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Local legend has it that
the vision of the Talbot Trail Golf Club was founded
over a golf match at a nearby course and a bottle of
cherry whiskey. Talbot Trail Golf Club, was
originally named Rolling Acres Golf Club at its
incorporation in 1964 until the name was changed in
1981.
Sometime in 1963, three area men went to Erie Shores
Golf Course in nearby Leamington for a round of
golf. After the game the men returned to Doc
McLean’s home in Wheatley, sat on the back porch
with a bottle of cherry whiskey and began talking
about the local golf situation. Their talk consisted
of many questions, such as “Why waste time traveling
to Leamington to play golf?” and “How many people
would be interested in playing on a golf course in
Wheatley?” The idea of the Rolling Acres Golf Club
was born.
Making the Dream a
Reality
The three men decided to compile a list of people
they thought would be interested in enjoying a golf
course in the community without having to drive a
long distance to play. Once the list was finished,
there were around 90 people listed from the town
with a population of about 1500. The men then went
out and contacted the 90 people to create an actual
assessment of the amount of interest in Wheatley.
When the men met again to revise their original
list, instead of having a reduced number of local
residents, the second list consisted of over 100
people. The wheels were now in motion.
Money
Although many community members displayed a keen
interest in establishing a golf course in Wheatley,
those with the unique vision were not certain of
where the money to build it would come from. The
small group decided to campaign their idea to other
community residents who would like to donate to
their idea or who had the disposable income
available to support the vision. In the end, there
was 13 men would agreed to donate, as a gift and not
a loan, $1000 each. Some were reluctant to do so,
saying that they felt they were throwing their money
away because there would never be a golf course in
Wheatley, but they donated anyways.
Once the ball began rolling closer to their goal,
the incorporated course, not yet built, offered
memberships to the public, priced at $200 each, in
order to finance the project. Bonds were also
available and ranged from $50 to any desired amount
at a rate of 6% interest, payable yearly. At the
time of the course opening in the summer of 1964
(the course was not officially completed and opened
until 1966), close to $16,000 in memberships and
bonds were sold.
Now the group had grown to include more residents
who were becoming more and more determined to build
a golf course. This group of men will now be
regarded as the ‘founding members’ of the Rolling
Acres Golf Club. Monetary supply was growing for a
course that did not even have land yet.
Land
The group now needed to
find a big enough piece of land in the area that
they could use to build their idea on. An area north
of the town’s core was scouted and considered until
an area farmer, Jack McIntosh, volunteered his
parcel of pasture and farmland just east of town on
Highway Three, now named Talbot Trail. Two other
parcels of land, much smaller than the McIntosh farm
but adjacent to it, were acquired from men who were,
from the beginning, very active members of the
course. McIntosh also donated $1000 to the creation
of the course. Seventy-two acres of land, valued at
$21,000, was now available to house the Rolling
Acres Golf Club and a payment schedule was drawn up
in 1964. Land payments to two out of the three
previous owners were completed in 1970. The land now
had to grow into a golf course.
Construction
The land, which later would become a beautiful golf
course, had to be transformed. In an excellent
example of community participation, the founding
members did all the manual labour required to get
the land ready. Trees and grass were cut; materials
were brought in; the men volunteered whatever time
they could without any form of financial
subsidization. The layout of the course itself was
designed by Jack Stein, a founding member and
previous owner of one of the parcels of land. Murray
Whalley was sent to Guelph for a course on the
creation and maintenance of golf greens, which would
later come in handy as he became the first
greenskeeper of Rolling Acres. Most of the remaining
men in the group built the greens and manicured the
land into a golf course that could be enjoyed by
everyone. The only money that exchanged hands for
the construction of the course was used to purchase
machinery and material, as well as Whalley’s course
in Guelph, but not for the manual labour which was
volunteered by the founding members.
After three years of campaigning and hard work, the
Rolling Acres Golf Club officially opened in 1966.
Issues and Conflicts
It may seem hard to believe but there were no
hitches or disagreements during the golf course’s
path from dream to reality. No permit was needed and
zoning by-laws were not enforced at the time. The
only problem which stood out in Doc McLean’s memory
was a long conflict between the president of the
club and a member of the Department of Highways. The
two Englishmen butted heads often on the issue of
the entrance to the course and it was not resolved
until the golf course changed its parking lot
entrance seven years after the opening of the
course.
The founding members and
area residents were working towards a common goal
which created a powerful camaraderie that could not
be broken by petty disagreements. The entire
community was extremely supportive of the actions of
the founding members because the golf course was
going to be an important asset to the town.
The author of an
unofficial history of Rolling Acres Golf Club wrote:
“For the original 14 founders, this was their dream
come true. Unfortunately, some of them are not here
to see the facility today, but to those who are, one
can only imagine how proud they must feel to see
what their dream has become. To all those who have
been around from the beginning, to those who have
taken on this game over the years, to the active 275
members we have at the present time, be proud of our
accomplishments, but especially be thankful to 14
men with a vision”.
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