History

PLYMOUTH COUNTRY CLUB was organized and incorporated in April 1910. The initial course consisted of nine holes with three holes located on the ocean side of Warren Avenue and six holes in the area of what is now Bay Colony Drive and our current first three holes. At a member's (Judge Harry Davis) suggestion, the Club developed three new holes to the west of Warren Avenue; creating the new nine for members and leaving the three ocean side holes for beginners and hotel guests. The ocean side holes were abandoned in 1913 due to lack of play.

A second nine was designed by the noted Scottish architect, Donald Ross, and it opened officially on July 21, 1921. The original nine paled in comparison to the new Ross nine and the Club members called upon Ross to provide them with a third nine to equal or exceed his 1921 offering. Ross assumed the role of on-sight contractor and nursed his gem into a New England treasure. The new nine opened in 1929 and the Club was now 27 holes.

The members decided to operate their private eighteen and lease the original nine holes to the local golf pro, Donald Vinton. The Great Depression was not kind and by 1932 the public nine had gone into bankruptcy.

Further changes to the course include:

• Abandonment of three holes near Doten Road.
• Replacement of those holes where the present first three holes now exists.
• The shortening of the second hole from a par 5 to a par 4 due to road construction in 1950 resulting in the present par 69 layout.

Plymouth Country Club has produced two world famous golfers: Henry Picard, a Plymouth native who won many PGA Tour events including the Masters and the PGA, and, Joanne Goodwin, the dominant woman player of the 1950's and 1960's (during which time her father and brother were consecutively the head professionals at Plymouth Country Club). Joanne Goodwin was a member of the United States Curtis Cup team, a finalist in the US Women's Amateur Championship and four time Massachusetts Women's Amateur Champion.

 

Donald Vinton would win the Massachusetts Open Championship as Head Professional at Plymouth Country Club while Bill Buttner, a two-time Hornblower winner, became a touring professional.

In the past thirty years Plymouth Country Club has been host to many of the areas most prestigious competitions involving the finest golfers from the northeast. The Hornblower Memorial, Southeastern Amateur Championship, Massachusetts Amateur Qualifying, New England PGA, and Massachusetts Women's Golf Association are some of the events that have graced our golf course.

In 2001 the qualifying tournament for the U.S. Senior Open was held at Plymouth Country Club and in 2004 the Mass. State Father and Son tournament was held here.