Part 1 – History of the golf in Elie and Earlsferry

Researched and compiled by Graham Johnston

In the beginning in Earlsferry ….there was not very much. But what there was, was an area of ground to the north of the houses in Earlsferry High Street that at least in part was of not much use to man nor beast. It was bents, dunes grass of poor quality, sand and perhaps gorse.

The village itself developed along a main street (High St) with those houses on the south side of the street reaching down to the high water mark of the beach and those on the north side reaching a little bit further north to this infertile ground.

It became a recreation area principally where the locals would walk, hang out their washing, collect divots to thatch their houses and most importantly, as a recreation, to play golf.

For many years, even centuries, it was used by the young and older men as a playground to hack about a golf ball. The club and feathery balls were hand made by the local residents and a very rudimentary golfing tract was established probably between Ferry Road – the western boundary of the village and the sea some half a mile to the west. However this ground was not exclusively barren waste land since the tenant farmer of the Grange farm had certain grazing and other rights over parts of it. It was this that gave rise to the notorious litigation between the Malcolms of Balgeddie and Grange and the villagers of Earlsferry ( of which more later) – 1813 -1832.

The young men of the time would use the area of ground to play golf or a form of the game just as waste areas of ground in the West of Scotland became rudimentary football pitches.

Thus the tradition of golf was established in that area of ground affectionately known as the golfing tract. The practice was said to go back to the 14th Century or “time immemorial….” It was not a formal golfing area and the start and conclusion of various holes depended upon the other demands of the area and there was nothing like an organised golf club. The actual outline of the course was fluid, changing direction and holes depending on the demands by others for the ground in question and indeed what crops were grown on some of it.

At that time elsewhere golf was a rich man’s sport. A suitable area of ground – many, many acres – were required to form any sort of golf course and the golf clubs were hand made by craftsmen whose other job was usually carpentry. This meant that the aspiring golfer would need a good finance background before indulging.

The young men of Earlsferry became quite proficient at striking a feathery golf ball on this ground. Competition was intense and their skills were keenly honed on this common piece of ground belonging to all the residents of the area.

In the chronological list of golf clubs established in Scotland, Earlsferry comes very high up the list because of the discovery of a newspaper advertisement of 1787. The advertisement is in the following terms:.

No other evidence has yet to be unearthed to increase the profile of this Golf Society. However further analysis of the advertisement can, we submit, give some clue to its existence.

So far as we know it was not the habit of the young golfers of Earlsferry who played on the golfing tract to form themselves into an organised club. Indeed there was no real need for it. The combatants were well known to each other and head to head matches were presumably simply fixed in the local hostelries or the first tee. The need for organisation into a club may well have come later but in the latter half of the eighteenth century it is difficult to find any reason for these Earlsferry golfers to form themselves into an organisation or Society.

In contrast it was the practice of the gentry to whom golf was also a pastime to form themselves into organised golfing societies especially if they were not resident locally in the golfing area. The existence of the society gave rise to the practice continuing to this day of using the golf course for networking. We can surmise that this Earlsferry Golf Society might have been composed of a number of landed and wealthy persons who may not have lived locally. It is significant, we think, that the advertisement was published in a newspaper with a main circulation in Edinburgh and surrounds. We can take it that if these golfers who lived in Earlsferry wished to have a meeting it would have been advertised by word of mouth rather than in a posh Edinburgh newspaper. In 1787 the probability is that most of the young golfers of Earlsferry would hardly read a newspaper like the erudite and socially important Caledonian Mercury. We calculate therefore that the Earlsferry Golf Society may well have been one which was not based locally but which used the golfing tract for its meetings. Later Dumbarnie/Hercules Club would have a similar profile.

Despite fairly robust searches there is no further evidence of this golf society. We have some clues. It seems to be the only advertisement that we can find, suggesting that the society whatever its pedigree was not long lasting. It is significant that whilst it is clear from the advertisement that the members are expected to attend it does not specify the actual place in Earlsferry that the “dinner will be on the table at 3 o’clock”. Subsequent advertisements for such meetings of other clubs and societies tend toward specifying Earlsferry Town Hall at the preferred venue. It may well be that no other establishment in the village could accommodate these members and it was well known that their preferred meeting place would have been the town hall. There certainly was no recognised hotel at that time in the village. P. Plenderleath is highly probably Patrick Plenderleath who was born in Elie in 1750 and the son of Benjamin Plenderleath who was factor to Sir John Anstruther* (1st Baronet) who at that time would have been resident in Elie House. It seems that Patrick went on to become a writer/lawyer in Pittenweem and died in 1798. Furthermore he became the factor to the Balcaskie side of the Anstruther family*. It is conceivable that this is the correct gentleman with his Elie/Earlsferry connections and learning sufficient to be a secretary for the Society. The advertisement also says “by order of the Captain..”. We know nothing about him but if as we surmise he would likely be aristocracy it would not be too far fetched to suggest that the captain might well have been Sir John Anstruther the second baronet who succeeded to the title on the death of the first in 1783. Or indeed more likely Sir Robert Anstruther of the Balcaskie line of baronets to whom Patrick Plenderleath was inter alia the factor. His successor (5 th baronet) is mentioned as being “on the links” for the inaugural competition for a medal presented by Earlsferry Town Council – therefore we subscribe to Sir Robert – the third baronet – as being the captain. He also became head of Earlsferry and Elie Golf club (q.v.) Patrick himself died in 1798.

There is a claim that Elie/Earlsferry golf course started in 1585 and this is based upon the supposed royal burgh charter which was conveniently (?) lost in a fire in Edinburgh and which claim was established (?) in 1830 in the litigation referred to above.

Earlsferry Abbey Golfing Society

Following on the Earlsferry Golf Society there appears to have been no further recognised golf club until 1831 when there is a reference to Earlsferry Abbey Golfing Society. Note the “Society” – not a down market “club” but a sophisticated “Society”

This report of May 1831 is under the sub heading “Colinsburgh”. That in itself has some significance. Dumbarnie golf course and Hercules Gymnastic club domiciled in Colinsburgh were instituted in 1835 and it is likely that Earlsferry Abbey Golfing Society was an offshoot of those members of the gentry who used to ply that sport at Colinsburgh or even St Andrews. There is further reference

Note the use of the word “Gentlemen”. This again is of some significant in our quest. There is reference here to the disporting of scarlet jackets. This certainly suggests that we are looking at a gentrified golf club since these scarlet jackets, almost expected to be compulsory, were expensive accoutrements of the golfer’s attire and it is most unlikely that the joiners, stone masons and fishermen of Earlsferry would have aspired to possessing one of these jackets. The suggestion therefore is that the members of the Abbey Society were gentry and that it was unlikely that any of the indigenous Earlsferry men were members of it.

The Abbey part of the title is also confusing. There has never been so far as we know an Abbey in Earlsferry. However the Earl of Crawford and Balcarres was at one time (mid 19th Century) fuar of an area of ground we know as Dome or Doom Park lying between the chapel at Chapel Green and the 10th Green of the current golf course. The history of this area is obscure but it was thought that the Earl of Crawford (Lindsay) feared that his support of the wrong cause in the ‘45 rebellion might well result in the forfeiture of his estates.

It is said that he divested his estate to his brother but in order to retain some form of holding in Scotland in event of his exile he acquired from Earlsferry Town Council the fue of this area to enable him to have safe landing back in his home country. There is certainly evidence that the estates of the Lindsays were at one time forfeit but we rather doubt whether this was recent enough to cover the feuing of the ground to that family. However the valuation roll 1891 makes reference to Earlsferry Abbey although strangely it is the only reference in the valuation rolls for Earlsferry.

A further newspaper report a couple of years later refers to the Society.

It now seems to have become a “Club”.

Thereafter references to it peter out and we believe that this was because the club/society was absorbed into Hercules/Dumbarnie club in 1846 according to the golfers Manual of 1857.

Next the Earlsferry and Elie Golf Club.

*there are a number of branches of the Anstruther dynasty. This one was based in Elie House but others were based in Balcaskie and elsewhere.