. The membership list is limited to 350 members. "Braves' Day," Big Feature The big event of the season for the members of Briargate is "Braves' Day." That's the day when all the members get out and do their stuff. And the braves were out plenty last week to perform in the annual event. I am informed that the spirit of de- mocracy runs high, and that always something is being done to promote good fellowship. The latest scheme is to award a loving cup to the man who plays with the most members during the season. The third Wednesday of every month is set aside as a day on which the players get together. Four dinner dances are scheduled for the season. On Tuesdays the wo- men have their card parties and play (Continued on page 18)

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