Domburgsche Golf Club was founded in 1914 and the 9-hole pure links course was commandeered by the Germans during WWII and subsequently bombed by the Allies. The craters now form wonderful revetted bunkers.
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Domburgsche Golf Club was founded in 1914 and the 9-hole pure links course was commandeered by the Germans during WWII and subsequently bombed by the Allies. The craters now form wonderful revetted bunkers.
Domburgsche
Located next to the seaside resort of Domburg on the northwest coast of Walcheren, Domburgsche Golfclub was founded in 1914. The club’s 9-hole links is much the same today as it was more than a hundred years ago and it’s thought to be the oldest course in the Netherlands that still plays in its original format.
On July 23, 1921, the club hosted the eighth edition of the Dutch Open Championship, with reigning champion Henry Burrows from Royal Antwerp (who was formerly attached to the old Doornse Golf Club, the predecessor of De Pan) retaining his title. He would go on to win the event again at Hilversumsche in 1923.
In 1941 the course was confiscated by the occupying German army, with bunkers and a coastal battery established as part of the Atlantic Wall. These defences were heavily bombed in preparation for the Allied landing at Westkapelle on 1st November 1944 and the damage was so bad it took until 1955 before play resumed on the course.
The club’s nine holes have now been restored to their pre-war condition, with some of the large bomb craters converted into grass bunkers. In recent years, the course has been modified by Alan Rijks, with the architect’s efforts greatly contributing to Domburgsche’s credentials as an authentic links layout.