IN April 1909 it was reported that, ‘…the golf craze has ‘struck’ Tatura and an endeavour is being made to form a club here. Some of the fair sex have taken the game up and may be seen tramping round the outskirts of the town with their bundles of sticks,” (Tatura and the Shire of Rodney, WH Bossence p. 260).
Later the same year, the first official club was formed with “Hogan’s Paddock”, an area north of the railway line. In 1913, the club transferred to an area consisting of the Lake Paddock, the reserve on which the present Lake Bartlett and Tatura Primary School form part, and the eastern part of the racecourse, which it shared with the Tatura Racing Club and Plumpton Club.
The clubhouse, which was located on the south corner of Martin St and O’Reilly Rd (present site of Tatura abattoirs) was demolished when the club eventually moved to Hill Top. The final round at the old course was played September 20, 1964, after which a large gathering joined to sing ‘Auld Lang Syne’ (50 Years of Hill Top, Jeff Baker).
While capital to grow the club were limited, there was a strong desire to purchase their own freehold and construct a golf course. Late in 1963, a property of 137 acres on the north side of town, called Hill Top, became available. Through community efforts and working bees, the former dairy farm was transformed into a beautifully laid out golf course complete with seven bowling greens. It was officially opened in 1966 by Deputy Prime Minister John McEwan, in front of dignitaries and a crowd of several hundred.
