The Gananoque Golf and Country Club looks forward to celebrating its 100th anniversary in 2021.
The club arose out of the formation of the North Shore Realty Company in 1921.
Three men, Dr. C.H. Bird, Douglas Depencier and George Dempster, created the enterprise by purchasing 100 acres of farmland and property along the St. Lawrence River. They turned it into a picturesque nine-hole golf course.
“What first attracted me was the nine-hole layout,” said general manager Larry Schrader.
Schrader has spent the past 30 years managing golf facilities in Lindsay and the Kawartha Lakes Region. He accepted the G.M. job this summer in Gananoque when Chris Learmouth took a similar position with the Pakenham Highlands layout near Ottawa.
“My wife and I love it here in Gananoque,” Schrader said.
“I’ve been in business for many years and a nine-hole club has a different flavour and a different atmosphere than a lot of 18-hole courses. People seem to be more friendly and you see them more often. Everyone is excited about celebrating the club’s 100th anniversary.”
The club has a number of special events and tournaments planned for the summer of 2021. They’re hoping that by then, the worst that COVID-19 has to offer will be behind them.
Schrader says despite the on-going pandemic, the Gananoque club, just 15 minutes east of Kingston, enjoyed a productive and profitable season.
“When we opened on May 16, the course was flooded,” Schrader said.
“We enjoyed tremendous weather, which really helped. Everybody abided by the rules and we were glad to see a lot of traffic on the course,” Schrader continued.
“We attracted a lot of new members because golf was one of the few sports that people were allowed to play this summer.
“We expect to be even busier next year and look forward to celebrating 100 years of golf in Gananoque.”
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