Woodstock Inn

Golf in Woodstock dates back to 1895 but the Woodstock Inn & Resort course at Woodstock Country Club is a Robert Trent Jones Senior layout from 1963 which replaced an earlier Wayne Stiles design. The old master returned subsequently to upgrade the course several times.

The full story of the course’s provenance is told in this edited extract from The Life and Work of Wayne Stiles by Bob Labbance & Kevin Mendik:

“Today’s course occupies a level piece of property along the Kedron Brook. The original course straddled the peak of Mt. Peg, a 1,080-foor hill in a wooded area that long-ago reverted to forest. Several routings occupied the hilltop before William Tucker brought the course down from the mountain.

He planned two 9-hole courses for Woodstock, the first in 1906 and a revision in 1912. By 1923, the membership tolls had swelled to 160 from the original 35, and all agreed that an 18-hole course was necessary.

The first step was the purchase of the 150-acre Hathorn farm to the south of the existing layout. The next step was to bring Stiles to the site [and] he retained more than half of Tucker’s holes. It wasn’t until 1927 that the entire course was open.

Laurence Rockefeller purchased the property in 1961 and engaged Robert Trent Jones to remodel the layout. The Wayne Stiles course was obliterated, with the sole exception being the 8th green that became today’s 5th hole.”