Ruth Canale, young links star, holding the perpetual trophy plaque of walnut and silver, offered by the Tacoma Times and inscribed with the names of the winners of the Washington State Women's Public Links Golf Tournament. The tournament will be held at Meadow Park. Miss Canale is a contender for the trophy, having recently broken her own personal record by shooting 79 over Meadow Park. (T. Times 6/26/1936, pg. 15)

Golf--Tacoma--1930-1940; Golfers--Tacoma--1930-1940; Canale, Ruth;

Swimming area at American Lake, part of the Tacoma Country and Golf Club. The club purchased this property on the eastern shore of American Lake in 1904. Originally, members were issued deeds to 25 foot lots along the lake front where they could set up tents and escape the city's summer heat. As time passed, the tents gave way to homes, greens and the clubhouse. The lake still remained a favorite "Ole Swimmin' Hole" for a quick refreshing dip. A dock reaches out into the lake, topped with a life guard stand. Boats are also tied up to the right of the dock. ("A History of Pierce County, Wa." vol. 1) TPL-8640

Tacoma Country & Golf Club (Tacoma)--1950-1960; Water holes--Tacoma--1950-1960;

The entrance drive to the exclusive members only Tacoma Country and Golf Club, located on the shores of American Lake. The club relocated to this location in 1904. It is the oldest continuously operating Country Club west of the Mississippi.("A History of Pierce County, Wa." vol. 1)

Tacoma Country & Golf Club (Tacoma);

Still in a crouch, a golfer believed to be Arnold Palmer watches his ball head toward the hole on the final day of the 1960 Carling Open held in September of 1960 at the Fircrest Golf Club. His two playing partners and caddy, along with hundreds of spectators, watch intently. Arnold Palmer had already won over $70,000 in 1960 and was looking to add the $3,500 first prize money to his earnings. Palmer won a disappointing $250; he finished with a total of 281 after 72-holes, nine strokes behind Ernie Vossler, a 31-year-old from Midland, Texas. Vossler beat Paul Harney by one stroke to capture the 1960 Carling Open. Photograph ordered by the Carling Brewery. (TNT 9-19-60, p.l4) TPL-9898

Golf--Fircrest--1960-1970; Golfers--Fircrest--1960-1970; Putting (Golf)--Fircrest; Sports spectators--Fircrest;

Golfer teeing off in Carling Open on September 16, 1960. Two competitors squat while waiting their turn. Large crowd follows flight of the ball. The Carling Open, held at the Fircrest Golf Course, attracted a large field of prominent players, including Arnold Palmer, Billy Casper, Bob Rosburg, Lionel Hebert, Don January, and Julius Boros. The event was co-sponsored by the American Cancer Society and 25,000 local residents came out to watch the action. Photograph ordered by Tom Hill, Doric Tacoma Motor Hotel, to be displayed on easels throughout hotel. (TNT 9-19-60, p. 14)

Golf--Fircrest--1960-1970; Golfers--Fircrest--1960-1970; Sports spectators--Fircrest;

Unidentified golf foursome. Western Washington pro golfers and club presidents gathered on Friday, April 28, 1972, at the Tacoma Country & Golf Club to participate in the Northwest Pro-Presidents golf tournament. This year each of the three branches in the northwest section of the PGA will have its own tournament. The Tacoma Country & Golf Club was the location of the first Northwest Pro-Presidents tournament in 1953. Color photograph ordered by Gerry Mehlert. (TNT 4-27-72, C-11- article; TNT 4-29-72, p. 10 -article)

Golf--Tacoma--1970-1980; Golfers--Tacoma--1970-1980; Tacoma Country & Golf Club (Tacoma)--1970-1980;

Tacoma Open Golf Tournament at Fircrest, Tacoma Athletic Commission, Bob Sanders. The crowd of spectators is spread out along the 18th fairway at the Fircrest Golf Club during the Tacoma Open Golf Tournament in September of 1948. Some of the entrants in the tournament are seen at play on the fairway. (Additional information provided by a reader)

Golf--Tacoma--1940-1950; Fircrest Golf Club (Fircrest); Golfers--Tacoma--1940-1950; Spectators--Tacoma; Contests--Tacoma--1940-1950;

Tacoma Open Golf Tournament at Fircrest, Tacoma Athletic Commission, Bob Sanders. A young man announces the play during the Tacoma Open Golf Tournament from the roof of one of the buildings at the Fircrest Golf Club. Bleacher seats were placed at vantage points for spectators to watch their favorites come in off both nines. The five way split from Sunday's play was broken on September 21st when Ed Oliver of Seattle won the five-man playoff and won the $12,500 Tacoma Open Classic. (T.Times, 9/21/1948, p.10) TPL-6255

Golf--Tacoma--1940-1950; Fircrest Golf Club (Fircrest); Golfers--Tacoma--1940-1950; Spectators--Tacoma; Contests--Tacoma--1940-1950;

18th green at the Fircrest Golf Club. Tacoma Open Golf Tournament at Fircrest, Tacoma Athletic Commission, Bob Sanders.The Tacoma Open Golf Tournament opened at the Fircrest Golf Club for a four-day event starting September 17, 1948. The tournament attracted a large gallery and people can be seen here following the players to the next green. A $12,500 purse would go to the winner. (TNT, 9/17/1948, p.14)

Golf--Tacoma--1940-1950; Fircrest Golf Club (Fircrest); Golfers--Tacoma--1940-1950; Spectators--Tacoma; Contests--Tacoma--1940-1950;

Four unidentified men pose with a late-model automobile in the back of the Fircrest Golf Clubhouse in late September of 1926. Three are wearing golfing clothes while the fourth man has a modified version including jacket, tie and fedora. The private golf course was situated on about 160 acres in Fircrest and was relatively new, opening on July 26, 1924. G54.1-025

Fircrest Golf Club (Fircrest); Clubhouses--Fircrest--1920-1930; Golfers--Fircrest--1920-1930; Golfers--Clothing & dress--1920-1930; Automobiles--Fircrest;

One golfer is lining up his putt at the 10th hole of the Fircrest Golf Course on September 29, 1926, while his playing partners wait. The flagstick has been thrown to the side. All four balls look in close proximity to the hole. G54.1-024 TPL-10256

Golfers--Fircrest--1920-1930; Golfers--Clothing & dress--1920-1930; Putting (Golf)--Fircrest; Golf--Fircrest--1920-1930;

Dave Black, of Vancouver B.C., posed on the links June 18, 1925 for the front page of the News Tribune, wearing fashionable golf attire, including argyle socks. Mr. Black was in town for the Pacific Northwest Golf Association's open tournament, held at the Tacoma Country & Golf Club. (TNT 6/19/1925, pg. 1) (WSHS)

Tacoma Country & Golf Club (Tacoma)--1920-1930; Golf--Tacoma--1920-1930; Golfers--Tacoma--1920-1930; Golfers--Clothing & dress--1920-1930; Black, Dave;

The Junior Women's club members and guests took over the facilities of the Fircrest Golf Club on Saturday, April 26, 1942, for their annual cabaret dance. A group of members and their escorts are pictured on the porch of the club.

Fircrest Golf Club (Fircrest); Junior Women's Club (Tacoma); Women--Clubs--Tacoma;

Annual golf tournament sponsored by the Lumbermans' Association and held at the Tacoma Country Club. Photograph ordered by Cecil Cavanaugh. The man in the center holds two loving cups to be awarded as prizes in the Northwest Lumbermans' Handicap Golf Championship on August 9-10, 1941. Hugo Peterson of Tacoma was the big winner. He was employed at the Douglas Fir Plywood Association (DFPA). (T. Times 8/11/1941)

Tournaments--Tacoma; Awards; Golf--Tacoma--1940-1950; Country clubs--Tacoma; Sports & recreation facilities--Tacoma; Lumber industry--Tacoma--1940-1950; Tacoma Country & Golf Club (Tacoma)--1940-1950;

These four golfers, and many more, participated in the 1972 Northwest Pro-Presidents golf tournament held at the Tacoma Country & Golf Club on April 28, 1972. The field for the one-day tournament was a mixture of Western Washington pros and club presidents. Host pro Gerry Mehlert had the best round of the day - a sparkling 69. Winner of the tournament by four strokes was the twosome of Bob Lundgaard, president of the Olympia Country Club, and professional Rick Adell. Color photograph ordered by Gerry Mehlert. (TNT 4-27-72, C-11 -article; TNT 4-29-72, p. 10 -article)

Golf--Tacoma--1970-1980; Golfers--Tacoma--1970-1980; Tacoma Country & Golf Club (Tacoma)--1970-1980;

Women's Day at Country Club, Tribune, Mrs. Hosmer. The summer golf season officially opened with the women's division gathering at the Fircrest Golf Club. More than a score of beginners were welcomed into the club by president Mrs. Percy J. Quam. Three women are completing their final put. A golf bag on wheels is seen in the background. (T.Times, 5/3/1948, p.6) TPL-8636

Fircrest Golf Club (Fircrest); Golfers--Tacoma--1940-1950; Clubwomen--Tacoma--1940-1950; Golf--Tacoma--1940-1950; Clothing & dress--Tacoma--1940-1950;

Dinner party honoring Alexander Baillie at Tacoma Country & Golf Club, Tribune, E. Knight. A view of the banquet room at the Tacoma Country & Golf Club on October 22, 1948, where more than 150 guests were gathered in honor of Alexander Baillie, the venerable Scotsman who was the first president of the golf club. He is seen near the wall between the middle two sets of draperies next to banker Reno Odlin who is holding a microphone. Most of the assembled men are wearing tuxedoes, seated at tables decorated with candles and flowers.

Tacoma Country & Golf Club (Tacoma); Country clubs--Tacoma--1940-1950; Baillie, Alexander, 1859-1949; Odlin, Reno, 1897-1979; Banquets--Tacoma--1940-1950; Men--Tacoma--1940-1950;

Thirty-six young golfers competed in the Northwest Prep Championship Tournament held in July of 1946. Jerry Driscoll (left) beat his partners, Bruce Andreasen (center) and Dick Nicholson, by one and two strokes respectively in the 36 hole competition to win the Tacoma Jubilee golf title. (T. Times 7-02-1946 p.11)

Golf--Fircrest--1940-1950; Driscoll, Jerry;

Professional golfer Cary Middlecoff autographs golf balls at the Tacoma Open Tournament held at the Fircrest Golf Club. On Sunday, September 20, 1948, P.G.A. history was made when Cary Middlecoff and four other professional golfers all completed the 72-hole tournament tied at 274 strokes. With the top cash prizes still unclaimed, the five played another round of 18-holes on Monday. Still no winner! In a sudden death 19th-hole, Ed "Porky" Oliver, who played out of Seattle's Inglewood Country Club, beat Middlecoff by one stroke. Middlecoff, whose name was usually prefixed by "Dr.," was a graduate of the Tennessee College of Dentistry (1944) and first practiced dentistry in the U.S. Army where he filled 12, 093 teeth in 18 months. He would go on to win the U.S. Open twice and the Masters once. (TNT 09-21-1948 p.8) ALBUM 9.

Golf--Tacoma--1940-1950; Fircrest Golf Club (Fircrest); Golfers--Tacoma--1940-1950; Contests--Tacoma--1940-1950; Middlecoff, Cary;

Tacoma Open Golf Tournament at Fircrest, Tacoma Athletic Commission, Bob Sanders. Out of the 112 contestants entered in the tournament only 17 broke par of 71 and nine equalled that figure. Eighteen holes were played each day. Scores at the half-way mark were 134 for Freddie Hass, Jr., 136 for Chuck Congdon, Herman Heiser and Vic Ghezzi, and 137 for Ed Oliver. (TNT, 9/18/1948, p.8)

Golf--Tacoma--1940-1950; Fircrest Golf Club (Fircrest); Golfers--Tacoma--1940-1950; Spectators--Tacoma; Contests--Tacoma--1940-1950;

Tacoma Open Golf Tournament at Fircrest, Tacoma Athletic Commission, Bob Sanders. Four men and a woman stand together at the opening of the PGA Open Golf Tournament held in Tacoma in 1948. The man on the left is possibly Vic Ghezzi, a professional player from Englewood , New Jersey. The woman is unidentified. In the middle is Howard Smith, president of the Tacoma Athletic Commission, the organization sponsoring the event. Second from the right is Chuck Congdon, the professional from the Tacoma Golf and Country Club. The man on the for right is unidentified. (TNT, 9/20/1948, p.9)

Golf--Tacoma--1940-1950; Fircrest Golf Club (Fircrest); Golfers--Tacoma--1940-1950; Spectators--Tacoma; Contests--Tacoma--1940-1950; Smith, Howard R.; Congdon, Chuck;

Allenmore Golf Open party. Following the first day of play Oscar Eliason and Ken Tucker were tied for first place in the 17th Allenmore Open Golf Tournament. Tied for third place were Chuck Congdon and Bob McKendrick. Al Buhre was in fifth. Several of the players are seen with some of the prizes given. Ordered by the Tacoma Athletic Commission, Mr. Metcalf. (TNT, 5/17/1950, p.36)

Golf--Tacoma--1950-1960; Allenmore Golf Club (Tacoma); Awards; Golfers--Tacoma--1950-1960;

The Clubhouse at the Tacoma Country and Golf Club. In June of 1909, a fire that started in the servant's quarters burned the original clubhouse to the ground. This regal building, known as the "Grand Old Lady," rose in its place. It was best remembered for its gracious spiral staircase in the entrance hall, shown in many wedding portraits. A fire gutted this structure in 1961. TPL-5741 ("A History of Pierce County, Wa." vol. 1)

Tacoma Country & Golf Club (Tacoma)--Buildings; Clubhouses--Tacoma--1950-1960;

The entrance drive to the exclusive members only Tacoma Country and Golf Club, located on the shores of American Lake. The club relocated to this location in 1904. It is the oldest continuously operating Country Club west of the Mississippi.("A History of Pierce County, Wa." vol. 1)

Tacoma Country & Golf Club (Tacoma);

Springtime in Washington brings out the golfers as the many automobiles parked at the Parkland Golf Course in April of 1930 will attest. Ample parking was available near the course's main entrance. G54.1-021

Golf--Parkland; Parkland Golf Course (Parkland); Automobiles--Parkland; Parking--Parkland;

ca. 1924. One golfer is attempting to blast out of a bunker at the Fircrest Golf Course while his two companions remain safely out of the way. This photograph was believed to have been taken not long after the private golf course's opening in 1924. This site has been identified as the original hole design and bunker configuration of the 17th green at the Fircrest Golf Course. The course designer, Arthur V. Macan, created the hole to mirror the glaciers of Mount Rainier. Golfers soon called it "The Volcano Hole." (Additional information provided by a reader)

Donald T. McDonald held the flag for his daughter, Mrs. Shirley Fopp, while she putted in their ball during the "mixed two-ball" foursomes tournament held at Fircrest Golf Course on August 7, 1948. The other couple in their foursome was Betty Carlson and Al H. Moody. Mrs. Fopp, the former Shirley McDonald, was a former club champion. A record 52 mixed doubles teams registered to participate in the big event. (T. Times, 8/11/48, p. 6).

Golf--Tacoma--1940-1950; Golfers--Tacoma--1940-1950; Sports & recreation facilities--Tacoma; Sporting goods; Tournaments--Tacoma; Fircrest Golf Club (Fircrest);

Brookdale Golf Course. Four men show the Championship Prizes, golf clubs and golf bags.

Golfers--Tacoma--1940-1950; Awards;

The Pacific Northwest Golf Association Championship Tournament was calling for young men interested in being caddies. Three caddy stations were going to be set up throughout the golf course. View of Tournament caddies at the Fircrest Golf Club, photo ordered by the Young Men's Business Club. The Young Men's Business Club were one of the Tournament's sponsors.

Golf--Tacoma--1940-1950; Caddies--Tacoma; Sporting goods; Men--Clubs--Tacoma; Young Men's Business Club (Tacoma);

Allenmore Golf Club Tournament. The Tacoma Open Golf Tournament, at Allenmore Golf Course, offers prizes totaling $1250, making it the biggest golf event in the Northwest. View of Tacoma Open Golf Tournament committee displaying some of the prizes. Names given in article (T. Times, 5/20/44, p. 20).

Golf--Tacoma--1940-1950; Tournaments--Tacoma; Tacoma Open Golf Tournament (Tacoma);