The ghs welcomes you!

We love all things golf:
Playing, Collecting, Preserving history
We are a family and you are invited.

For over 50 years our members have relished the thrill of the hunt, be it discovering and documenting an obscure bit of golf lore, tracking down an ancient artifact, obtaining a favorite player’s signature, or displaying our admission ticket to the Masters. There is joy and pride in “Holding History in Our Hands.”

Our members include collectors, authors, course architects and superintendents, and anyone interested in the game and its history. Seasoned collectors and writers network with other members, share their knowledge and frequently surface as recognized experts in their field. With the help of mentors and Society resources, finding your personal niche amongst untold options can be part of a wonderful journey. Fellow travelers within the GHS will appreciate your discoveries and encourage your pursuits.

Members Attend Regional Events

The GHS is divided into 10 Geographic regions (including International) each led by a director who serves on the board. Those frequent events are opportunities for local get-togethers in addition to the Nationals. 

Recent visits to world renowned sites not otherwise accessible to the public include:
• Luncheon and a full tour of the Merion GC Clubhouse and Archives (left)- Next Visit 3-23-24
*18 holes of golf and reception at Arnold Palmer’s own Latrobe Country Club (right)
• Other recurring venues include Oakmont CC, Columbia CC, and Belleview CC

GHS members enjoy a golf trade show with all the socializing and great treasure hunting they love about such gatherings.

NEWS ALERTS

  • The 2024 GHS National Convention Packet has been mailed to all GHS members. We’ve attached a PDF of the packet here for your convenience. There’s a lot planned for the 2024 GHS Convention in Pinehurst, so don’t delay securing your spot.
  • Deadline for articles and news for the autumn edition of The Golf is July 29.
  • GHS member and author John Riley has a new book that covers the life and career of legendary Philadelphia amateur Bill Hyndman. Titled A Will to Win, the book already has great reviews, but we’ll post one in the Autumn edition of The Golf. Meanwhile, here’s a video of an interview with Inside Golf host Harry Donahue. Jay Sigel and Gordon Brewer also make an appearance on the video to talk about the book and Hyndman. Riley’s previous golf book was How He Played the Game, about Ed “Porky” Oliver. You can find A Will to Win at the following link: https://awilltowin.com/. It is the best place to buy the book.

Tom Stewart, right, hosts GHS visitors Scott Staudacher, left, and Ed Ronco, center, to his Old Sport and Gallery shop. The two golfers were in town for the 2017 Mid Pines Hickory Open.

pinehurst shops are troves of golf history

The website magazine First Call paid a visit to two of our favorite Pinehurst shops during the recent U.S. Open. The Old Golf Shop’s owner Bob Hansen took the magazine’s writers on a tour of his remarkable store of vintage golf memorabilia. Over at The Old Sport and Gallery, owner Tom Stewart welcomed the First Call team for a tour of his equally wonderful collection of golf history… all for sale, you understand. These are businesses that cater to both the casual tourist and the savvy golf historian/collector. Click here to see the story.


ghs classics from the Archives

The GHS quarterly journal, The Golf, and its long-lived predecessor, The Bulletin, had features that were – are – just plain fun to read. Below we are pleased to offer a “classic” from the past, a look at the collection of one of the Society’s long-time members.

Book collector and co-founder of the British Golf Collectors Society Philip Truett examines a rare volume from his collection.

the golf collection of philip truett

From the December 2014 edition of The Bulletin we share a feature on the rare book collection of Philip Truett, a resident of Walton-on-the-Hill, England. Truett’s lifelong interest in books has led to an astonishing variety of rare volumes, most published before 1920, his central focus. This feature gives us a little peek at Truett’s amazing collection. We are indebted to the late Dick McDonough for his work in providing photos and background for this feature.
Click here to read the article.


News / Features

Golfing mecca of a silent screen comic
June 29, 2020

Random Golf Notes – By John W. Fischer III (2017) A while back I saw Harold Lloyd’s World of Comedy on Turner Classic Movies, a movie composed of excerpts from Harold Lloyd’s silent movies. I enjoyed the movie – it was very funny, physical humor but not slapstick -– and in doing a little research on Lloyd afterwards discovered he was one […]

A first for the NCAA
June 26, 2020

Celebrating Black Golfers – LaRee Pearl Sugg LaRee Pearl Sugg, now an associate athletic director for the University of Richmond, created quite a stir for her UCLA Bruin golf team in 1991. Down by six shots on the 17th hole of their NCAA Championship match with San Jose State Univ. at Ohio State University’s Scarlet Course, Sugg rallied her teammates, […]

Chasing a legend

Victory on top of victory. They just kept coming. Sam Snead, he of the “oily” swing and prodigious physical talents, was a fearsome competitor and one of golf’s American Triumverate, along with Ben Hogan and Byron Nelson (all born in 1912). Bill Fields, one of the great sports journalists, who just happens to have a GHS membership on his CV, […]

Renee Powell receives ASGCA Donald Ross Award
June 19, 2020

Renee Powell, the second Black woman to play on the LPGA Tour and longtime ambassador for the game around the world, has been chosen as the 2020 recipient of the ASGCA Donald Ross Award.  Presented annually since 1976, the award is given to a person of distinction who has made a significant contribution to the game of golf and the […]

Golf art – week of June 14, 2020
June 16, 2020

By Frank Cantrel Jr. Today’s painting inaugurates a new series of weekly postings of golf art — drawings, etchings, paintings, sculpture and other forms of art that are intended to entertain and inspire. This weekly series will include the works of past and present artists that portray important figures in golf’s history as well as landscapes that capture the beauty […]