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.
  • The Autumn 2024 edition of The Golf is just about ready to mail. The edition has been posted to the website on the Members page. Meanwhile, the deadline for articles and news for the winter edition of The Golf is Oct. 28. Sooner is always better.
  • 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

philadelphia group working to keep, restore historic cobbs creek
January 27, 2022

This story has interested GHS members Bob Gettis and John Capers III to pursue a possible Zoom presentation to the membership. The 105-year-old Cobbs Creek GC was designed by Hugh I. Wilson, when the Philadelphia city father’s believed there was a need for a public championship course equal to the two Merion Golf Club courses he had previously designed.  He also designed […]

a peek at ultra-private golf courses
January 10, 2022

GHS member John Fischer III often pens a golf history article for SI’s The Morning Read. His latest concerns three private courses built by early movie star Harold Lloyd, business tycoon Walter Annenberg, and successful banker T. Suffern Tailer Sr. What do you do when you have the dough and love to golf? You build your own track, that’s what. […]

virginia golfer magazine profiles dick johns, harold guy, ghs
December 13, 2021

The November/December 2021 issues of Virginia Golfer Magazine, contains a lovely story by Lisa D. Mickey on GHS members Dick Johns and Harold Guy and their contributions to the Golf Heritage Society. Click on the link above to see the magazine. The story appears on page 26.

golf heritage society to exhibit at gcsaa conference and trade show
December 10, 2021

Pittsburgh, Pa. (Dec. 10, 2021) – The Golf Heritage Society (GolfHeritage.org) will have a presence at the GCSAA Conference and Trade Show, to take place Feb. 5-10, 2022, in San Diego. The GHS will be located in booth #2059, where attendees can interact with leaders of the Society to discover all the GHS has to offer.  “We look forward to […]

the lady in black
November 24, 2021

It is a delicious story, one that infuses otherwise staid golf history with a little spice and mystery. It is the story of Gloria Minoprio, a British woman golfer of the early 1930s, who stunned the conservative British golf world by showing up at the 1933 English Ladies Championship wearing, gasp, trousers! This was simply not done. But that was […]