Red Wing Golf Club

Red Wing
Golf Club
BY BARBARA BETCHER
The first 100 years
T
he Red Wing Golf Club celebrates
its 100th anniversary in 2015, but
its founding actually goes back to 1912,
when Henry Stebbins, head of Red
Wing Milling, convinced C.E. Betcher,
Robert Putnam, Fred Seebach, E.H.
Foot and other fellow businessmen
to try the new sport. They rented
pastureland—an area along West 6th
Street and College Hill— from Mrs. T.K.
Simmons, and golf for both men and
women came to Red Wing.
Men ignored cows ambling about
the course. Women, understandably,
preferred to play when the cows were
not present. Nevertheless, despite cow
pies and other bovine hazards, golf
quickly became a favorite pastime, so
much so that golfers joined to purchase
the pasture.
C.E. Betcher designed a nine-hole
course and construction began in the
spring of 1913. Slipscrapers drawn by
horse were used to move dirt, a large
drag leveled the earth and men with
axes and crosscut saws did their part.
Even so, it wasn’t until 1915 that a full
season of golf could be played on the
completed course. The club became
legally incorporated the same year.
Dr. J.A. Haustein, an avid golfer and
man of scientific learning, knew that
bent grass would be necessary for real
golf in cold-weather areas. He obtained
seed from Minikahda Golf Club in
Minneapolis to provide suitable grass
for the Red Wing course. Haustein
continued to research and develop
the grass, and later returned the favor
by sharing his improved seed with
Minikahda.
Because wooden tees were not yet
available, a bucket of water, a pile of
sand and a towel were placed by each
tee box. Golfers made a small mound of
wet sand on which to set the ball, in lieu
of the present-day tee.
A small building built in 1916, not
much more than a summer cottage,
served as a clubhouse. It included locker
50
rooms, showers and a small kitchen and
dining area. Destroyed in a windstorm
in October of 1949, it was replaced
the next year, at an expenditure of
$25,000, with members donating much
“sweat equity” to keep costs down. That
building burned in March of 1962, the
result of arson.
Scuttlebutt has it that, at the time,
many of Red Wing’s bravest were
enjoying themselves in Goodhue at the
Firemen’s Ball. The person who started
the fire turned out to be the same young
camper that a current club member,
Bruce Geary, saved from drowning at
the YMCA Camp Pepin many years
before.
Following the fire, a large tent and
semitrailer served as replacement until
a new clubhouse opened in December
of 1963, at a price of $70,000. Again,
sweat equity reduced the cost. The
course expanded to eighteen holes in
1989. In 1994 a $200,000 expansion
took place, with much volunteer help.
Research informed me that one in
five Minnesotans hits the links every
year; per capita, more Minnesotans play
Through the years, many young people have
been introduced to the game of golf by youth
programs at the club: free lessons from the club
pro, discounts for golf graduates and free weekly
junior golf clinics led by Alex Hardyman.
The Red Wing High School Winger golf team
has long practiced and played at the course.
Current club members Pete Hendrickson and Don
Voth happily recall time spent there with their high
school coach, Bob Wallace.
As Red Wing’s premier event center, the facility
is available to members and non-members alike
and provides a venue for weddings, class reunions,
receptions and activities of all kinds. The golf
links are also open to the public. “All golfers are
welcome to come and play” is the message from
the club board.
Non-golfers (like me) may jokingly still refer to
the sport as “cow pasture pool,” but what began in
golf than any other state. Red Wing Golf Club members are certainly the Simmons pasture so long ago has become one
included in that number, but unlike municipal courses subsidized by tax of the jewels of Red Wing. The 6,200-yard layout
payers, the Red Wing Golf Club has never been a drain on the public is surrounded by majestic oaks and pines, with
purse. The club pays thousands of dollars in real estate taxes each year. manicured greens providing scenic vistas from
Members pay an annual fee; volunteers donate many hours to keep the each of the eighteen holes. The club motto—“The
natural place to play”—is an apt description.
club in tiptop shape.
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2500 W Hwy 61 | Red Wing
855-893-7182
I do not golf, but I do have a social membership
because golf is not the only offering. Ladies
play bridge every Tuesday and men gather on
Wednesdays to eat, play cards, talk sports or
whatever. Jim Streff’s Pub Trivia and hamburgers in
the lower level Brassie Spoon are favorite pastimes.
In preparation for the club’s centennial, the
clubhouse has been freshly painted, new chairs
have been purchased and Kay McDowell has
polished the silver bowl bearing names of past
ladies’ golf champions. Beautiful flowers encircle
the clubhouse and tees.
A special event sparked by longtime member
Joan Norgaard will be a treat to anyone interested
in Red Wing history. In collaboration with the
Goodhue County Historical Society, Pastor Todd
Walsh will tell the story of the Luther Ladies
Seminary, with a tour of the seminary grounds that
will end at the golf course clubhouse for coffee and
discussion. The event will take place on Saturday,
May 23, beginning at the History Center.
Further information on the Red Wing Golf Club
is available from the pro manager, Alex Hardyman,
and events coordinator, Lindsay Barwald.
Weddings are but one of many celebratory events held at the
Red Wing Golf Club.
A women’s clothing shop
where these wearable, wonderful
and whimsical designers await you:
DOLCEZZA
FENINI
Neesh by DAR
BALI
TRIBAL
INSIGHT
NYDJ
JAG
Lynn RITCHIE
MARUCA
NOBLE
NATURALS
FLAX
LOUIE ET LOCIE
TULIP
207 Bush Street
Downtown Red Wing
651-385-8275
whimsyscloset.com
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