Canton Golf Club Tees Up Historic Course
Canton Golf Club is a historic nine-hole golf course, clubhouse, and pool on Golf Course Road, deeply rooted in the town’s storied history. Still hugely popular today, the member-owned golf club was built in the 1930s, has ties to legendary golfer Bobby Jones, and was at one time owned by the Jones family and Canton Textile Mills.
![Canton Golf Club in Canton Georgia](https://cantonga.imgix.net/images/Canton-Golf-Course-03.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&position=50%2050&q=80&w=320&s=bae52fa94f8773f876b2ce4fbf1141ad 320w, https://cantonga.imgix.net/images/Canton-Golf-Course-03.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&position=50%2050&q=80&w=540&s=37453f348017f06f2b7c4cfc32f84b1c 540w, https://cantonga.imgix.net/images/Canton-Golf-Course-03.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&position=50%2050&q=80&w=768&s=c023554e8856c7c1dc4548476f0f0394 768w, https://cantonga.imgix.net/images/Canton-Golf-Course-03.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&position=50%2050&q=80&w=1024&s=cd6cc8998771b568e562e43c66df3e8a 1024w, https://cantonga.imgix.net/images/Canton-Golf-Course-03.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&position=50%2050&q=80&w=1200&s=86ad3faac3213da3782dfc8e1b29ac12 1200w, https://cantonga.imgix.net/images/Canton-Golf-Course-03.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&position=50%2050&q=80&w=1440&s=92a53b91322c43b1bc7a004e58cd9572 1440w, https://cantonga.imgix.net/images/Canton-Golf-Course-03.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&position=50%2050&q=80&w=1920&s=d68739acf3781e9b5166b3bb8d63b04f 1920w, https://cantonga.imgix.net/images/Canton-Golf-Course-03.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&position=50%2050&q=80&w=2560&s=08d62416ca7a0bf86286192578e5b771 2560w, https://cantonga.imgix.net/images/Canton-Golf-Course-03.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&position=50%2050&q=80&w=3840&s=80a2840cc916a4014ee8c087adb6e32a 2880w)
Work began on Canton Golf Club in 1935, an initiative of the Canton Lions Club using Works Progress Administration funds and other donations. The Canton Golf Course was designed mainly by Howard Beckett, the pro at Capital City Golf Club, according to college professor Mack Moore in writings for The Heritage of Cherokee County 1831-1998.
Canton businessman Howard Bagwell was chairman of the Lions Major Activities Committee and oversaw much of the construction for the club, Moore writes. The club was built on land purchased by the city and donated for the project. However, a portion of the land where holes 4, 5, and 6 were located was donated by Jones Mercantile Company owned by
R. T. Jones, grandfather of the famous golfer, Bobby Jones. Limited play started in the summer of 1936, and on October 1, 1936, a fish fry marked the unofficial opening.
In July 1937 the clubhouse was officially opened, marked by the club’s first invitation tournament, which was won by Tyre Jones. The club was leased as a private club soon after that.
![Canton Golf Club in Canton Georgia](https://cantonga.imgix.net/images/Canton-Golf-Course-01.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&position=50%2050&q=80&w=320&s=870806c5382bccb62a4eef55cf374128 320w, https://cantonga.imgix.net/images/Canton-Golf-Course-01.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&position=50%2050&q=80&w=540&s=c9a085858e55ae2c7a45a3c5cdb3d634 540w, https://cantonga.imgix.net/images/Canton-Golf-Course-01.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&position=50%2050&q=80&w=768&s=efbb800afad00dc23e76ec8f0aab968d 768w, https://cantonga.imgix.net/images/Canton-Golf-Course-01.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&position=50%2050&q=80&w=1024&s=04931b9a2af5851bf60e2b22bf512eb2 1024w, https://cantonga.imgix.net/images/Canton-Golf-Course-01.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&position=50%2050&q=80&w=1200&s=d10f9de6cb668efc93b8baf91571ed43 1200w, https://cantonga.imgix.net/images/Canton-Golf-Course-01.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&position=50%2050&q=80&w=1440&s=7efeb5899b3c9a8dc247752687f0e961 1440w, https://cantonga.imgix.net/images/Canton-Golf-Course-01.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&position=50%2050&q=80&w=1920&s=0b8164ed19aaf15a592bf7a57707805c 1920w, https://cantonga.imgix.net/images/Canton-Golf-Course-01.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&position=50%2050&q=80&w=2560&s=a11a4450aa1f00130cf34fac69ea7ec5 2560w, https://cantonga.imgix.net/images/Canton-Golf-Course-01.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&position=50%2050&q=80&w=3840&s=8198e6223c482af54202790ab003f0c1 3565w)
Because of the economic impact of the Great Depression, it was closed for several months in 1937. When it reopened in the spring of 1938, Howard Bagwell was the president of the club, operating it under an agreement with the city.
On July 13, 1938, Bobby Jones played an exhibition game at the Canton Golf Club, along with Charlie Yates, the newly-crowned British Amateur champion. Bobby was born in Atlanta, and named Robert Tyre Jones, Jr., after his grandfather, who founded Canton Cotton Mills in 1899. Bobby’s father, Robert Purmedus Jones, was the oldest son of R.T. Jones, Sr.
Bobby Jones is one of the giants in golf history and was the dominant player of the sport in the 1920s. He is the only golfer credited with a single-season Grand Slam, when in 1930 he won all four major golf tournaments of his era, the open and amateur championships in both the U.S. and the U.K.
![Canton Golf Club in Canton Georgia](https://cantonga.imgix.net/images/Canton-Golf-Course-02.png?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&position=50%2050&q=80&w=320&s=e8916f39accd922991d6665d1759a5da 320w, https://cantonga.imgix.net/images/Canton-Golf-Course-02.png?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&position=50%2050&q=80&w=540&s=a99b21df800abec28d42911c9519aeb2 540w, https://cantonga.imgix.net/images/Canton-Golf-Course-02.png?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&position=50%2050&q=80&w=768&s=e837d77aabaf7a2b9fb9f3979bb0b761 768w, https://cantonga.imgix.net/images/Canton-Golf-Course-02.png?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&position=50%2050&q=80&w=1024&s=a2d98fcd395af5003c1cd35de6144c33 1024w, https://cantonga.imgix.net/images/Canton-Golf-Course-02.png?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&position=50%2050&q=80&w=1200&s=d618e323ccf75b3da595d10be6a363e4 1200w, https://cantonga.imgix.net/images/Canton-Golf-Course-02.png?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&position=50%2050&q=80&w=1440&s=ef9c0827b4ec9e33fbffca2448e04e2c 1440w, https://cantonga.imgix.net/images/Canton-Golf-Course-02.png?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&position=50%2050&q=80&w=1920&s=aba67c9261bcd871478b374bb816acb5 1920w, https://cantonga.imgix.net/images/Canton-Golf-Course-02.png?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&position=50%2050&q=80&w=2560&s=0e95397a981026907356bda9db3678f0 2400w)
After retiring from competitive golf in 1930, Jones founded and helped design the Augusta National Golf Club in 1933. He also co-founded the Masters Tournament, which has been staged by the club almost every year since 1934.
While the Canton Cotton Mills had subsidized the Canton Golf Club for many years, in 1956 the course ownership was transferred to the textile company owned by the Jones family. In 1981, the facility was turned over to the membership.
Canton Golf Club General Manager Robert Poole, who has served in that capacity for 38 years since 1985, says the course today is doing better than ever. The golf club is operated by a board of directors and owned by the 265 members. Membership is full and the club is not accepting any applications for membership at this time.
The nine-hole course is popular with golfers of all levels partly because of the topography of the course. “It is basically flat, and players can walk it if they want to; it is wide open,” Poole explains. The course was designed around Canton Creek, which affects over half of the holes, providing additional interest for golfers, Poole says.
For more information visit CantonGolfClub.com.
This article was featured in the Historic Canton magazine. Read more.
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480 Golf Course Rd Canton, GA 30114 (770) 479-2772