History of Golf

Hickory Stick Tour Comes to The North

/ The Grateful Golfer / 2 Comments

This Friday and Saturday, the Golf Historical Society of Canada (GHSC) is making is annual Northern Hickory Tour to North Bay and Mattawa. Spearheaded by GHSC president, Lorne Emery, this will be the fourth year that the hickory sticks will be playing in the area. The intent of this tour is to promote the history of golf through playing with vintage equipment. This will be my third year participating in this fantastic event and I am thrilled to host a stop at the Mattawa Golf and Ski Resort on Saturday.

Northern Hickory Tour
This is a 4-day hickory extravaganza in Northern Ontario and involves three different golf courses, as follows:

  • Thursday, August 24 early afternoon – Couchiching GC (Orillia)
  • Friday, August 25 noon – Osprey Links – Callander) 
  • Saturday, August 26 noon– Mattawa GC (Mattawa)

This is the third time the hickory tour is being organized and a few spots are still available. Southern Ontario players should contact Lorne Emery, GHSC President, by email at lorne.emery9945@gmail.com if you want to be added to one, two or all three rounds. Bill Vossen (vossenb69@hotmail.com) and Jim Burton (“The Grateful Golfer“) is the GHSC Hickory Ambassador from North Bay coordinating this event.

I am looking forward to playing two days of hickory golf this year. The Northern Hickory Tour is a great way to promote the history of golf and seeing some old friends with the same interests is really the big prize!

I am a grateful golfer! See you on the links!


My First Round Of Golf Is In The Books

/ The Grateful Golfer / 4 Comments

On Sunday past, I played my first round of golf of my 2023 season. I had to travel to the Cambridge Golf Club about 4.5 hours away. To be fair, I could have played a more local course, but my trip had a twofold purpose. The first was to play golf in 2023, but more importantly, I played in the World Hickory Golf Day. Hosted by the Golf Historical Society of Canada (GHSC), this event was a culmination of efforts by Durel Billy first run back in 2016. (more on this event in future posts) As a member of the GHSC, I was excited to journey to Cambridge and play my first round of 2023. As a recap, my trip did not disappoint and I am now excited to hit the links now that my golf season has started.

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Respecting The Game Of Golfers Of Old

/ The Grateful Golfer / 2 Comments

If you have never tried using hickory shafted golf clubs, I highly recommend that you do. The modern swing may not fit exactly to maximize vintage equipment as Jordan Spieth found out. Spieth decided to spend some time with his Dad on the links using equipment that needs a bit more finesse when trying to maximize distance and accuracy. The challenges faced by a top tier professional are exactly the same as any amateur because the materials used, although considered top notch 100 years ago, cannot hold up to the power generated by professional golfers today. Having said that, golfers like Spieth can quickly adjust their swing in order to squeeze every yard out of these vintage gems.

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