HISTORY OF THE CLUB
On the beach outside Simrishamn one sunny day sometime around 1940, assistant physician Hellgren was standing with his son hitting golf balls when Provincial Physician Johann Lehmann walked by and he was invited to take a swing. “I hit a direct hit, which went far out into the Baltic Sea, where no one had thought I could hit. It was thrilling! I immediately called friends in Malmö to see if they had any old clubs I could get. I got three clubs. Three rattan-handled clubs, a brassie, a mashie and a niblick. Oh, the wooden-handled clubs of old! The club shaft vibrated benevolently in the hands in a way that a steel-handled one never could. Then came trips to Falsterbo and William Hester. And then I was hooked!”
So begins the story of Österlens Golf Club. Just north of Vik, next to Vik's hotel, there were some pastures that attracted people to play. Johann Lehmann managed to interest his friends, Merchant Oscar Nilsson, Engineer Frode Vils, Director Gösta Ehrnberg and others. Together, among grazing cows, horses and beachgoers, they began to prepare the slopes at Vik for golf games. Here they managed to clear away some bushes, made six teeing grounds, and painted rings that represented both the green and the hole. The location was the meadows where we find holes 13-17 today.
Another of the club's first golfers, Carl-Emil Polfeldt, wrote poetry at the 10th anniversary about Prince Eugen and Johann Lehmann.
“A prince one day saw a piece of untouched land, forgotten as if it had come from the hand of God.
Its beauty gripped his soul, he wanted to paint its views, from Vik many canvases in gentle colors are seen flaunting.
Eugen with a royal hand hit the first ball of the course. In poetry he may be praised for this proud role.
Another far-sighted man took up where the prince left off. And hatched plans to have our field squared.
Johann should be praised as our greatest pioneer, for it is undoubtedly ultimately his merit.
That the prince's mind game turned into a finished path, which Johann had to shape many times with his own hands."
In 1941, the Swedish Golf Association's secretary Gunnar Tisell came to visit and in the Stockholm newspaper on November 20th you can read "The fact that golf is developing is also proven by the construction of new courses that are currently being planned... The course at Vik that I have been down and looked at is something of a find. Plenty of turning space and the most scenic terrain you can imagine with the sea on one side and the Skåne hills on the other" The title of the article was "New golf paradise at the Skåne fishing village". On December 1 of the same year, Thisell sent a letter to Lehmann. "...I have by no means forgotten the course at Vik. The location was impressive and the condition of the ground was such that I believe that an exceptionally pleasant course could be created there".
This was probably exactly the encouragement needed to continue with their plans.
The clearing of the land was not uncontroversial and did not go unnoticed by the owners, Karl Ottosson and his wife, who were perhaps not entirely happy with the encroachment or the idea of a golf course in general. In 1942, when the land was to be purchased, ironmonger Oscar Nilsson acted as a cover to ensure that no plans for a golf course were revealed and possibly prevent the purchase from going through or the price being raised. In the background was Gösta Ehrnberg as a financier. Ehrnberg was the owner of the Leather Factory in Simrishamn and was Simrishamn's largest employer, as well as a great golf enthusiast. On June 17, 1942, the land was purchased for 21.000 SEK. 26,4 acres of meadow and pasture land. Two weeks later, the purchase was transported to Ehrnberg's leather for the same price.
On November 7, 1945, the following article could be read in Ystad allehanda.
"At a meeting with golf enthusiasts in Bergrenska gården in Simrishamn last night, a golf club was formed, which was named Österlens Golf Club.
The meeting, which was well attended, was opened by Dr. JA Lehmann, who in his speech touched upon the difficulties that had previously stood in the way of the formation of this club. The first obstacle, that the golf course was not owned by the club at Viik, was, however, removed when the area in question was purchased by Director Gösta Ehrnberg. The war and the blockade had then made it impossible to procure golf equipment. Last autumn the idea of acquiring a proper golf course had come to mind again. Our foremost expert in the construction and planning of golf courses, Dr. Sundblom, had been summoned and given a favorable opinion on the area. By spring the cost calculations had been completed and only the capital issue remained to be resolved. But after contacting Director Ehrnberg, he had made 10,000 SEK available for the construction of a golf course, for which warm thanks were now expressed.
The work on the course has currently progressed so far that they hope to have a really good golf course by next autumn and now, consequently, they considered it possible to form a golf club.
The six-hole course designed by Rafael Sundblom was completed in 1946. On the drawing of the nine-hole course, it is the course length excluding holes 5,6 and 7. It would not have been completely without obstacles. An admittedly ended world war, a very dry summer and limited financial resources also contributed. The latter was, however, offset by a great deal of work from many involved and a well-functioning barter trade among the area's businesses and agriculture. Of this course, today, only holes 13 and 14 remain in more or less the same length.
In 1941, the Swedish Golf Association's secretary Gunnar Tisell came to visit and in the Stockholm newspaper on November 20th you can read "The fact that golf is developing is also proven by the construction of new courses that are currently being planned... The course at Vik that I have been down and looked at is something of a find. Plenty of turning space and the most scenic terrain you can imagine with the sea on one side and the Skåne hills on the other" The title of the article was "New golf paradise at the Skåne fishing village". On December 1 of the same year, Thisell sent a letter to Lehmann. "...I have by no means forgotten the course at Vik. The location was impressive and the condition of the ground was such that I believe that an exceptionally pleasant course could be created there".
This was probably exactly the encouragement needed to continue with their plans.
The clearing of the land was not uncontroversial and did not go unnoticed by the owners, Karl Ottosson and his wife, who were perhaps not entirely happy with the encroachment or the idea of a golf course in general. In 1942, when the land was to be purchased, ironmonger Oscar Nilsson acted as a cover to ensure that no plans for a golf course were revealed and possibly prevent the purchase from going through or the price being raised. In the background was Gösta Ehrnberg as a financier. Ehrnberg was the owner of the Leather Factory in Simrishamn and was Simrishamn's largest employer, as well as a great golf enthusiast. On June 17, 1942, the land was purchased for 21.000 SEK. 26,4 acres of meadow and pasture land. Two weeks later, the purchase was transported to Ehrnberg's leather for the same price.
On November 7, 1945, the following article could be read in Ystad allehanda.
"At a meeting with golf enthusiasts in Bergrenska gården in Simrishamn last night, a golf club was formed, which was named Österlens Golf Club.
The meeting, which was well attended, was opened by Dr. JA Lehmann, who in his speech touched upon the difficulties that had previously stood in the way of the formation of this club. The first obstacle, that the golf course was not owned by the club at Viik, was, however, removed when the area in question was purchased by Director Gösta Ehrnberg. The war and the blockade had then made it impossible to procure golf equipment. Last autumn the idea of acquiring a proper golf course had come to mind again. Our foremost expert in the construction and planning of golf courses, Dr. Sundblom, had been summoned and given a favorable opinion on the area. By spring the cost calculations had been completed and only the capital issue remained to be resolved. But after contacting Director Ehrnberg, he had made 10,000 SEK available for the construction of a golf course, for which warm thanks were now expressed.
The work on the course has currently progressed so far that they hope to have a really good golf course by next autumn and now, consequently, they considered it possible to form a golf club.
The six-hole course designed by Rafael Sundblom was completed in 1946. On the drawing of the nine-hole course, it is the course length excluding holes 5,6 and 7. It would not have been completely without obstacles. An admittedly ended world war, a very dry summer and limited financial resources also contributed. The latter was, however, offset by a great deal of work from many involved and a well-functioning barter trade among the area's businesses and agriculture. Of this course, today, only holes 13 and 14 remain in more or less the same length.
The course in Vik also needed a clubhouse. Picnics were great in most weather, but they also needed changing rooms and storage. Next to the course was a small hotel. For a few years, they rented their annex, but it eventually became too cramped. The hotel building remains today as a private residence and is located to the right of today's 16th hole,
In the 40s, this pioneer group was also active in Hooks GK, whose members at that time consisted almost exclusively of regulars at the manor, but they had six holes and a clubhouse with a popular veranda from which they drew inspiration. Frode Vils was vice-chairman there for a few years and, for example, there was already a “Frode Vils honorary prize” in that club in 1946. Up at Hook, more precisely in Frödaröd, Vils had managed to buy a timbered Småland cottage. The cottage had two floors, but only the ground floor was needed. Since the winter was unusually cold when the Eastern Lapland workers were on site to dismantle it, the large group that had travelled warmed themselves by lighting a fire in the remains of the upper floor while they carefully dismantled the ground floor. The cottage could then be rebuilt back home in Vik, now transformed into a clubhouse with a view of the golf course and the sea. Of course, not without being called a "house of outrage" in the press, many thought it destroyed the nature and was frighteningly located. The clubhouse (now a private residence between today's holes 14 and 16) was donated very generously by Frode Vils who also took office as chairman this year.
When the gentlemen sat on the board and played golf, it was Mrs. Ingeborg Lehmann, later Mrs. Vils, who did most of the work. She sat on the board with responsibility for finances until 1961, but in practice she was also course manager, clubhouse hostess and responsible for renting out the overnight rooms in the clubhouse, while she sold balls and even took on the responsibility of babysitting while the parents were out on the course.
She was also one of the sharpest golfers in the club and in 1950 she became club champion. At that time, men and women actually played in the same class. A few years later, she is also said to have become Colombian champion during a business trip to South America.
Another big profile in the club in more modern times is Gunnar Mueller. He started training at the club during the summers of the 60s. As early as 1966 he became club champion and here we think something unique in golf Sweden should be noted, the last time he won the club championship was 2019. There is a good bit more than 50 years between these wins. He also titled himself as club champion six times in a row in the mid-80s after he ended his career on the European Tour and started working as a coach at ÖsGK. After a few detours to other clubs, he came back in the 2010s as a popular coach and still comes in from time to time.
In the seventies the club managed to lease a further 60 acres of land. They already had dreams of 18 holes but some of the land was leased out for a later date. During the years 1972-1974, the course layout of the 9-hole course was significantly changed based on suggestions from Douglas Brasier. The new area included Plöten and they got a nice par-3 hole over water which is still a great challenge today.
In 1979, Gården Nyhem was put up for sale. The seller was not interested in any golf course, so the club was not a potential buyer. But the club management managed to persuade Simrishamn Municipality to exercise its option right. The club then leased the land it needed to be able to accommodate an 18-hole course. Member Tommy Nordström was commissioned on a non-profit basis to design a new 18-hole course. It was his first course, but many more were to come. Under the leadership of chairman Magnus Jernström, Tommy Nordström designed the course and with the help of course manager Evert Nordin, they created, with minimal financial resources, a course very similar to the one we see today. The final price came to 500.000 SEK. The course was inaugurated on May 17, 1981.
Over the years, some changes were made, including the addition of the beautiful and fun hole 7 along the sea and an old par three became a practice area just south of the restaurant. When they could offer 18 holes and a restaurant, the number of members and guests increased and in 1988 the economy was strong enough to be able to buy out the land on which the course was located.
The next big project for the club appeared in 1998 when they were offered to buy land on the other side of the road. Tommy Nordström was contacted and asked for a statement on whether it was possible to build a golf course on the land. He was very excited and offered to design a course there free of charge. The land was in many ways excellently suited for a golf course. Not least because it was located on several, several meters of sand but also because large parts were a lovely rolling orchard. Negotiations soon began with more neighbors for more land to be able to accommodate a course. In the spring of 1999, at an extra board meeting, a closed vote for or against the project ended 213 to 213. After a check count, it was noted that one vote had been misplaced and "for" thus won by a margin of two votes. Today, few members regret building the new course. But it was a long way to get there and without a chairman. Johnte Dymling (who, incidentally, received the Swedish Sports Federation's Gold Medal for his contributions to golf in Sweden in 2003), Tommy Nordström and a few other enthusiasts had not gone all the way. At midsummer 2001, the course was inaugurated with an internal competition.
The plan was also to rebuild the old fruit packing plant that was adjacent to the clubhouse. A plot of land between the course and the road was purchased and by selling off plots for development, a clubhouse could be financed at the top with a stunning view of the course and the Baltic Sea. Today, Österlens Golf Club is a club with about 2000 members, two full-length courses and a short-hole course but with the same fantastic view as 80 years ago. /Staffan Olsson
