History
Golf first came to Northumberland with the foundation of Alnmouth Golf Club in 1869. Others followed and by 1914 there were 23 clubs in the County.
During this initial period golf was predominantly a game for well- to- do gentlemen with the means and the leisure to play. Whilst some ‘pioneering’, women did play, the ‘mores’ of society was such that men ruled the roost and (most of them) considered women incapable of either playing a full game or of organising their own affairs. Thus initially there were very few Ladies Sections.
However, after the Great War things began to change. Urged on by the LGU, and inspired by golfers like Charlotte Cecilia Pitcairn Leitch (Cecil Leitch) and Lady Margaret Scott, women felt empowered by their own achievements in the war effort and taking advantage of social and economic change, for example, women over 30 got the vote in 1918, women golfers began to demand more. They wanted access to the full game, they wanted to organise their own matches, they wanted to compete with other clubs even other counties and countries.
Early Moves
Some of the initial difficulties were the lack of a countywide handicap system, for each club awarded its own handicaps which led to a great unevenness – and the absence of a mechanism to coordinate inter club activity, which had to be done on a one-to-one basis.
As early as 1899 the LGU was offering a country-wide handicap system and was encouraging the formation of County clubs which would coordinate the handicap system and organise County wide competitions.
So it was that in November 1920, a group of 28 ladies from 6 Northumberland Clubs met together to discuss whether a County Club would be of any benefit to Northumberland. They decided it would!
Northumberland Ladies Golf Club
The first committee of Northumberland Ladies Golf Club (as it was called until 1932) was formed from representatives of the 6 founding clubs, Alnmouth, Hexham, Gosforth, Benton Park, Whitley Bay , Tynemouth and Berwick.
This small group of 12 women worked with breathtaking speed, and by the end of their first year membership had reached 144. They had held one County wide competition and the first County Championship.
The Championship Trophy, bought for £25 was presented in November 1921.
In that first year 5 Clubs had played Inter Club home and away matches and County matches were played against 3 Counties, Yorkshire, Cheshire and Lancashire.
Growth & Development
Since those heady days 95 years ago there has been a huge increase in the numbers of ladies playing golf, and in the range of services provided by NLCGA. Today there are 42 Clubs affiliated to the County, representing over 1400 female golfers.
There are now:
• Ten Countywide competitions.
• The County Championship.
• Inter Club League matches organised in 7 divisions when Club Teams compete annually for their Divisional Shield.
• Two Percy knock-out competitions for Bronze players.
• County Match week, which provides an annual opportunity for the County team to play against teams from 5 other Counties, Durham, Yorkshire, Cumbria, Cheshire and Lancs.
All of these events are arranged by an Executive team of 16 ladies, consisting of… A President appointed for 2 years, The Captain & Vice Captain serving a year each, 5 Officers, namely the Hon Secretary, Hon Treasurer, Hon Competition Secretary, Hon Assistant Secretary, County Junior Organiser who are elected and re-elected each year and may serve up to 7 years, The Hon Handicap Advisor which is an appointment by England Golf and carries no time limit, An England Golf Regional Representative appointed by the Executive As well as 6 members elected for 3 years by member clubs.
All members of the Executive work on a voluntary basis.
Golfing success
Over the years this County has produced some quite brilliant Lady Golfers. To name but four:
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Mrs Margaret Pickard won the County Championship 15 times between 1956 and 1982, and was Northern Champion in 1957 and 1958. She was Finalist in the English Championship in 1957 and 1967 and won the English Championship in 1960. She played in the Vagliano trophy in 1959 1961 and 1967 and played in the Curtis Cup 1960-61 and in1970. She Captained England in the European team Championships and Home Internationals. She is currently a member at Alnmouth Golf Club and was, more recently, President of the NLCGA.
Miss Jennifer Lee-Smith, before turning professional in 1977 won the Northumberland County Championship in1972 and 1974. She won the British Stroke play Championship in1976, the Newmark International in 1976, and the Commonwealth Tournament in 1975. She played in the World Team Championships in1976 and in the Curtis Cup in1974 and 1976. She played for many years at Dunstanburgh Golf Club and now lives in Kent.
Janet Soulsby, a member of Prudhoe who turned professional in 1985. She was British stroke play champion in 1981, English Girls champion 1981, England under 23 champion in 1981, Semi finalist US junior championship in 1982, Northumberland champion 1983, England Championship semi finalist in 1983. She was a Curis Cup player in 1982 and in Junior European championships in 1982. This information came from the Weetabix Amateur records 1998.
Our County teams have had their triumphs, the greatest of which, and they cannot get any better, was going on to win the National Counties Championship in 1973 after first winning the Regional title.
Our Junior Section, established in the 1950s, continues to work hard to improve participation and to encourage enjoyment and excellence among the young.
Ms Linzi Fletcher, (now Mrs Linzi Hardy) who turned Professional in 1991, was Northern Champion in 1989 and Northumberland Champion in 1990. She was runner up in the Helen Holm Competition in1989 1990, and finalist in the English Championship in 1990. She was English Intermediate Champion in 1990, and played in the Curtis Cup. In 1989 she went to Canada with the LGU team. She currently coaches at Alnmouth Village Golf Club.
Summing up...
Essentially, Northumberland Ladies County Golf Association is about encouraging girls and women to enjoy playing golf and to benefit from the wonderful social life and friendships it engenders.
