Hellenic Golf Club. (1950 – 1971)
After the end of World War II, Professor GerasimosPatronikolas (1904 – 1969), who was married to Callirhoe Onassis (1918 – 2006), the stepsister of Aristoteles Onassis, built a 9-hole par 3course and clubhouse at Varibobi, north of Athens. The original 9-holes were designed by German Golf architect Herbert E. Gaertner during the early 1950’s, the German golf professional Emil Dürk supervised the construction work. In January 1956 the German magazine Golf reported, that Prof. Patronikolas was preparing new adjacent land to extend the course to 18 holes again according to plans drawn by Gaertner.
According to an anecdote, local children would run after the balls hit by the golfers, pick them up and return them to their owners. The children were shocked when the golfers adamantly insisted the children never to touch the balls but leave the balls where they landed.
The golf course at Varibobi (=Varympompi) operated until after Glyfada Golf Course opened in 1963. Varibobi closed following the death of Patronikolas in 1969.
There is an entry for the club in the 1971 Golfer’s Handbook stating that the course has 9 holes, is 2,666m long at Par 60. It is situated at Varibobi 5 km from Kifissia, where the Olympic village was in 2004. A.Pardalis is the golf professional and the green fees are 60 Drachmae during the week and 120 Drachmae on weekends.
Christoph Meister, September 2021.
Further information on Golf in Greece can be seen on the link below.