Bromborough Golf Club
Like many golf clubs, the early days of Bromborough are not accurately recorded. Their Centenary book refers to a meeting at a Bromborough school in 1903 at which a plan was agreed to form a club on a 9 hole course that had been built by the Hassall family who were local farmers. It was decided that the annual subscription should be one guinea and the initial membership target of 100 was soon reached. In 1904 a local landowner, Major Herbert Lancelyn Green, was elected as the first Captain and in the following year his daughter became the first Captain of the Ladies Section.
The Hassall family were tenants of the Earl of Shrewsbury who owned the land and who subsequently sold it to William Hesketh Lever in 1911. He later became the first Viscount Leverhulme whose interest in golf continued through three successive Viscount Leverhulmes until the death of the last holder of the title in 2000. William Hesketh Lever was elected the first club President in 1912 and the Presidency continued through William Hulme Lever and Philip William Bryce Lever the second and third Viscounts. William Hulme Lever was Captain for three successive years from 1920 to 1922 and Philip William Lever was Captain in 1949. The latter generously donated two acres of land to the club on which to build a new Clubhouse. The Leverhulme estates still own most of the land through a family Trust.
Golf was suspended during the first World War and in 1915 the old clubhouse was converted by the Red Cross into a military hospital. It was fitted out with some of the most modern equipment available at that time with accommodation for an average of 160 beds. A total of 1,245 patients were treated at the hospital before it was handed back to the golf club in 1919.
The restoration of the golf course after the war coincided with its expansion from 9 to 18 holes and the clubhouse, built after the original had been destroyed by fire in 1910, was extended and improved. The club enjoyed a period of relative stability until war again intervened in 1939. This time the impact was even more severe due to its proximity to Hooton aerodrome and the whole course was lost to the war effort. Concrete roads were constructed to build a base for the American forces and the course was used as a build-up for the D-Day landings in France.
Britain’s first motorways were built in 1955 and golf courses were prime targets for the new routes. In the late 1960’s Huyton & Prescot and Bromborough simultaneously lost land to their respective local authorities and both were fortunate to be compensated with new land and new holes designed by Hawtree & Son. Bromborough lost four holes to the M53 and was temporarily reduced to 15 holes until re-opening in its present form in 1972. Good course management and tree planting since then have created one of the most testing courses on the Wirral, producing some outstanding men and women golfers and being regularly used by The Cheshire County Union for its competitions.
Bromborough was a founder member of the Society and has produced four Captains, Frank Hayes (1964/65), Harry Wellings (1981/82), David Kerr (1994/95) and Charlie Abbott (2021/2022).
The Hassall family were tenants of the Earl of Shrewsbury who owned the land and who subsequently sold it to William Hesketh Lever in 1911. He later became the first Viscount Leverhulme whose interest in golf continued through three successive Viscount Leverhulmes until the death of the last holder of the title in 2000. William Hesketh Lever was elected the first club President in 1912 and the Presidency continued through William Hulme Lever and Philip William Bryce Lever the second and third Viscounts. William Hulme Lever was Captain for three successive years from 1920 to 1922 and Philip William Lever was Captain in 1949. The latter generously donated two acres of land to the club on which to build a new Clubhouse. The Leverhulme estates still own most of the land through a family Trust.
Golf was suspended during the first World War and in 1915 the old clubhouse was converted by the Red Cross into a military hospital. It was fitted out with some of the most modern equipment available at that time with accommodation for an average of 160 beds. A total of 1,245 patients were treated at the hospital before it was handed back to the golf club in 1919.
The restoration of the golf course after the war coincided with its expansion from 9 to 18 holes and the clubhouse, built after the original had been destroyed by fire in 1910, was extended and improved. The club enjoyed a period of relative stability until war again intervened in 1939. This time the impact was even more severe due to its proximity to Hooton aerodrome and the whole course was lost to the war effort. Concrete roads were constructed to build a base for the American forces and the course was used as a build-up for the D-Day landings in France.
Britain’s first motorways were built in 1955 and golf courses were prime targets for the new routes. In the late 1960’s Huyton & Prescot and Bromborough simultaneously lost land to their respective local authorities and both were fortunate to be compensated with new land and new holes designed by Hawtree & Son. Bromborough lost four holes to the M53 and was temporarily reduced to 15 holes until re-opening in its present form in 1972. Good course management and tree planting since then have created one of the most testing courses on the Wirral, producing some outstanding men and women golfers and being regularly used by The Cheshire County Union for its competitions.
Bromborough was a founder member of the Society and has produced four Captains, Frank Hayes (1964/65), Harry Wellings (1981/82), David Kerr (1994/95) and Charlie Abbott (2021/2022).