The club can trace its origins back to 1912, with the formation of Woolton Hall Hydro Golf Club. That club relocated to Childwall Hall in 1922 but, after learning its lease would not be renewed in the mid-1930s, it explored the possibility of moving to a new location.
After consulting James Braid in the summer of 1935, a 200-acre site was purchased at Holt Hall farm in Gateacre, allowing a new course to be built. The following item was then published in The Liverpool Evening Express in June 1939:
“In three years, farm lands have been transformed into an attractive 18-holes golf course, 6,500 yards long and occupying, with the clubhouse, more than 100 acres within the city boundary.
Although not possessing spectacular natural hazards, the course has other compensations. Most of the holes are fairly exacting of the timorous player, but will reward the ‘smiter’ with good figures.
The principle trouble may be summarized as sobs – slicing out of bounds. It is a fact that the heinous crime of slicing is justly punished at the new Childwall course.”
Today, the layout extends to 6,568 yards from the back tees, playing to a par of 72, with holes arranged as two returning nines across two separate compartments – holes 1-9 and 17 and 18 lie to the west of the clubhouse and holes 10 – 16 to the east.
Notable holes include slightly right doglegging long par fours at the 9th and 17th (rated stroke index 1 and 2, respectively) and the shortest of the par threes at the 155-yard 13th, with out of bounds to the right and beyond a heavily sand-protected green.
