Nuwara Eliya Golf Club and Course

Nuwara Eliya Golf Club (Sinhala: නුවර එළිය ගෝල්ෆ් සමාජය සහ පිටිය) is one of the oldest Golf Clubs in Sri Lanka. Its course is situated in the valley of Pidurutalagala Mountain (2,524 m) in Nuwara Eliya District.

History

The Nuwara Eliya Golf Club was established in 1889 by Captain Neville Davies of the Gordon Highlanders for the British servicemen and officials who were posted at Nuwara Eliya (Abeyawardana, 2004). General Mc Leod, the officer commanding the Gordon Highlanders is considered the first golf player on this course (Abeyawardana, 2004). In 1891, a club for ladies was established under the management of the Nuwara Eliya Golf Club (Abeyawardana, 2004).

In the beginning, the course had only 9 holes. However, it was upgraded and expanded to a course of 18 holes by linking additional lands to it in the years 1893, 1904, and 1917 (Abeyawardana, 2004). The first golf championship of Sri Lanka was held at the Nuwara Eliya course in 1891 (Abeyawardana, 2004).

The course & clubhouse

Located at an elevation of 2,170 m above sea level, the course covers approximately 40 hectares of land and it is an 18-hole golf course comprising three parts. Out of the 18 holes, 7 are located around the Club House, 3 in the area known as Switzerland and the remaining 8 are in the area called Eight River Holes (Abeyawardana, 2004).

1) The Brocas Meads Holes: The 7 holes around the Club House are known by this name. This area was once a swamp but now accommodates the hole numbers 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 15th, 16th, 17th and 18th (Abeyawardana, 2004).

2) Switzerland: The hilly testing holes 12th, 13th, and 14th are located in this area (Abeyawardana, 2004).

3) The River Holes: Hole numbers 4th, 5th, 6th, 7th, 8th, 9th, 10th, and 11th are located in this part (Abeyawardana, 2004).

The old clubhouse of the course was a pavilion-type bungalow which was later converted into the present-day structure. It consists of a restaurant, a bar, a shared lounge and private parking.