With The Masters getting underway today, we are proud of our links with Dr Alister MacKenzie. A former member of Ilkley Golf Club, he honed his skills on the course in the early 1900s. The archive photograph shows his design of our 15th green when he came back to the club to perfect it in 1926, months prior to his famous engagements with Royal Melbourne, Cypress Point and, a few years later, Augusta National.  

The green was certainly well protected. The three-ball on the 15th must have been good players as they didn't even take their jackets off!

We are proud to announce that Ilkley Golf Club member, Ian Hepworth, has been sworn in as the President of the Harrogate & District Union of Golf Clubs. On a wonderful evening, Ian marked the occasion with a nerveless drive from the edge of the putting green, as the sun was setting!

Joining from Sand Moor Golf Club, Glen is a skilled PGA professional with a proven track record in leading successful golf operations, retail management and delivering high quality coaching.

As well as giving lessons to members and visitors, whatever age and ability, he will also be providing the latest golf equipment from leading manufacturers, spring/summer clothing and accessories to help improve your game.

Glen has also invested in the world’s most advanced golf simulator, which has been installed in the refurbished golf studio within the pro’s shop.

The Trackman 4, which is trusted by the PGA, LPGA and LIV tours, provides unmatched precision and accuracy within 0.5 yards and tracks performance with pinpoint accuracy, covering spin rates, launch angles, carry distances, and more. 

In addition to being used for lessons, the simulator can also be hired by groups of friends or for corporate entertaining. As well as being able to play the world’s best courses, Glen has created a fun and relaxed atmosphere, with music-on-demand, fresh hot coffee and comfortable seating.

Welcoming Glen to Ilkley, club president Sean Crannigan said,

“Glen is friendly and personable and has already made an excellent impression with the members. As well as providing expert lessons and a great retail experience, he will provide visitors to the club with a great welcome.”  

Speaking about his appointment, Glen said,

“Ilkley is one of the best golf courses in Yorkshire, so I am delighted to become the club professional. I am really looking forward to welcoming both members and visitors and provide them with expert tuition and a fully stocked shop, with an extensive choice of golf clothing and equipment.

“In addition, in the short time I have been at the club, the new golf simulator has been a huge hit as it is regularly booked out, especially when the weather is not good.”

There were various fundraising events during the year, culminating in a very successful and sell out charity golf day, with a BBQ on the terrace in the evening. 

Thanking people for their generosity, captains, Richard Thornton and Holly Flather, said,

“This is a truly extraordinary effort from Ilkley Golf Club, and we thank everyone who participated not only in the charity golf day but who also generously donated on Lady Captain’s Day, Men’s Captain’s Day and at Liz Webster’s open garden day.

“Our thanks go to all the staff at Ilkley Golf Club who worked tirelessly on the charity day and to our fabulous ladies who baked delicious treats and gave up their valuable time to help in the halfway house.

“We would like to extend our heartfelt thanks to you all.  This would have been impossible to achieve without the support from our members, it’s an incredible achievement.”

Sue Ryder offers specialist medical care and support for patients at the local hospice, Manorlands, as well as vital support in our community.  This local charity relies on people and organisations within our community and beyond, to help raise funds.

Notable mentions include the Ladies A Team winning the Yorkshire County Finals at Garforth Golf Club and Lucy White finishing 2nd in the HowDidIDo One Club Advantage Grand Final at Royal Troon Golf Club.

They all celebrated in style at the end of season dinner and prize giving.

Congratulations to everyone on an amazing season

Mark inspired those attending with stories about playing golf as a top professional and captaining the Ryder Cup 

Well done to Junior Captain Corey Canning for a successful season and congratulations to all the prize winners. We all wish Corey good luck with his future golfing career as he is now heading to the States with a golf scholarship with Peak USA.

In a very skilful operation, the team neatly ran channels across the fairway and around the green and then installed the new drainage. They carefully placed the turf back into place returning the fairway to as it was before. Within a matter of days it was hard to see where they had been. Well done team, excellent work all round.

There was great fun, lovely food and lots of laughs at the prize presentation when a full dining room celebrated both team and individual successes within the club, as well as those who have represented the club throughout the county.

Special mention to Henry Croft, who had a fantastic 2024 and the scratch team for their victory in the Harrogate Union matches. 

The VGR TopChanger injects a large amount of sand, at an average depth of seven inches, to promote aeration into the rootzone and consequently promote healthy growth that is less susceptible to disease.

As the work was non-impactful, the greens were looking really good and rolling well just a few days after the work was completed. The work will ensure we can play on the Ilkley greens throughout the winter without the need to revert to temporary greens.

In a closely contested final at Knaresborough Golf Club on 13 October, Jack and Henry came through against Brook Coward and Chris Payne of Skipton Golf Club in a closely contested final played in great spirits.

Thank you to Knaresborough Golf Club for hosting the final.