Colonial Country Club is a private golf club in

Memphis, Tennessee Memphis is a city in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is the County seat, seat of Shelby County, Tennessee, Shelby County in the southwest part of the state; it is situated along the Mississippi River. With a population of 633,104 at the 2020 Uni ...

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., federal district, five ma ...

, in the Cordova neighborhood. For many years, it was host to an annual

PGA Tour The PGA Tour (stylized in all capital letters as PGA TOUR by its officials) is the organizer of professional golf tours in the United States and North America. It organizes most of the events on the flagship annual series of tournaments also k ...

event.

History

The club was founded in 1913 by some local businessmen in what was then called White Station, Tennessee. The first 18-hole course was opened on August 7, 1914. In 1915 the first clubhouse opened. On December 16, 1919, the clubhouse was destroyed in a fire, blamed on defective wiring. In the summer of 1921, a new clubhouse opened. Colonial Country Club remained in this location for over forty years. In 1968, the club announced plans to relocate in Cordova near Interstate 40.The new venue would offer two separate 18-hole championship golf courses, as well as a practice area, a clubhouse, an Olympic sized swimming pool, 6 tennis courts, and snack-bar/dressing facility. Both courses were designed by Joe Finger. The new clubhouse and courses opened in 1972. Colonial Country Club has been located there ever since.

Courses

The two courses are known as the North Course and the South Course. The South Course is the course which hosted the professional tour events.

Tournaments

Colonial has hosted many tournaments at both of its locations, including the Memphis Open, now known as the St. Jude Classic. This

event began in 1958 and was played at Colonial through 1988. Many years, regional qualifying for the U.S. Open has taken place at Colonial.

1977

1977 was the most memorable year for Colonial as two huge events occurred which made national news at the PGA Tour event (then known as the Danny Thomas Memphis Classic). 1. President

Gerald Ford Gerald Rudolph Ford Jr. ( ; born Leslie Lynch King Jr.; July 14, 1913December 26, 2006) was an American politician who served as the 38th president of the United States from 1974 to 1977. He was the only president never to have been elected ...

made a hole-in-one during Wednesday's Celebrity Pro-Am. 2. Two days later,

Al Geiberger Allen Lee Geiberger Sr. (born September 1, 1937) is an American former professional golfer. Professional career Geiberger turned pro in 1959 and joined the PGA Tour in 1960. Geiberger won 11 tournaments on the PGA Tour, the first being the 1962 ...

shot a record low round of 59 on Friday of the tournament. The 13-under-par round remains a record in relation to par on the PGA Tour. (Although

Jim Furyk James Michael Furyk (born May 12, 1970) is an American professional golfer who plays on the PGA Tour and the PGA Tour Champions. In 2010, he was the FedEx Cup champion and PGA Tour Player of the Year. He has won one major championship, the 200 ...

shot a 58 at the 2016

Travelers Championship Traveler(s), traveller(s), The Traveler(s), or The Traveller(s) may refer to: People Generic terms *One engaged in travel *Explorer, one who searches for the purpose of discovery of information or resources *Nomad, a member of a community withou ...

, it was a Par 70 course, 12 under par).

Champions

Champions of the PGA Tour events held at Colonial: Federal Express St. Jude Classic *1988 Jodie Mudd *1987 Curtis Strange *1986 Mike Hulbert St. Jude Memphis Classic *1985

Hal Sutton Hal Evan Sutton (born April 28, 1958) is an American professional golfer, currently playing on the PGA Tour Champions, who achieved 14 victories on the PGA Tour, including a major championship, the 1983 PGA Championship, and the 1983 Tournament ...

(playoff) Danny Thomas Memphis Classic *1984

Bob Eastwood Robert Fred Eastwood (born February 9, 1946) is an American professional golfer who has won numerous amateur and professional tournaments. Eastwood was born in Providence, Rhode Island, but spent most of his youth in north-central California. H ...

*1983 Larry Mize *1982

Raymond Floyd Raymond Loran Floyd (born September 4, 1942) is an American retired golfer who has won numerous tournaments on both the PGA Tour and Senior PGA Tour, including four majors and four senior majors. He was inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame i ...

*1981 Jerry Pate *1980

Lee Trevino Lee Buck Trevino (born December 1, 1939) is an American retired professional golfer who is regarded as one of the greatest players in golf history. He was inducted to the World Golf Hall of Fame in 1981. Trevino won six major championships and 2 ...

*1979

Gil Morgan Gilmer Bryan Morgan II, OD (born September 25, 1946) is an American professional golfer. Morgan was born in Wewoka, Oklahoma. He graduated from East Central State College in Ada, Oklahoma in 1968. In 1972, Morgan earned a Doctor of Optometry ...

(playoff) *1978 Andy Bean (playoff) *1977

*1976 Gibby Gilbert *1975

Gene Littler Gene Alec Littler (July 21, 1930 – February 15, 2019) was an American professional golfer and a member of the World Golf Hall of Fame. Known for a solid temperament and nicknamed "Gene the Machine" for his smooth, rhythmical swing, he once said ...

*1974

Gary Player Gary James Player DMS, OIG (born 1 November 1935) is a South African retired professional golfer who is widely considered to be one of the greatest golfers of all time. During his career, Player won nine major championships on the regular tou ...

*1973 Dave Hill *1972

*1971

*1970 Dave Hill Memphis Open Invitational *1969 Dave Hill *1968 Bob Lunn *1967 Dave Hill *1966 Bert Yancey *1965

Jack Nicklaus Jack William Nicklaus (born January 21, 1940), nicknamed The Golden Bear, is a retired American professional golfer and golf course designer. He is widely considered to be one of the greatest golfers of all time. He won 117 professional tou ...

(playoff) *1964 Mike Souchak *1963

Tony Lema Anthony David Lema (February 25, 1934 – July 24, 1966) was an American professional golfer who rose to fame in the mid-1960s and won a major title, the 1964 Open Championship at the Old Course at St Andrews in Scotland. He died two years later ...

(playoff) *1962

Lionel Hebert Lionel Paul Hebert (January 20, 1928 – December 30, 2000) was an American professional golfer. He won five times on the PGA Tour, including the PGA Championship in 1957, the last edition held at match play. His older brother Jay won the same ...

(playoff) *1961

Cary Middlecoff Emmett Cary Middlecoff (January 6, 1921 – September 1, 1998) was an American professional golfer on the PGA Tour from 1947 to 1961. His 39 Tour wins place him tied for tenth all-time, and he won three major championships. Middlecoff graduated as ...

*1960 Tommy Bolt (playoff) Memphis Open *1959 Don Whitt (playoff) *1958

Billy Maxwell Billy Joe Maxwell (July 23, 1929 – September 20, 2021) was an American professional golfer. Maxwell was born in Abilene, Texas. He played college golf at North Texas State College and helped them win four consecutive NCAA Division I team ch ...

References

External links

Official Site
{{coord, 35.196817, -89.778621, display=title, type:landmark Golf clubs and courses in Tennessee Buildings and structures in Shelby County, Tennessee Sports venues in Memphis, Tennessee