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For the first time in the club’s 137-year history, a NYS championship will be held at Country Club of Buffalo. The 42nd Men’s Mid-Amateur Championship will serve as a celebration for the modern course’s 100th birthday. 

The venue has hosted four USGA championships, including the 1912 U.S. Open, but never an NYS championship. The course itself was born in golf’s Golden Era of golf course design and is covered with the footprints of NYSGA Hall of Fame member Donald Ross. With the Mid-Amateur arriving in Williamsville this October, we get the chance to look at the rich history of Erie County’s gem. 

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The original Country Club of Buffalo clubhouse was built near the land that is now The Buffalo History Museum. The club was founded in 1889 and was primarily used for polo as it took over the Buffalo Polo Club. Golf entered the picture in 1894, the same year the USGA was founded. 

The first edition of the course only featured five holes. A year later, the Club was permitted to add 13 more in what is now Delaware Park. The Pan-American Exposition of 1901 forced the Club to relocate the clubhouse which moved over near where the Nichols School now lies. 

Eventually membership split among those interested in a relocation to the suburbs versus others wanting to keep the Club closer to the city. They both got what they wanted. Country Club of Buffalo relocated to what is now Grover Cleveland Golf Course, right next to University of Buffalo, in 1903. The Club later on enlisted NYSGA Hall of Fame architect Walter Travis to “upgrade” the course which hosted the U.S. Open in 1912 won by John McDermott. 

On the other hand, a new club, Park Country Club, was formed which took over one of the buildings used for the exposition, staying on the same golf course as the original CCB. It would eventually relocate to Williamsville where it remains. 

Seeking more space, Country Club of Buffalo moved to their current location in the 1920s. Donald Ross, another NYSGA Hall of Fame architect, achieved his vision in 1926, 100 years ago. 

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The course was built on a property with a limestone quarry. Three holes on the front and back nine each involve the quarry. It didn’t take long for the new course to get noticed as the U.S. Women's Amateur Championship visited the club in 1931. 

Ross’ gem contains a barrage of stunning par 3s. Once described as “the most outrageous par 3 that Donald Ross ever conceived,” hole 6, “Pulpit,” sits on a volcano green. The course’s signature hole, 187 yards from the back tees, features a 45-yard long green that is raised 30 feet. The 12th hole, from the tips, the same length as 6, has another volcano green. The lake that golfers are required to navigate used to be the quarry. 

The final hole doglegs right and rises to the clubhouse area. It is the largest hole on the property, and prominently features a stunning natural rock garden, originally installed by Ross himself. 

The club’s notoriety grew as it hosted the Curtis Cup, in which the top American female amateurs took on the best from Great Britain and Ireland, in 1950. Twelve years later, in 1962, the U.S. Girls’ Junior made a visit as Mary Lou Daniel won the event.

Along the way notable architects, Robert Trent Jones (1952-1954), Geoffrey St. John Cornish (1965, 1983), and William Craig Schreiner (1994-1996) each stamped the course with their own influence. In 2004, the course was touted by Golfweek Magazine as one of the top 100 courses in the country built before 1960.

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Fifteen years ago, the Club underwent a major renovation, a Ross-toration, if you will. Using blueprints and old aerial photographs, the Club aimed to change their course back to Donald Ross’ initial vision. The modern course’s first USGA Championship, the 1931 Women’s Am, also provided the club with helpful pictures to reference. 

Some of the major emphases were altering the bunkers which Schreiner had rebuilt. Additionally, the October Surprise Storm of 2006 vanquished 700 trees so an improved system was sought. In total the course gained 113 bunkers with all but eight matching the dimensions and locations of the originals. 

Another point of emphasis was the tee-shot areas. Ross’ design favored a lower tee box to better see the lay of the land. Sixty-eight tee surfaces were tinkered with during the two-year restoration process. Perhaps the most significant move was to ensure every green was the same size as it was in 1926. 

Two-time state champion Bob Rosen told the NYSGA earlier this year, “They did a great job with runoffs. They restored the greens to the original size, so it brought in a lot more pin positions.”

One of the main challenges with the project was that the Club was working with an active golf course, not an art piece or relic. The evolution of the sport from 1926 to 2012 had to be addressed as the modern equipment was something Ross couldn’t consider. Rosen, a CCB member, believes the course became “three to four shots harder” because of the restoration project. 

A couple big moments await the modern course. It’ll host its first state championship with the 42nd NYS Men’s Mid-Amateur coming shortly. Next year, Country Club of Buffalo will welcome its first USGA Championship in 65 years, the U.S. Women’s Mid-Amateur. Five years later, the U.S. Senior Amateur will mark the Club’s sixth USGA event. 

Amid many changes, Country Club of Buffalo has evolved while staying true to its original vision achieved 100 years ago.