Our Heritage
A James Braid layout, a Shennan clubhouse, and over a century of championship golf.
Timeline
Moments that shaped Childwall.
1912
A club is born
Following the death of the hotel's owner, the Hydro Links golfers are offered the chance to form a club. Operating from hotel rooms and using a stable block for changing, the journey begins as The Woolton Hall Hydro Golf Club. The course is laid out on the recommendation of James Braid.
1915
War, receivership and a name change
The Hydro goes into receivership during WWI and is requisitioned as an auxiliary hospital. The club negotiates with the Receiver to continue — losing hotel rooms, gardens and lawns — and carries on as The Woolton Hall Golf Club.
1921
Served notice to quit
Lease renegotiation breaks down amid accusations of 'sharp practice' — granting grazing rights to a local farmer and subletting land to the Woolton Allotment Society. The club is served notice to quit.
1922
The move to Childwall Hall
52 acres are leased at Childwall Hall. Initially a 12-hole course, it is extended to 18 with land rented from Cocks Head Farm; rooms in the Hall are used as a clubhouse. Members vote to rename the club The Childwall Golf Club.
1938
The Art Deco clubhouse opens
Designed by Alderman Shennan, whose firm would go on to build the clubhouse at Royal Birkdale.
1950s–80s
Championship era
Childwall hosts a series of regional and national amateur championships, building a reputation as a serious test of parkland golf.
2012
Centenary year
The club celebrates 100 years and hosts the England Golf Northern Boys Championship.
2018
Clubhouse refurbishment
A full refurbishment of the lounge and interior is completed, restoring and modernising the Art Deco spaces.
2021
Lancashire County Championship
Childwall plays host to the County Championship — a measure of the course's continued standing.
2025
Northern Boys Championship returns
England Golf brings the Northern Boys back to Childwall, alongside an active calendar of WAGR-counting events.