BIRDIES, BUNKERS & BAMBOOS BIRDIES, BUNKERS CELEBRATING 100 YEARS OF PORT MACQUARIE GOLF CLUB Birdies, Bunkers Bamboos A century ago a small band of golf enthusiasts in Port Macquarie decided to set up their ANDREWS MALCOLM own golf club in what was then little more than a sleepy fishing village. One hundred years & later that club is still there and thriving. Birdies, Bunkers & Bamboos is the story of that century of golf and the people involved. The larger-than-life characters include an irascible World War I hero, a British doctor who toiled at working bees while still dressed in his jacket and tie and a feisty lady who refused to stop for police conducting random breath tests because she didn’t drink. It’s also the story of how in the early 1950s these people needed a new golf course out of town and over the next 14 years built it virtually with their bare hands. And they had the foresight to leave intact what would become the most iconic feature of the course – the clumps of bamboo that have since proved to be the downfall of thousands of golfers. A proud hometown history! MALCOLM ANDREWS ‘My hope for the future of golf in Port Macquarie is that it will be based on enjoying the game... and that you will spend a kindly thought for those golfers of yesteryear who gave willingly and voluntarily of their time, energy, talents and equipment gratis... even their finance in many small ways.’ – Stewart Kennedy, member of Port Macquarie Golf Club from 1935 to 2003 “MOST GOLFERS PREFER A GOLF CART TO A CADDY BECAUSE THE CART CANNOT COUNT, CRITICISE OR LAUGH.’ – Anon Published for the Port Macquarie Golf Club PO Box 22 Port Macquarie NSW 2444 Copyright © Port Macquarie Golf Club & Malcolm Andrews Copyright cartoons © Peter Player First published June 2010 All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior permission of the Port Macquarie Golf Club and Malcolm Andrews. Designed by Brad Aulsebrook Printed and bound in Australia by Dynamic Print Communication, Molendinar Qld 4314 Note: Throughout the book references to costs have been made in the currency of the time. It would have been meaningless to covert the pounds, shillings and pence of yesteryear into dollars, considering the huge rise in value over the intervening years. Birdies, Bunkers & Bamboos Celebrating 100 Years of Port Macquarie Golf Club MALCOLM ANDREWS (and whose autobiography provided rare insights Prologue to background of the move to Tacking Point). Brian Sams, a record 16 times club champion and as recently as February 2010 still winning veterans matches at an international level. The list goes on THE GREAT ST GEORGE RUGBY LEAGUE of Harry Bath. Little is known about the early role and on. FORWARD and later Australian Test coach Harry played by the lady golfers – the associates – because Bath had a telling word of advice to all sportsmen in 1948 some person or persons unknown decided I apologise if someone’s story has been and women, no matter which was their chosen to throw out all the records. Then, in the late 1960s, missed in my trawl through many sport: ‘Those who drink at the well must never club president and later life member Jack Pike spent hundred thousand of words by the forget those who dug the well.’ Today’s dedicated several years researching the history of the whole researchers or the awful dumping golfers in Port Macquarie understand the words club. All his work was to no avail, as again the of the result of investigation in of Harry Bath only too well. For they have a rich research ‘disappeared’. Can you believe it? years gone by. Thanks must history dating back 100 years to the time when a go to scores of the golf club group led by a local builder, a harbour master, an But the centenary research committee – Keith members who related tales, auctioneer, a real estate agent and a bank manager Heap, Jim Reed, Peter Schroder, Bryan Stewart sometimes tall but mostly decided they should build a golf course. And an and Alan Woodhouse – have been able to fill many true, about the fun they extremely challenging one at that! Once they did, of the gaps. had playing golf and few broke par. Then almost a half-a-century later enjoying the off-the- another group of foresighted golfers realised they In 2009 I was approached to write this tome fairway camaraderie, had outgrown their original address and went after some club members had seen The Fabulous to members of the Port searching for a new home, found it and then spent Fairstar, the book P&O had commissioned me to Macquarie Historical their every spare moment over the next 14 years write as the famous cruise ship sailed into the sunset Society for photos and building the 18 holes. (or to put it more bluntly, to a beach in Bangladesh suggestions, to the Port where sadly it would be pulled apart piece by piece Macquarie News for its Six years ago members of a small committee and sold as scrap metal). Even though I had not faithful recording of golf started researching the history of the Port Macquarie played golf since I was a schoolboy, in my almost over the years, to Grahame Golf Club in preparation for its centenary in July half-a-century as a journalist I had covered major Gunn and Peter Gleeson for 2010. It was no easy task. Photos and details of events and interviewed and written about many of some great photographs and life in the sleepy fishing village of a few hundred the greats such as Greg Norman, Arnold Palmer, to all those people who delved residents when the golf club was formed were Jack Nicklaus, Kel Nagle, Gary Player, Peter into their own photo albums to virtually non-existent. The Port Macquarie News Thomson and Norman von Nida, the great friend resurrect memories and, of course, to covered the major events, but with only random of my first boss Sir Frank Packer. the members of the research committee, stories about golf. Luckily, the Port Macquarie mentioned above. Historical Society had photos of some of the I jumped at the chance to write about the original golfing pioneers – but only because they golfers in Port Macquarie, a town whose people Thanks are also due to a couple of my old Bamboos is just the First Act. The curtain is about were prominent in other areas of public life. Of had opened their arms and welcomed me six years mates who don’t realise what they are missing by to rise on Act Two, the next century of golf in Port one of the ‘founding fathers’ Captain ‘Jock’ Baird earlier. I soon found that these folk at the grass not living in Port Paradise – Brad Aulsebrook for Macquarie. Who will be the new Jock Bairds, Bull there were no photos and little was written about roots had just as interesting tales to tell as the so- his imaginative page and cover designs and Pete Elliots and Charlie Uptins? Sadly, none of us will his life, even though he played an important role called legends of the game. War hero Bull Elliot, Player for his witty cartoons. Both worked for a be around in 2110 to find out the answer. But the as the harbour’s pilot from 1896 until 1924 at the who would not suffer fools gladly. Dr Eric Murphy, pittance as a favour to me and to the people of coming generations will most certainly provide a time the port was the village’s lifeline. who would roll up his sleeves to toil at working Port Macquarie. rich history, just as their forebears did! bees, but never shed his tie or waistcoat in the Sadly over the years some Philistines proved what process. Charlie Uptin, arguably the best-known Unlike my book on the Fairstar which rung Malcolm Andrews happens when people do not follow the philosophy newspaperman in the history of the north coast down the curtain on an era, Birdies, Bunkers and Port Macquarie June 2010 4 5 (and whose autobiography provided rare insights Prologue to background of the move to Tacking Point). Brian Sams, a record 16 times club champion and as recently as February 2010 still winning veterans matches at an international level. The list goes on THE GREAT ST GEORGE RUGBY LEAGUE of Harry Bath. Little is known about the early role and on. FORWARD and later Australian Test coach Harry played by the lady golfers – the associates – because Bath had a telling word of advice to all sportsmen in 1948 some person or persons unknown decided I apologise if someone’s story has been and women, no matter which was their chosen to throw out all the records. Then, in the late 1960s, missed in my trawl through many sport: ‘Those who drink at the well must never club president and later life member Jack Pike spent hundred thousand of words by the forget those who dug the well.’ Today’s dedicated several years researching the history of the whole researchers or the awful dumping golfers in Port Macquarie understand the words club. All his work was to no avail, as again the of the result of investigation in of Harry Bath only too well. For they have a rich research ‘disappeared’. Can you believe it? years gone by. Thanks must history dating back 100 years to the time when a go to scores of the golf club group led by a local builder, a harbour master, an But the centenary research committee – Keith members who related tales, auctioneer, a real estate agent and a bank manager Heap, Jim Reed, Peter Schroder, Bryan Stewart sometimes tall but mostly decided they should build a golf course.