 The Tolly’s aptly named Hydrophobia requires golfers to carry a large lily-filled water tank to reach the 14th green. (Top Right) An enthusiastic young player arrives by rickshaw at the Royal Calcutta’s circa 1914 clubhouse. (Far Right) Players conclude their game at a tidy hole back dropped by the Tollygunge Club’s magnificent clubhouse. |
  Bhowani Junction and Safari Park could be whistle stops on a fascinating train journey across India. Redeemer and Photo Finish, on the other hand, could be championship thoroughbreds circling a well-trod track somewhere in the massive country. Though plausible, these, in fact, are the names of well tended holes on the 6305 yard course at the Tollygunge Club, Kolkata’s historic sporting hub. The Tolly, as it’s affectionately known, doesn’t claim to be the oldest golf club in India’s second largest city but with roots that have intertwined with the great metropolis for over 215 years, it certainly is the most colourful.
The Tollygunge Club can’t claim to have the city’s only course of consequence. Almost opposite is the 7014 yard course at the Royal Calcutta Golf Club. Constituted in November 1829 at Dum Dum, now a north eastern city suburb, the Royal Calcutta Golf Club’s first course was a simple layout plotted over flat lands. English gentlemen played the game in pristine rural environs until 1885 when the course was relocated to a vast expanse of green in the heart of the British Imperial Capital, the Maidan. Today players meander through 179 acres of prime real estate in one of the most desirable sectors of the extraordinary metropolis as they play golf on the oldest course in the world outside of the United Kingdom.
An illustrated feature on Kolkata’s active golf scene can be written on assignment from 1000 to 2000 words, depending upon editorial requirements. A short ‘sidebar’ or a dedicated feature can also be written on the attractions of Kolkata. A broader piece covering all golf courses in the city can also be written to editorial requirements.
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