THE 118th MIDDLE ATLANTIC AMATEUR CHAMPIONSHIP
OCTOBER 3 - 5, 2024
COLUMBIA COUNTRY CLUB
Columbia Country Club – 7900 Connecticut Avenue - Chevy Chase - Maryland - 20815
Pro Shop (301)951-5050
Club Main (301)951-5000
BRIEF HISTORY OF THE COLUMBIA COUNTRY CLUB
The Columbia Golf Club was organized on September 29, 1898. The first location of the Club was on the east side of Brightwood Avenue, later known as Georgia Avenue, in the neighborhood of Schuetzen Park. In a short time, the Club moved to a site further north on the west side of the avenue where a vacant lot was converted into a crude nine-hole golf course. The Columbia Golf Club was disbanded following the last round of golf on December 31, 1910. At the time, 200 of the 600 members became supporters of the newly created Columbia Country Club, which was established at the northwest side of the junction of the East-West Highway and Connecticut Avenue in Chevy Chase.
The golf course is widely recognized as a Walter Travis design. Herbert Barker and Columbia Founding Member Dr. Walter S. Harban, both close associates of Travis, are often noted as the official designers. Herbert Barker was the Head Professional at Travis’ home Club, Garden City, in New York. Travis was a regular guest and competitor at Columbia and was formally hired as the first “US Open Doctor” in 1916 to help prepare the course for a national championship.
The Club has hosted three national golf championships - the 1921 United States Open, the 2003 United States Junior Amateur Championship and the 2021 United States Girls' Junior Championship. The club is scheduled to host the 2027 U. S. Senior Women’s Amateur and the 2035 U. S. Senior Amateur.
Columbia has hosted the Middle Atlantic Amateur thirteen times, its first in 1905 which was won by Lee L. Harban (by a margin of 12 & 10 in a 36-hole match) and the most recent in 2010 which was won by Will Bowman (Cardinal CC) with a score of 209 (-1).
Columbia Country Website is HERE
More complete History of Columbia CC is HERE
Scoring History of the Middle Atlantic Amateur is HERE
photo credit: Columbia CC - view of the 18th Hole - circa 1921