The CSGA Links Volume 5 Issue 2 June 2017 | Page 41

T
he Connecticut Amateur Championship is one of the
oldest amateur golf tournaments in the country that
boasts a rich history of past champions including Richard
Siderowf, Robert Grant, Jerry Courville and J.J. Henry, just to name
a few. While the individual winner has always been crowned the
Connecticut Amateur Champion, the tournament has also awarded
an Amateur Team Champion, which also dates back to the first
tournament held in 1899.

The history of the Amateur Team Champion and its trophy
had long been lost to history until recently, thanks to a discovery
by the CSGA’s own Ryan Hoffman, Director of Operations, Rules
and Competitions. The inaugural Connecticut Amateur was held
at Brooklawn Country Club, and marked the formation of the
League of Connecticut Golf Clubs which would later become the
Connecticut State Golf Association. The team trophy was donated
by Ms. Eldridge of Norfolk with the stipulation that the first club
to win three times would retain the trophy. Brooklawn won the title
in 1903, 1904 and 1905, and the trophy has resided at the club ever
since.

Below is an excerpt from the Outing Magazine, an Illustrated
Monthly Magazine of Sport, Travel and Recreation, dated April to
September, 1899.
The first annual tournament of the Connecticut
Golf Association, played on the Brooklawn Country
Club course, at Bridgeport, Conn. July 18th-22nd,
attracted nearly one hundred entries from twenty-two
clubs in the Association. The course has a playing
length of 2,584 yards, with a bogie of 39.
The most valuable prize was a $250 challenge cup,
which the Misses Eldridge, of Norfolk, offered for
the best club team of six in the league, and which
was won last year by Litchfield Golf Club.There
were only a few clubs in the league then, and as it
was reorganized this spring upon new lines, this is
virtually the first meeting. The cup must be won
three times to become the property of any club, but
medals are given outright to the members of the
winning team. The winner of the State championship
receives a gold medal, as does the Consolation
winner, and a silver medal is given for the best gross
score.”
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CSGA Links // June, 2017 | 41