Old Course

One of the first golf courses in the United States, the “Old Course” was opened in 1895. It was designed by Spencer Oldham, a golf pro from Baltimore. The links featured chocolate drops, a geometric S-curve and donut bunkers.

At 6,000 yards, the course was considered to be very long. While that isn’t particularly long by today’s standards, bear in mind that players in 1900 used clubs with wooden shafts and heads. Plus, they weren’t hitting the high-compression golf balls used today. From that perspective, 6,000 yards certainly would have been challenging.

In 1912 the course was redesigned by A.W. Tillinghast to be 9-hole course, which was fashionable at the time. Tillinghast created his signature hole, “Tiny Tim,” which he would go on to duplicate over 100 times on golf courses around the world.

Donald Ross was an established golf-course architect with courses such as Pinehurst Number 2, Oakhill Country Club, and Oakland Hills to his credit, courses that architects emulate still today. In 1923 Ross took the Bedford Springs course from 9 holes back to 18, leaving 3 holes from the original Oldham course, and 4 designed by Tillinghast, including Tiny Tim.

In 2007 Ron Forse, restoration architect, used aerial photos and his knowledge of old-school course architecture to return the course to the 1923 Donald Ross layout.

The original clubhouse from 1917 was taken down at the time of the 2007 restoration. The new clubhouse opened in 2017, featuring Tillie’s casual restaurant, named after A. W. Tillinghast. The clubhouse’s style pays homage to the historic Old Course.