Royal Ascot Golf Club

The Ascot Golf Club was founded in 1887 . It is the second oldest and the only Royal Golf Club in Berkshire.Originally golf was played on Ascot Heath within the confines of the Race Course and became a Royal Club by Royal Command of Queen Victoria in 1887. The course was designed by J.H.Taylor who went on to design many courses in Europe. One of the earlier competitions was The Boys Amateur Championship which was played on The Heath in1921. The Trophy for this was presented to The Royal and Ancient Golf Club and is still played for annually. An early competitor in this tournament was a young Henry Cotton later to become Sir Henry.After all the years The Club had played on The Heath, it came as a great shock to receive a notice from The Ascot Authority on the 13 November 2000 to vacate The Heath. At this time it was a thriving Club with a waiting list for members and a very active social life. The Committee at the time decided to try to find an alternative location in discussions with The Authority but no progress could be made.The problem was that The Club had no formal lease or agreement. The Chairman wrote to The Queen and an immediate response was forthcoming. Land was offered to the Club on the other side of the road in Sunninghill Park and plans to resite The Club started in earnest. Eventually the new Clubhouse opened in December 2004 but golf continued on The Heath until August 2005.Thanks to the efforts of a few there is still a Golf Club today. The New Clubhouse was opened by HRH Duke of York The Patron of The Club on23 May 2006 .The New course is ranked as the 18th best golf course in the county by the website Top 100 Golf Courses.