Chapter 3 - Of Course and Club

THE BEVERLEY PARK GOLF CLUB LIMITED
 
OF COURSE AND CLUB
 
A letter from the St George Golf Club was read at the Kogarah Council meeting of 26th February, 1937, requesting that the proposal to form a golf course be given immediate consideration so that the necessary work could be undertaken in conjunction with the approved reclamation scheme.
Being initially a Council project, we are fortunate that an excellent record has been retained of all suggestions, activity, construction, problems, monies spent etc, in relation to the club.
On perusing the Kogarah Municipal Council Minutes, we unfold the calendar of progress:­
31st January, 1938: about 65 acres was dedicated for the purpose of building the golf course.
20th March, 1939: after much debate and debacle the estate and golf course was named Beverley Park.
31st May, 1939: the motion was passed that the services of a professional be sought to prepare the layout and plans of the first section of the golf course.
15th January, 1940: the plans of the course were submitted by Messrs L. Kelly and W. Corry, and a quotation accompanied these plans "Price being £1000" this was for the first nine holes and would be in play in about twelve months after commencement of the work.
12th February, 1940: applications were invited for the position of Greenkeeper for the construction of the golf course at a wage of £5/10/0 per week.
9th September, 1940: confirmation that the construction of the links proper had been completed for some weeks, and nine greens and tees had been formed, trees and shrubs planted and surface drains dug. A well, 26 feet deep had been sunk and was raising about 1000 gallons of water per night. It was considered that the well did not need to be made deeper, as the water supply to the course was adequate.
A tool shed was serving the dual purpose of storage for equipment and was also being used as the clubhouse, affectionately referred to as The Green Hut.
23rd January, 1941: tenders were called for the building of a clubhouse and to resolve the method of financing this structure. The ultimate cost of the project was £5420, and the then Mayor, S.R. Bell recommended that this quotation be accepted subject to approval by the Federal Treasurer, and that the Town Clerk be authorized to negotiate for a special loan for a period of fifteen years.
26th March, 1941: discussion on the Federal Treasurer's refusal for permission to erect the clubhouse, and the tenderer was advised that this proposal could not be carried out for the time being because no funds were available. The Council decided to take steps to modify the original proposal and to erect part of the building at a cost not exceeding £1500, to provide limited accommodation until after the end of World War Two.
The minutes of the Beverley Park Golf Club Building Committee, held on 17th April, 1941 at the Council Chambers considered the following recommendations:
1. To obtain legal advice as to the Council's liability regarding the architect's account for plans preparation;
2. That the £1500 loan from NML of Australia be over a period of fifteen years at an interest rate of 4.375% PA be accepted subject to departmental approval.
3. To adopt the modified scheme for the clubhouse, and that tenders be invited.
At a public meeting called by the Kogarah Council on 4th June, 1941, it was announced that, although only nine holes would be available for play, it would be only a matter of a few months before the complete eighteen holes were ready. Mr William Corry, who had been appointed Club Professional, told those present that. . . "when the course is finished it would be second only in size to Moore Park as a public golf links. Par will be 70. The nature of the soil, which is sandy, assures a stiff test of one's skill as it will be mostly carry and roll; golfers will appreciate this. The greens are New Zealand Bent grass and the Council has been fortunate in obtaining the services of an excellent greenkeeper".
The Mayor of the Kogarah Municipal Council, Alderman Bell, told the gathering that about four months would lapse before the clubhouse would be completed, but although the money was available, it was still necessary to obtain permission from the Federal Treasurer to go ahead.
In recognition of the pioneers of our club, and for reasons of posterity this introduction to the club would not be complete without the following list:­
 
THE FIRST COMMITTEE OF THE BEVERLEY PARK GOLF CLUB
 
Patron:
Vice Patrons:
 
President:
Vice Presidents:
 
Secretary: Treasurer: Management Committee:
 
Alderman S.R. Bell Mr C. Evatt,
W. Curry VC MLA Alderman E.T. Marx Alderman N.J. Lobb, Dr G. Elliott
Mr W.R. James
Mr J. Kelly
 
Messrs S.T. Fripp,
S. Thorn, N. Coop, W. Dodds, J. Mostyn, C. Molloy, P.S. Allman, S. Wholohan, W. Corry
 
On 13th August, 1941 Messrs Hodgson, Dixon, McFarlane and Young were appoint­ed to the Management Committee, then on 21st August, 1941 Mr J. Brennan was also appointed, following the resignation of Mr P .S. Allman.
21 st September, 1941 witnessed the formation of the first sub-committees.
The first Annual Report of the newly formed Beverley Park Golf Club was presented to the meeting at the close of the 1942 financial year. This report contained the following items of interest:­
 
Membership:
 
252 Members 103 Associates
£ 100 per annum
Clubhouse rental: Profit:
£660/17/3 for the year
 
At the Annual General Meeting on 19th March, 1953 each member was presented with the following letter:­
 
Annual Ball: Held in the Rockdale Town Hall on 11th July, 1942 and was well attended, profit from this was forwarded to the local Mayoral Patriotic Fund.
 
THE SECOND NINE HOLES
 
The President, Mr Jack Mostyn, informed the Second Annual General Meeting, in 1943, that the official opening of the second nine holes had taken place during the year, and that club membership had increased by about 30% over 1941-42, and interchange visits with Botany and Avoca clubs had proved beneficial from both a golf and social viewpoint.
Profit for the year was £159/12/10.
        After 3 years as Secretary Bill James resigned. He was temporarily replaced by Mr S.H. (Lee) Allen who was followed by Mr Fred Flynn, former Treasurer and Publicity Officer.
When Fred Flynn resigned from the secretariat in 1952 he received the letter on p.27 from the Town Clerk commending his dedicated seven year service for to the club.
The early secretaries carried out their duties in an Honorary capacity, followed later by the appointment of the position of Secretary on a permanent basis.
During the developing years of the club, particularly the actual establishment of the club the Secretary /Manager, Mr Ken Innes, did a tremendous job for the club and is largely responsible for putting the club on a sound course for the future.
The present Secretary / Manager of the club is Mr Cedric Wilson who was appointed on 30th September 1989.
"After considerable deliberation, Kogarah Council has decided to proceed with the building of the Beverley Park Golf Club. It will cost £250. This was the amount the Government sanctioned and would not approve of anything additional to that being spent.
The Council is feeling disappointment, however, at the Government's attitude on the matter, as it had applied for permission to spend a much larger amount before building restrictions were gazetted by the authorities. Council intended building a £6000 clubhouse at the links but this project has greatly dwindled. It was expected that the Council's final request for permission to spend £1000 would be approved but this also was flatly refused and permission for £250 only would be given. The Government was of the opinion that the clubhouse was of no importance and that the structure could stand over till termination of the war. In the meantime it was desirable that only buildings that would help the war effort should be proceeded with.
Plan of the £250 building was approved by the aldermen at Monday night's meeting and it is expected that the structure will be erected as soon as possible. In order to make the liberal amount more elastic second-hand timber will be used. When completed the clubhouse will be attractively painted. It will comprise three rooms, the main one being the assembly room which will measure 28ft by 14ft. Separate rooms 14ft by 13ft l0in., will be provided for the lady and gent members of the club. Additional accommodation will be provided by a verandah which will encircle the building.
 
There were suggestions earlier that the Council build a cottage on the Beverley Park Estate and rent it to the golf club. This has, not been proceeded with."
                   (St George Call 29th August, 1941)
A Building Committee was formed for the prime purpose of investigating the possibility of more accommodation. Council stated that due to building restrictions there was no possibility of them supplying a suitable and adequate clubhouse in the foreseeable future, but they did recommend that they buy a pre-fabricated zinc anneal shed from Armco and erect it on the south eastern side of, and close to, the existing temporary clubhouse. They were elated by the Kogarah Council's suggestion, which actually gave the club permission to go it on their own if they could independently raise the money. The next barrier they had to face was that of convincing the Government that it should endorse the Council proposition. Beverley Park Golf Club would raise the funds themselves to buy and erect the structure without the necessity of Council or Government subsidization or loans. This solution seemed simple enough, but it took several months of heartbreaking personal confrontations by the Building Committee and sub-committee to get the official OK. Finally the go-ahead was granted and the tin shed went up, fully paid for by the club.
 
On Friday 28th November, 1941 the StGeorge Call published this announcement:­
                BEVERLEY PARK GOLF CLUB
The tide has turned at last, and following a long run of bad luck necessitating a hold-up in the construction of the clubhouse, members may now look forward to an early occupation of new headquarters. No one will regret vacating the "dog-box", the tenancy of which would be well nigh intolerable during the summer months. The club is grateful to the Mayor (Ald. S.R. Bell) and his supporters for their untiring efforts in this direction.
 
STAGE THREE
 
A new era for the Beverley Park Golf Club came with the passing of Stage One, the Green Hut, and Stage Two, the cottage; now Stage Three was a reality.
The official opening of the newly completed Stage Three on 16th August, 1963 was a day of which all members and associates were justifiably proud. It was a time to reflect on seven years of planning, hard labour and memories of the old bar, semi­circular stage, old, old kitchen, the fernery and the back door to the 19th, for these were now nothing but fond memories to those who helped and watched the club pass from its infancy . We can now look back with pride at our progress and especially at our gaining of Group Two Status at the end of 1964, subject to the Council continuing its program of course improvements.
As a result of the club's elevation to Group Two status, Beverley Park was no longer eligible to participate in the Warren, H. Mostyn and Gibson Shield competitions because they were all Group Three events. However the H. Mostyn Memorial Shield played for at Beverley Park is an annual event and is extremely popular among club members.