Howick Golf Club

Origins

Howick Golf Club began with a public meeting at Miss Rathbone's residence on 3 April 1934. Eight people attended, and local farmer Cecil Litten offered 45 acres on which a nine-hole course could be developed. That first course occupied land around what is now Shelly Park Primary School and its reserve.

The club went into recess during the Second World War, then re-formed and leased approximately 100 acres from farmers Archie Somerville and Robbie Nichols. Members developed an 18-hole course near Litten Road, on land now occupied by Howick College, and formally opened it on 12 April 1947.

Development

Although membership grew after the 1947 opening, the cost of leasing the Litten Road property became difficult for the club to sustain. In 1953 it identified approximately 98 acres of vacant Crown scrubland around the Musick Point Air Radio Station as a possible permanent home. A Crown lease was negotiated at an annual rental of £120.

During 1953 and 1954, extensive earthworks were undertaken and members contributed thousands of hours of voluntary labour clearing gorse and scrub, sowing grass and planting trees. The first game on the new Musick Point property took place on 30 October 1954 over 15 holes, marking the club's transition away from Litten Road. Contemporary photographs preserved by the club show the peninsula changing from largely scrub-covered land in the 1940s to an established golf course over subsequent decades.

Recognition

Australian Golf Digest profiled Howick in 2018, highlighting the club's unusual history of repeated relocation and the Musick Point setting. The publication noted that the club's origins pre-date the Second World War and that the move to Musick Point ultimately provided the permanent home it had been seeking.

Today

Howick now occupies 32 Musick Point Road at Bucklands Beach. Its 18-hole course runs across the peninsula, with a number of holes positioned on cliff-top ground overlooking the Hauraki Gulf, Rangitoto, the North Shore and parts of central Auckland. The club accepts both affiliated and non-affiliated visitors outside reserved or restricted tee times, and tee times can be booked through its official DotGolf booking system.

The golf shop handles bookings, scoring, green-fee payments and hire of clubs, trundlers and carts. Clubhouse facilities include an upstairs bar and dining area and a downstairs gazebo bar.