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Baden-Baden Oos Golf Club. (1901 -1928)

A 9-hole golf course was laid out at Baden-Baden Oos opposite the railway station that today is Baden-Baden main station.

From the 1905 Nisbet’s Golf Yearbook; Instituted 1900; Hon. Sec. – Rev. A F White; Captain – Henry Grosholz; Subs. 50 marks per year, 20 marks per month, 10 marks per week, 2 marks per day; Green-keeper, C King. 

In 1910 the course was extended to 18-holes making it the first full size golf course in Germany, as Bad Homburg hat 18 holes but was only a short course.

1911 and 1912 the course hosted the first two editions of the German Open Championship. At that time the course played over 4,766 yards for gentlemen and the bogey of the course was 74. Harry Vardon won the 1911 German Open with 279 strokes, at that time the lowest score ever played on a full size course over four rounds. He played rounds of 69, 67, 71 and 72.

There was some dispute on the title of the tournament. After having built a nice little clubhouse the club officials “….decided on having a professional tournament of the first class and securing the attendance of the very best men. What more natural than that they should wish to call this tournament the championship of Germany? They duly announced it as such, and then there was trouble, for the club belonged to the German Golfing Union, which wanted the championship of the country to be played on some other course, being apparently much jealous of the great enterprise of the people of Baden-Baden. Therefore they forbade the latter to style their tournament in the manner proposed, and after some demur the name of the competition was changed to the "open championship of Baden-Baden," which was really just as good. The prize money amounted to $1,250, the first prize being$500….“(from: “The American Golfer”, October 1911).

Below the victory of Harry Vardon in August 1911.

 

Baden-Baden Oos Golf Club. The victory of Harry Vardon in August 1911.

From the Referee Sunday 20 August 1911. Image © News International. Image created courtesy of THE BRITISH LIBRARY BOARD.

 

Baden-Baden Oos Golf Club. Picture of the clubhouse, course and Zeppelin.

 

Baden-Baden Oos Golf Club. The earlier clubhouse.

Baden-Baden Oos Golf Club. The earlier clubhouse.

 

Following the 1911 dispute Baden-Baden Golf-Club left the German Golf Federation only to rejoin it after the Great War; by then the course was reduced to 9 holes again. With Baden-Baden growing the golf course soon found itself cramped between the railway station, an airport, a noisy street and other distractions. Even though additional land available at Oos was offered to the club a new site for Baden-Baden Golf-Club was chosen at Selighof, where the Peter Gannon designed course opened in 1927, it is still in operation today. 

 

Baden-Baden Oos Golf Club. Layout of the course in 1926.

Layout of the nine-hole course in 1926.

 

Baden-Baden Oos Golf Club. Scorecard from 1925.

Scorecard of the course from 1925.