Old Warson Country Club, St Louis, MO
Year Opened: 1955
Society Delegate: Al Rheinnecker
Website: oldwarson.com

In 1952 a group of St Louis businessmen, led by W. Alfred Hayes and James F. Rarick purchased land in St Louis County that would eventually become Old Warson Country Club. The first board decided they wanted a world class course designed and as a result engaged Robert Trent Jones Sr. Work began on the new course in 1953 and on April 16, 1955 the golf course was formally opened with E.J. Dutch Harrison, a former Ryder Cup player and Vardon Trophy winner, hired as OWCC first professional.

Old Warson Country Club was the host of the 1971 Ryder Cup which America won 18-1⁄2 to 13-1⁄2. It was the last Ryder Cup that included Arnold Palmer , Jack Nicklaus and Lee Trevino. Many other national, regional and local events have been held at the club over the years. These events include the Western Amateur in 1957, the 1962 Trans-Miss, the 1999 U.S.Mid Amatuer, the 2009 U.S Women’s Amateur featuring Jessica Korda and Lexi Thompson and the 2016 U.S Senior Amateur.

When the course opened in April 1955 it proved to be all that the Founders and Jones had hoped for. It is noteworthy that the Jones layout, highly-regarded from the outset, presented very few course elements that needed to be altered over the years. The U-3 Bermuda fairways at the outset were changed to Meyer’s Zoysia in 1969 prior to the Ryder Cup. The bent grass greens remain. In 1994, the original push-up greens underwent a change to the new USGA-specified greens but the putting contours did not change.

The hallmarks of a Jones design were apparent. Runway tees, water hazards on six holes, discernible slopes and contours in the form of mounds or ridges around the greens. Generous greens with important contours offering multiple pin positions. The 67 bunkers with his characteristic “flashing” presented both strategic and aesthetic considerations.