History
The illustration shown depicts an early home match between LSGC and Royal Blackheath in 1870.
London Scottish Golf Club is widely regarded as the longest continually played-upon 18- hole golf course in England. The club was officially founded in 1865, making it the third oldest golf club in England, after Royal Blackheath and Royal North Devon. Although the precise origins of golf here remain uncertain, the course began to take shape in the early 1860s, when members of the London Scottish Rifle Volunteers, stationed on Wimbledon Common, laid out the first seven holes.
Much of that history remains visible today. Holes such as Long Butt, Running Deer, Blockade and the Long Hole follow the lines of former rifle ranges, and from time to time, old bullets are still unearthed across the course.
“This almost intact 19th century course is a lesson in golf architecture and in the manner in which the game was once, and should still be, played. Players who want showy water features and American style landscapes moulded by big budgets and earth-movers should stay away. At first the layout looks innocuous – the course appears to be scattered over the land rather than dominating it in the imperious modern manner – but then the Americans say that of St Andrews, don’t they...?”
The Iron HOuse
The club’s first clubhouse was Mrs Doggett’s cottage, beneath the shadow of the windmill. In 1871, golfers moved to the ‘Iron House’ near Parkside, close to the Rifle Volunteers’ base.
Current Clubhouse
The current clubhouse, one of the few remaining Victorian golf clubhouses in Britain, was purpose-built in 1897. After being damaged by fire in 1900, it was restored shortly afterwards.
London scottish ladies
In 1891, the ladies established their own nine-hole course alongside the main links, complete with a clubhouse at the Thatched Cottage on the common. Among its members was Isette Pearson of Putney, a leading figure in the founding of the Ladies Golf Union in 1893.
RWGC
In 1881, a major dispute between military and civilian members led to the formation of what would become Royal Wimbledon Golf Club. Royal Wimbledon continued to play on our course until 1907, when, under the leadership of Laidlaw Purves, it moved to its own links just off the common.
150th Club Anniversary
To mark the Club’s 150th anniversary, Colin Montgomerie served as Club Captain for the 2015/16 season. The former 2010 Ryder Cup Captain became only the second Ryder Cup captain associated with the LSGC. The first was Scotland’s George Duncan, a member in the 1920s, who captained Great Britain & Ireland to Ryder Cup victory in 1929.