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This item is by current chairperson Liz Fletcher
History of Dunning Golf club
Dunning is fairly unique among small villages in having its very own beautifully sited nine hole golf course. The course has a fairly long and chequered history originating at Kincladie Park in 1906. That site lasted only one year however, because of the rough nature of the pasture and in 1907 it moved to the ancient common grazing ground at Mains of Pitcairn. An annual fee of £10 was paid to Lord Rollo for the use of the ground but this was compensated by a charge of £10 to Mr Lewis Angus of Pitcairn for allowing his sheep to graze on the course.
Greenkeepers were appointed, a small clubhouse was built, and the club and its competitions became an integral part of village life in Dunning. At the onset of World War II in 1939 the club was disbanded but six years later in 1946 Lord Rollo gifted to the village the land known as the Alley Park to be known as the Rollo Recreation Park.
Thus it was that the Old Course Committee reformed in 1951 to recreate the golf course and the Club and Course in its present site was officially opened by Lord Rollo in 1954. The first club fees were 12 shillings and sixpence for men and ten shillings for women. A club house no greater than a large hut was built followed by extensions of a porch and kitchen. This remained until the present building was erected in 1981-82.
In the years that followed as membership steadily increased the course has been greatly improved with landscaping, tree planting and three new bridges built over the burn which meanders through the course. Today the course is greatly enjoyed by golfers from Dunning and surrounding area, but its interesting history as part of the gift to the people of Dunning must give it a unique place in the history of golf.
Elizabeth Fletcher Autumn 2000
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