Longmeadow Country Club celebrates 100 years of golf and socializing

June 29, 2022 | Sarah Heinonen
sheinonen@thereminder.com

LONGMEADOW – This summer, Longmeadow Country Club is celebrating its 100th anniversary.

The club hosted a Centennial Celebration on the weekend of June 18 to kick off the 100th anniversary of the club’s founding. The celebration included the erection of a clock at the first tee box to commemorate the centennial, a “Roaring 20s”-themed party, food, drinks, games and fireworks. Roberta Bolduc, chair of the Centennial Committee for the Longmeadow Country Club, explained that the goal was to “have a variety that would appeal to a wide audience.”

The club was founded by Donald Ross in 1922. According to the club’s website, “The course was completed in 1924, followed by the clubhouse in 1926. Racquet sports and aquatics have since rounded out the Club’s sporting facilities.”

In 1927, the club hired Australian golf professional and club maker J. Victor East. Five years later, East’s position as the first head of A.G. Spalding’s custom-built department put Longmeadow Country Club on the map as a proving ground to test out new club technology.

Longmeadow Country Club President Jim Kennedy said Longmeadow Country Club remains committed to investing in its success. “Over the past six or seven years, we’ve put over $6 million into renovating the course and the club house,” Kennedy said.

Kennedy is especially proud of the course’s caddy program, which hires local high school and college students as caddies. He said it allows students to “put a little money in their pocket” and develop a love for the game.

Not Your Grandfather’s Golf

The club is currently at full membership. In five years’ time, Kennedy said, “We’d love to see that continue and see [LCC] becoming a young, vibrant club and I think younger members will help do that.”

Unlike many sports, Kennedy said “[COVID-19] was a shot in the arm for golf. Before [COVID-19], our membership was down almost 100 members from where we are now.” Once the coronavirus pandemic began, however, he said, “a lot of families started to join instead of traveling.”

“It’s not the old golf where it’s just the men on the weekends,” Kennedy said. “It’s much more of a family-friendly game.” He said he was happy to see, “a lot of younger families with a lot of younger kids,” at the celebration.

While there are many new members, Kennedy said there are still generational members, whose parents and grandparents golfed at the club. One of those generational members is Milton Reach, the namesake and grandson of a founding member.

Reach talked about the differences between when the club was created and now. “It’s changed a little bit because we’ve added other sporting activities, like the pool and paddle tennis. It’s a less formal atmosphere. Back in 1922, it was very sophisticated and formal. Now, it’s much more relaxed.”

“One of the cool things about golf is you can make it a social thing,” Reach said, adding that his wife enjoys playing with friends, while he looks at golf as a solitary hobby.

No matter how many people one plays with, however, Reach said the quality of the course is what matters. It is a championship golf course that has hosted the Massachusetts Open Championship, as well as several national games.

“I think the most important thing for me, we have this unusual and spectacular piece of land that was molded into a fair and fun course by one of the world’s best architects,” Reach said.

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