Golf News Michigan Belvedere Golf Club has seen its share of history, but even more history will be made in 2023 when the classic WilliamWatson design will host the Hickory Grail Matches. The Hickory Grail matches feature a Ryder Cup style format, with 13 of the most passionate hickory players from the United States and Great Britain/Europe competing in an international hickory match. Belvedere members Ross Hays and Jerry Esselman, along with head pro Marty Joy, were all named to this year’s U.S. Grail team and competed in 2021 at the famed St. Andrews Old Course in Scotland. Since 2000, the U.S. team and Great Britain/ Europe have tied 6-6 in retaining the cup in the friendly matches played in the spirit of the game. “With Belvedere’s history and the passion that our club members have for hickory club play, it was a natural fit for us to be selected to host The Grail Cup”, said Joy. “To have been able to participate in this prestigious event at St. Andrews, the home of golf, and now to play host is a dream come true for all of us at the club. We are very proud to welcome this event and fellow hickory players from across the Atlantic to play the game as it was meant to be played.” The Hickory Grail was founded in 2000 by American’s Ralph Livingston III and Michigan’s own, Tom Stewart, both hickory pioneers and experts, along with Scotland’s David Hamilton, one of today’s premier golf historians. The biennial event is conducted under the auspices of The British Golf Collectors Society, with current membership of 700+ members in Great Britain, America and around the world. The tournament is noted for selecting many of the world’s most prestigious historical courses for its venues, St. Andrews, Baltustrol, Kilspindie, Scotland and Falsterbo GK, in Sweden. Belvedere is the only club in the U.S. to have as many as 44 antique hickory club players and hosts Hickory tournaments annually including the Belvedere Hickory Open since 2006, plus in 2019 the club hosted the national U.S. Hickory Open. Competitors dress in period appropriate apparel, including knickers, ties, and jackets. Belvedere Golf Club to Host 2023 Hickory Grail Matches Michigan Golf Journal
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