Laleham Golf Clubs History

Benectdine Monks

Laleham stands on a picturesque and historic bank of the River Thames between Laleham and Chertsey. In the 7th century the monks of Chertsey Abbey owned the land and constructed a system of drainage ditches known as the Burway and a navigable stream, the Abbey River, to form the Island of Burgh. It enabled them to ferry their produce to neighbouring villages and to protect their cattle during periods of flooding. The Club still benefits from their work, as the Course often remains dry when others are forced to close during wet weather. One rectangular shaped enclosure can still be seen on the Course and is an English Heritage protected monument.

In the 14th century, the Abbot of Chertsey presented 160 acres of the Burway to Laleham Parish as a gift for assistance received during the Black Death. Despite the demise of the great Abbey in the 16th century, the Laleham villagers continued to use the Burway for grazing and also as a recreational area on which the game of cricket was played and developed. The earliest recorded cricket match was in 1737 when the Old Ringers of Chertsey played against a set of College Youths for £20, play or pay. Many of the rules of the game were formulated on the great Chertsey ground; the four and a quarter inch bat in 1771 when Shock White of Reigate came in with a bat wider than the wicket; the first fully recorded match of eleven a side in 1773 when Surrey played Kent and in 1776 when the first match was played using three stumps.

Historic Laleham

By the 19th century, the Burway belonged to owners of estates within the Manor of Laleham and was divided into 300 parts, the tenants of which were entitled to the feed of a horse or the support of a cow and a half. It was finally enclosed in 1816 when the Earl of Lucan, Lord of the Manor of Laleham, was allotted 67 acres and 3 roods. By 1888, most of the Burway was owned by the Lucans who were attracted to the fishing in the Abbey River, shooting, seven hunts, five racecourses within easy reach and the possibility of building development. The Third Earl of Lucan finally purchased all the land on the Burway which he financed with money earned by his part in the debacle of the Charge of the Light Brigade in the Crimean War.

Historic Laleham

In 1903, a group of Chertsey gentlemen decided to construct a golf course and negotiated a sum with the 4th Earl of Lucan for renting the Laleham Burway. Despite the fact that the only access from Laleham was across the Thames via the old Ferry and from Chertsey a long walk down Ferry Lane, Jack White, Open Champion in 1904, designed the Course and by August of 1904, the Chertsey Golf Club was up and running. The 4th Earl of Lucan was invited to be the Club President, his eldest son, Lord Bingham, the first Captain and a lease of 21years was agreed. Links with the Lucan family were strong, and in times of trouble they frequently bailed out the Club. In 1938 it became Laleham Golf Club Limited reverting to a private member’s Club in 1965.


*The 7th Earl of Lucan*	Bert Dash Lalehams first Green Keeper	Jack White Lalehams Course Designer

1974 saw a loss to the members of a very generous President and landlord when the 7th Earl of Lucan disappeared to fuel Britain’s most celebrated and documented mystery. Eventually, the membership purchased the Course with the permission of the Lucan Trustees in 1996. In 2003 Laleham Golf Club held its Centenary and the 8th Earl of Lucan came to Laleham to meet with the membership. We played golf on the beautiful greens and fairways meeting up in the refurbished Clubhouse which still preserves the timbers and character of a Victorian cricket pavilion, and wondered at the thought of the historic past and of the exciting future which lies ahead.

written by J. East