Met Golf Writers Name Old Oaks 2013 Club of the Year

Old Oaks Country Club, Purchase, NY, will be honored at the Metropolitan Golf Writers Association’s 62nd National Awards Dinner on June 18, at the Westchester Marriott, Tarrytown, NY. The venerable club will receive the Association’s Club of the Year Award.

Old Oaks Country Club. Photo courtesy of Golf Club Atlas

Founded in 1925 with a golf course primarily designed by A.W. Tillinghast and built by fellow architect Charles Alison, Old Oaks is renowned for the expanse of its property, the majesty of its entrance and clubhouse, and a testing course. Additionally, the club is well known as a frequent site for significant tournaments.

Old Oaks has hosted such events as the Met Open and Met PGA, various Westchester Golf Association competitions and, notably, served as the co-site with neighboring Century CC for one of the U.S. Open sectional qualifiers, the last step for golfers to gain entry into the U.S. Open.

The club was organized in 1924 when members of Manhattan’s Progress City Club purchased 205 acres on land that was formerly part of the estate of investment banker William Reed. A large portion of the early membership derived from the theatrical and motion picture world, with Ethel Merman making her first public performance at the club in 1928. In 1976, Old Oaks’ clubhouse and pool were spotlighted in the film Goodbye Columbus.

Old Oaks features a long, tree-lined drive that leads up to a stately 1890 British manor house that sits on a high point of the property. Since its founding, the club has been known by several names, including Purchase, Pine Ridge and, after merging with Eastchester’s Oak Ridge Club in 1935, its current calling. Its golf shop has been home to such pros as 1925 U.S. Open champ Willie Macfarlane and its present resident, back-to-back Met Open winner, Bobby Heins.

The MGWA’s National Awards Dinner is the longest running and often the largest golf dinner held annually in the U.S. All of golf’s governing bodies actively support the dinner — USGA, PGA of America, LPGA and PGA TOUR — and up to 700 industry leaders, local golfers and golf groups attend. Proceeds benefit the caddie scholarship programs of Long Island, New Jersey and Westchester/Fairfield, and the MGA Foundation. More than $1.3 million has been raised over the years for these charitable endeavors.

For tickets, visit www.metgolfwriters.org