Origins of the Travis Cup
The Travis Cup grew out of a proposal submitted to the Stafford Country Club golf committee, in Stafford, NY. The proposal called for an inter-club event between clubs with a course designed by Walter Travis as a way of celebrating the shared heritage of each club. The competition format of the event was patterned after the Ryder Cup, with teams made up of a cross-section of players from each club. Following the approval of the Stafford CC golf committee and Board of Governors, the proposal was sent to several clubs in western New York and southern Ontario, with Travis-designed golf courses as indicated by The Architects of Golf, written by Geoffrey Cornish and Ron Whitten.
Almost immediately, positive responses came from Lookout Point Country Club, in Fonthill, Ontario, and Orchard Park Country Club, in Orchard Park, NY. The President of Orchard Park CC, Dr. Joseph DiVincentis invited each club to send representatives to an organizational meeting at Orchard Park in the Fall of 1994.
The inaugural Travis Cup organizing committee consisted of golf professionals and members from each club. There was an enthusiastic consensus to accept the basic principles of the proposal, and to establish the Walter J. Travis Cup as a premier, annual event. Orchard Park Country Club volunteered to host the first Travis Cup to be held in 1995, with the other clubs agreeing on a hosting rota for subsequent years.
CLUBS INVOLVED IN THE TRAVIS CUP
The Travis Cup expanded to a four club format in 1996 with the addition of Pennhills Club of Bradford, PA. Three years later, Cherry Hill Club, of southern Ontario, joined the Travis Cup as the fifth club. At this point, each team consisted of 16 players: men’s champion, men’s championship runnerup, men’s senior champion, men’s super-senior champion, women’s champion, women’s senior champion, both men’s and women’s A, B, C, & D flight players, junior champion, and golf professional.
With Pennhills Club leaving the event in 2010, the Travis Cup currently involves Cherry Hill Club, Lookout Point Country Club, Orchard Park Country Club, and Stafford Country Club.
LATEST RESULTS
The 16th annual Walter J. Travis Cup was hosted by Lookout Point Country Club, in Fonthill, Ontario. A beautiful day awaited the 64 players and their guests, with the spray from Niagara Falls clearly visible from the clubhouse patio atop the Niagara Escarpment.
After a terrific lunch on the patio, team pictures, and warm-up on the range, the team gathered for the opening ceremonies on the first tee. Special guest, Elise Anne “Winkie” Travis-Roessler, the granddaughter of Walter Travis, was introduced, followed by the inspired singing of the national anthems by a small group of young children . The shotgun start followed.
As results were posted on the scoreboard, it became evident that the Lookout Point CC was defending its home turf, and its 2010 championship. Lookout Point won 22 points, followed by Orchard Park CC with 15 1/2, Cherry Hill Club 14 1/2, and Stafford CC with 14. As with each of the past Travis Cups, participants left with fond memories of the collegiality of the affair, the generous hospitality of the staff and members of Lookout Point CC, and the glorious day on a beautiful, old Walter Travis golf course.
SITE AND DATE OF NEXT COMPETITION
Orchard Park Country Club will host the Travis Cup on Friday, August 10, 2012.
