Rye Golf Club (Rye, New York)

The Rye Golf Club was originally organized on July 1, 1921, as the Rye Country Club by a group of men from Rye and other Westchester towns with the intention of attracting an initial membership of 600. The club was built on 150 acres of the former George Park and William Porter Allen estates overlooking Long Island Sound. Activities proposed for the club included summer sports of golf; swimming; beach bathing with the creation of a new sandy expanse; and winter sports of ice skating and hockey. Four clay tennis courts and four grass lawn courts were also part of the original plan. The architect F. Burnham Chapman was retained to design additions for ballroom space, lockers, and a grill room. Organizers of the club envisioned bus service from the Rye and Harrison train stations to regularly transport the club's members and guests.[8] Devereux Emmet was selected to design the course.[9]

Construction on the golf course moved slowly with some initial overall club projects like the lawn tennis courts and harborage for yachts deferred.[8]

William H. Horne, a renowned long driving golfer from England, was hired as the club's first pro in 1922.[10] Horne was followed by golf pro Martin Sykes in 1925.[11]

In its early days, the Rye links drew famous people like Yankee great Babe Ruth in 1933 [12] and amateur golf champion George Von Elm. Duncan Barr was the club's golf pro at this time. Ruth and Elm were among those celebrities to play the course during this first iteration.[13] Other celebrities to hit the greens included golfers Ed "Porky" Oliver and Gene Sarazen who played an exhibition match there in the summer of 1940 as part of a 60-day tour sponsored by Golf Magazine.[14]

Despite the growth in popularity of the sport, the Depression took its toll on the club and by November 1936, its principals were facing bankruptcy.[15]

The club was transferred to the Bowery Savings Bank sometime around 1941.[16]

The reorganized club opened on April 3, 1943, as the Rye Sound Public Country Club. Advertisements highlighted golf but also additional amenities like two salt water swimming pools, one for kids and one for adults, filled with filtered water from Long Island Sound. The club offered four hard surface tennis courts.[17]

During World War II, the club took on another name, the Bayview Country Club[18] During this transition time William H. Horne continued to manage the golf operations. It was dissolved by 1945.[19]

The waterfront location of the club captured the attention of builders. A syndicate acquired the land in August 1945 with the intention of erecting large homes.[20] But reorganization, as a golf club prevailed and led by the owners of Buddy Lee Clothes[21] and William Horne, the club's first pro, the facility, was rebranded under the name Rye Soundview Country Club.[22] This name for the club was used only a short time.

The club was renamed, and the pool and tennis courts renovated.[23] Pat Tiso became the new club's golf professional following Duncan Barr who had previously been the pro.[24]

Sometime around 1949, the club's name had changed yet again. It was a popular venue for dances and luncheons and served the community beyond Rye. Organizations from Scarsdale, Mamaroneck, and Larchmont, like the Sisterhood of Larchmont Temple, held gatherings there.[25]

By 1959, the club's Board of Governors represented residents throughout Westchester including New Rochelle, Mount Vernon, and Port Chester. The pro up to this period was Fred Annon (1951-1959).[26] Annon was succeeded by 1952 National PGA Champion "Whistling Jim" Turnesa who was hired in 1959 with a January 1, 1960 start date.[27][28] Turnesa was one of the famous "Golfing Brothers" dynasty of Elmsford.[29]

The City of Rye had their eye on acquiring the Rye Wood Country Club for many years and assembled a planning committee to study the possibility and its ramifications for the community. The proposal, the goal of which was to expand public access to recreation,[30] was a topic of great debate and political discussion for many years starting as early as 1961.[31] In 1964, with the possibility of losing the property to Westchester County looming, the City of Rye put the acquisition of the club to a vote by taxpayers who voted 6-1 for the city to purchase the club solely for the use of people living in Rye.[32] The City tried condemnation proceedings to take over the club but was defeated in court. An initial offer of $1.1 million was refused by owners of the club as too low a price. The City returned with an offer of $1.7 million which was accepted.[33] The city took possession of the club and its grounds in the spring of 1965.

Today the club occupies 126 acres (51 ha) overlooking Milton Harbor. Though the original purpose for the city's acquisition of the property was for the exclusive use of its citizens,[34] one no longer needs to be a Rye taxpayer to qualify for membership in the club and there is a separate non-resident category.