The Centenary lists around 2,000 golf clubs worldwide that are at least 100 years old. This page explains how we arrive at a club's founding year, why it sometimes differs from what a club itself states, and what it takes to be eligible to join the network.
Many clubs have a long and layered history. A country club may have been founded in 1880 as a social or sporting venue, but only added a golf course in 1910. A tennis club may have expanded into golf decades after its founding. In those cases, we use the year golf was first played or a golf course first existed on that site — not the formal founding date of the institution.
This is the most consistent way to compare clubs across different countries and traditions. A club is a golf club, for our purposes, from the moment its members could play golf — regardless of what else happened before or after.
We look for the earliest documented year in which a golf course was in play at the club's location. Opening ceremonies, early scorecards, historical records, and club archives all count as sources.
We only list golf clubs — venues with a formal membership structure. A public golf course without membership is not eligible for The Centenary, regardless of age. Pay-and-play facilities and resort courses are excluded.
When the first year of golf play is unclear or undocumented, we fall back on the club's officially stated founding date. We note this distinction internally and revisit it when better information becomes available.
Our founding years are researched from publicly available information: Wikipedia, club websites, national golf association records, and historical documents published online. We do not fabricate or estimate founding years.
There is an important distinction between a club appearing in The Centenary's database and a club holding a Centenary Verified badge.
Any club wishing to apply for a Verified badge, correct their founding year, or update their profile information is welcome to contact us. Check the information about the Verified Badge on our site.
Being listed on The Centenary is different from being invited to participate in the reciprocal play network. Participation requires meeting a set of criteria that ensure quality and reputation across the network.
A club must be at least 100 years old. This is the baseline requirement — no exceptions. The older the club, the more weight its history carries in the overall assessment.
We look at whether a club appears in recognised golf rankings — both global and regional. We use two different world rankings as references, supplemented by local lists where relevant. A club that does not appear in any ranking carries less weight than one that is consistently recognised.
Clubs that hold the Royal designation receive additional recognition in our assessment. Royal status is a formal distinction granted by a monarch and is a meaningful indicator of a club's historical standing and character.
We apply a combined scoring model across these factors. There is a minimum threshold a club must reach to be eligible for network participation. We do not publish the exact scoring, and we do not actively invite clubs that sit close to the threshold — we want the network to consist of clubs that clearly belong, not clubs that just made the cut.
Your club was likely established as a broader organisation — a country club, sporting club, or estate — before golf was introduced. We use the year golf was first played on your grounds. If you believe our date is incorrect, please contact us with supporting documentation and we will review it.
Not necessarily. Appearing in the database means we have identified your club as at least 100 years old based on public sources. Eligibility to join the reciprocal network involves additional criteria around reputation and ranking. If you are interested in joining, you are welcome to reach out to us directly.
We do not share individual scores. If a club has been approached, it is eligible. If you have not been approached and want to understand why, feel free to get in touch and we will give you a general sense of where things stand.
Yes. We use regional rankings alongside global ones. Not every great historic club is in a world top 100 — regional prestige and local recognition are meaningful, and we account for them.
Not automatically. A very private club may simply not have been evaluated by major ranking organisations. If the club has a strong history, significant age, or Royal designation, those factors contribute meaningfully. We assess each club individually.
Visit the Verified Badge page and contact us. We will ask for documentation that supports your founding year — club records, early scorecards, historical minutes, or similar. The badge is available to any listed club, regardless of whether they participate in the reciprocal network.
We are aware that some clubs have genuinely contested histories. In those cases we use the most conservative well-documented date — the one that has the clearest evidence. If there is active scholarly debate, we note it. We do not take sides in disputes and are always open to reviewing new evidence.
We are always open to corrections, additional documentation, or conversation about how a club is represented on The Centenary.
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