Edgewood Country Club
Encyclopedia
Edgewood Country Club is a private golf, social, and tennis club located in Churchill
, near Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
. The Country Club was founded in 1898 in Edgewood, Pennsylvania and then moved in 1921 to Churchill where Donald Ross designed its new golf course while also working on the design of the well-known Pinehurst No. 2.
and social club only minutes away from the bustling Pittsburgh steel mills. The golf course was designed Donald Ross to promote fair and enjoyable play with a comfortable walking experience if chosen. The importance of a golf course providing enjoyment while still delivering a challenge may be summarized in one of Ross's famous statements, "Golf should be a pleasure, not a penance."
The course has been a longtime member of the Western Pennsylvania Golf Association (WPGA) and has hosted several WPGA tournaments. The 18 hole course belongs to the United States Golf Association
and provides golf handicap
for all members using latest computer technologies to make the process fast and easy. The golf course is designed, like many Western Pennsylvania
courses, over rolling terrain, but Donald Ross designed the holes without sidehill lies like so many other Western Pennsylvania courses. Edgewood's greens are well known, like many of Ross's courses, for their fast speed. The greens are regularly found to run about 12 feet on the stimpmeter. The golf course does not rely on any creeks, lakes or other water bodies, preferring to use very difficult greens and dangerous sand bunkers to challenge the area's best golfers. The golf facility at Edgewood not only contains a well maintained 18 hole course, but also a variety of practice facilities. Edgewood has a full size grass driving range
where members and guests may hit balls without paying for each bucket like most courses, two putting greens, a chipping and putting green, and a full short game area complete with a practice fairway and sand bunkers. Edgewood provides many competitions for members and guests throughout the year such as member-guests, Stag events, holiday events, and many others including the club championship. In addition to competition within the club, Edgewood fields both junior and senior interclub teams. The Country Club provides a junior golf club program where children and other relatives of members may take a group lesson and then play a number of holes based on their age to help introduce them to the game of golf. The Club also provides junior memberships which gives relatives of members extra playing privileges as well as access to all of the club's practice facilities.
For more information, see here: http://www.eccgolf.com/
A full pro-shop is also located on site selling all of the top equipment as well as many Edgewood logo items. The current head professional at Edgewood is Peter Micklewright, Jr. who is in charge of giving golf lessons and running the golf shop. The current layout is played as Donald Ross designed it. The change back to the Donald Ross layout was made during the club's 100th anniversary. The course currently has blue championship tees, white men's/amateur women tees, red women's tees, and golden senior's tees. The yardage of holes as well as par:
Edgewood has been a longtime member of the WPGA, and due to its local and national prestige has been awarded many of the WPGA's annual championships. The following are champions of WPGA events contested at Edgewood Country Club:
WPGA Championships:
In addition to hosting some of Western Pennsylvania's most prestigious events, Edgewood Country Club also hosts many tournaments for members and guests of members. These tournaments include:
Courts, a pro shop, beverage hut, a patio, and restrooms. The tennis facility also includes Edgewood's paddle tennis
program. The club provides singles, doubles, and mixes matches for all members as well as a men's and women's inter-club tennis team. During the summer, Edgewood's Club-4-Life staff provides a series of tennis clinics for all junior members wishing to learn or work on their tennis games. According to Edgewood C.C., the 2005 sessions had a very large turn out consisting of over 125 junior tennis players. The Club's paddle tennis facilities include three heated courts located at the Violet H. Wright Center. Like the tennis program, Edgewood field men's and women's inter-club paddle tennis teams.
rooms with lockers, showers, and at-club bag storage areas.
Churchill, Pennsylvania
Churchill is a borough in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 3,011 at the 2010 census.-Geography:Churchill is located at ....
, near Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Pittsburgh is the second-largest city in the US Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Allegheny County. Regionally, it anchors the largest urban area of Appalachia and the Ohio River Valley, and nationally, it is the 22nd-largest urban area in the United States...
. The Country Club was founded in 1898 in Edgewood, Pennsylvania and then moved in 1921 to Churchill where Donald Ross designed its new golf course while also working on the design of the well-known Pinehurst No. 2.
Golf
Edgewood Country Club was started as a golfGolf
Golf is a precision club and ball sport, in which competing players use many types of clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a golf course using the fewest number of strokes....
and social club only minutes away from the bustling Pittsburgh steel mills. The golf course was designed Donald Ross to promote fair and enjoyable play with a comfortable walking experience if chosen. The importance of a golf course providing enjoyment while still delivering a challenge may be summarized in one of Ross's famous statements, "Golf should be a pleasure, not a penance."
The course has been a longtime member of the Western Pennsylvania Golf Association (WPGA) and has hosted several WPGA tournaments. The 18 hole course belongs to the United States Golf Association
United States Golf Association
The United States Golf Association is the United States' national association of golf courses, clubs and facilities and the governing body of golf for the U.S. and Mexico. Together with The R&A, the USGA produces and interprets the Rules of Golf. The USGA also provides a national handicap system...
and provides golf handicap
Golf handicap
A handicap is a numerical measure of an amateur golfer's playing ability based on the tees played for a given course. It is used to calculate a net score from the number of strokes actually played, thus allowing players of different proficiency to play against each other on somewhat equal terms...
for all members using latest computer technologies to make the process fast and easy. The golf course is designed, like many Western Pennsylvania
Western Pennsylvania
Western Pennsylvania consists of the western third of the state of Pennsylvania in the United States. Pittsburgh is the largest city in the region, with a metropolitan area population of about 2.4 million people, and serves as its economic and cultural center. Erie, Altoona, and Johnstown are its...
courses, over rolling terrain, but Donald Ross designed the holes without sidehill lies like so many other Western Pennsylvania courses. Edgewood's greens are well known, like many of Ross's courses, for their fast speed. The greens are regularly found to run about 12 feet on the stimpmeter. The golf course does not rely on any creeks, lakes or other water bodies, preferring to use very difficult greens and dangerous sand bunkers to challenge the area's best golfers. The golf facility at Edgewood not only contains a well maintained 18 hole course, but also a variety of practice facilities. Edgewood has a full size grass driving range
Driving range
A driving range is an area where golfers can practice their swing. It can also be a recreational activity itself for amateur golfers or when enough time for a full game is not available. Many golf courses have a driving range attached and they are also found as stand-alone facilities, especially...
where members and guests may hit balls without paying for each bucket like most courses, two putting greens, a chipping and putting green, and a full short game area complete with a practice fairway and sand bunkers. Edgewood provides many competitions for members and guests throughout the year such as member-guests, Stag events, holiday events, and many others including the club championship. In addition to competition within the club, Edgewood fields both junior and senior interclub teams. The Country Club provides a junior golf club program where children and other relatives of members may take a group lesson and then play a number of holes based on their age to help introduce them to the game of golf. The Club also provides junior memberships which gives relatives of members extra playing privileges as well as access to all of the club's practice facilities.
For more information, see here: http://www.eccgolf.com/
A full pro-shop is also located on site selling all of the top equipment as well as many Edgewood logo items. The current head professional at Edgewood is Peter Micklewright, Jr. who is in charge of giving golf lessons and running the golf shop. The current layout is played as Donald Ross designed it. The change back to the Donald Ross layout was made during the club's 100th anniversary. The course currently has blue championship tees, white men's/amateur women tees, red women's tees, and golden senior's tees. The yardage of holes as well as par:
Edgewood has been a longtime member of the WPGA, and due to its local and national prestige has been awarded many of the WPGA's annual championships. The following are champions of WPGA events contested at Edgewood Country Club:
WPGA Championships:
- West Penn Open
- 1954 - Tom Blaskovich
- 1959 - Frank Kiraly
- 2001 - Marshall Maraccini
- West Penn Amateur
- 1939 - Jack C. Benson
- 1946 - Frank SouchakFrank SouchakFrank S. Souchak, Jr. was an American professional football player and amateur golfer.Souchak was born in Berwick, Pennsylvania. He attended the University of Pittsburgh where he lettered in basketball, football, and golf. In 1937, he was captain of the football team and earned All-American...
- 1965 - Harry Toscano
- 1969 - James Simons
- 1976 - Tom McGinnis, Jr.
- Tournament of Club Champions
- 1995 - Sherman Hostetter
- West Penn Senior Amateur Championship
- 1998 - Phil Saylor
- West Penn Women's Amateur
- 2005 - Katie Trotter
- West Penn Junior Amateur Championship
- 1937 - Kenneth J. Stear
- 1950 - Jim McCarter
In addition to hosting some of Western Pennsylvania's most prestigious events, Edgewood Country Club also hosts many tournaments for members and guests of members. These tournaments include:
- Club Championship (Flighted)
- Patrick Rice - 2005
- Junior Club Championship
- J.P. Gooderham - 2004
- J.P. Gooderham - 2005
- J.P. Gooderham - 2006
- Senior Club Championship
Tennis
In addition to the golf course, Edgewood Country Club also has a state of the art tennis facility. The Violet H. Wright Tennis Center has three Har-Tru TennisTennis
Tennis is a sport usually played between two players or between two teams of two players each . Each player uses a racket that is strung to strike a hollow rubber ball covered with felt over a net into the opponent's court. Tennis is an Olympic sport and is played at all levels of society at all...
Courts, a pro shop, beverage hut, a patio, and restrooms. The tennis facility also includes Edgewood's paddle tennis
Paddle tennis
Paddle tennis is a game adapted from tennis and played for over a century. Compared to tennis, the court is smaller and has no doubles lanes, and the net is lower. Paddle tennis is played with a solid paddle as opposed to a strung racquet, and a depressurized tennis ball is used along with an...
program. The club provides singles, doubles, and mixes matches for all members as well as a men's and women's inter-club tennis team. During the summer, Edgewood's Club-4-Life staff provides a series of tennis clinics for all junior members wishing to learn or work on their tennis games. According to Edgewood C.C., the 2005 sessions had a very large turn out consisting of over 125 junior tennis players. The Club's paddle tennis facilities include three heated courts located at the Violet H. Wright Center. Like the tennis program, Edgewood field men's and women's inter-club paddle tennis teams.
Swimming
To complement Edgewood's many social and athletic amenities, a full swimming facility is also on the property. Edgewood's swimming facilitiy includes an Olympic sized swimming pool which may be used for working out of leisure. The pool also has eight starting points for competitive swimmers, and also two diving boards which may be adjusted to different heights. The pool and pool deck is constantly watched by several life guards. Also on site is a small baby pool which provides a safe and fun environment for young swimmers. Edgewood also has a staff of swim instructors and coaches who can aide a child in learning to swim or competitive swimmers learning better technique. Edgewood also has the Mighty Moose swimming and diving team who like other junior athletic teams at Edgewood, compete against other children and grandchildren of Western Pennsylvania country clubs. The Mighty Moose swim team has won the inter-club championship swim meet 3 years straight 2003-2005. The Mighty Moose name comes from the Moose Hut which is the on-site outdoor snack shop. Members may purchase food, drinks, ice cream and other treats using their credit. The Moose Hut has several tables as well as a small pavilion style coveing. The Swimming Pool is the most alive during holidays and other parties such as the Fourth of July celebration, highlighted by many fun games for children, a barbecue, and parachutists coming down to the property from airplanes. The pool is often used for other parties and holidays. Around the pool is a grass covered areas with dozens of beach chairs where members and guests may sunbathe.Clubhouse and Dining
Edgewood Country Club's Clubhouse and adjoining restaurant have changed dramatically since the club opened in 1898. The current red brick clubhouse features a fully stocked pro shop run by Michael Reilly along with several assistant golf professionals as well as the Donald Ross Grille. Aside from the Donald Ross Grille, a fine dining room is also located in the building where breakfast buffet and fine dinners for parties and special occasions. This area is rented often for family gatherings, weddings, baptisms and other events. The clubhouse also features large male and female lockerLocker
Locker may refer to:* Locker , various kinds of storage compartment or container* Footlocker , a storage box* In nautical usage, a "locker" may be a storage place that in other environments would not be referred to as a locker, such as cupboards on board ships for keeping stores, anchor lockers,...
rooms with lockers, showers, and at-club bag storage areas.