Canton Golf Club Tees Up Historic Course

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.

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.

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.