History of the
Sta. Barbara Golf Course
Founded in 1907, it is the oldest existing golf course in the Philippines.
The British Connection, Mid 1800'sThe presence of the British Vice Consul in Iloilo , in the person of Mr. Nicolas Loney, since the 1850's, engaging in the trading of various goods from the Visayas, specially sugar, is proof of early and active British presence in the Philippines. Mr. Loney,who gained recognition as the 'Father of the Philippine sugar Industry', enhanced foreign access to Philippine products and promoted the growth of the local economy thru improved transport mobility by sea and land. In particular, this would have led the Philippine Commission's American colonizers at the turn of the century to pursue the construction of railroads in the Major Island of the Visayas due to the existence of vigorous trade and economic activities in Panay and the adjacent islands. Such historical undertaking pursued by the early American colonizer, as the widespread construction of railway systems for transportation, sugar production and mining, employing existing British expertise and technology in steam locomotives, bought about major peripheral influences to the lifestyle of the Filipinos. By all accounts, the start of the Panay railways construction coincided sharply with the Scottish engineers picking a track of rolling fields in the hills, reminiscent of Scottish glens in Sta. Barbara, to play their 'national past time'. Thus was the game of golf born in this parts of the world.
Early Nipa Club huts, Pre-War Clubhouse.
The earliest structures that served to shelter the early 1900's Sta. Barbara golfers were simple nipa huts built by the Panay Railways company for their expatriate personnel. They were located at the entrance of the course, around the area of the present parking lots, alongside the 11th fairway. These small huts were later replaced, and by the 1920's a bigger wooden and concrete one stood across the 11th fairway, to the side of the 18th green, underneath the acacia trees. This was taken over by the USAFE forces at the start of WW II, and subsequently destroyed by the invading forces. After the war, small nipa huts were built in the area to serve as temporary shelter for the returning golfers, who took about a year to bring the course back in playable form. In 1947, at the leadership of the manager of the local British trading company Strachan & McMurray, Mr. Wallace McGregor Davis Sr. and member-architect Zafiro Ledesma supervised the construction and expansion of the 'Quonset Hut' Clubhouse. This was to be used following a few more renovations in later years, up to 1998, when the present, modern Clubhouse was constructed out of membership funds.
The following are descriptions of remnants of old golfing structures, evidence of the turn-of-the-century era structures and decades-old links of the present course. Excluded from these are the rare late 1800's golf balls, indisputably brought and lost in play by its founders, and decades later excavated from the ponds of the golf course. They are safely kept for posterity.
Sandboxes: Replicas of the stone and concrete sandboxes, with a couple of repaired original ones, still exist. This is unique to the old course, a memorabilia of how the golf ball was then played off the tee mound "with a handful of water scooped from the holder and poured on the sand in the adjacent box, the 'niblick ' (the iron wedge) is then used to scoop the wet sand which is used to 'tee-up' the golf ball on the ground."
Stone Stairways: Located at the foot of the 10th tee leading down towards the ponds, the remains of this structure, reinforced through the years, was constructed for the convenience and protection of golfers against a muddy and slippery descent.
Alexander Ditch and Ponds: 
Perhaps built earlier than his actual term as club President in 1932 to 1933, the main drainage ditch and ponds G.M. Alexander's major contribution to the sustainability and permanence of the old course. To this day, this major vein receives rain water tributaries from the present 1st, 8th, 9th, 10th, 11th, 14th, 15th and 18th fairways. These tracks of land practically served as the original layout of the first 9 holes. The old 'turn-of-the-century' golf Balls, evidence of the early birth of birth of golf in these hills, were dredged out of the ponds that collected the draining waters from these fairways.
Centuries-old Acacia trees are characteristic of the old course. Many have trunk diameters in excess of 2 meters, attesting to their age. They had been preserved through the years as part of the Sta. Barbara Course's historic identity.
Present Appearance
18-hole Championship Course (1980's)
The full 18-hole tournament course was completed in the 1980's, during the term of Club President Francisco ' Paco ' Maravilla Years of planning and painstaking negotiations and fundraising activities were needed to slowly complete a full golf house. Some land areas were added following either an outright purchase, or some donation or a long-term lease agreement. Today we have a fairly challenging par-70 layout, with about 5790 yards of fairways, maintained by some 250-strong active membership and an even bigger number of corporate shareholders. Negotiations continue to this date and expansion plans continue to be pursued for a better, more challenging, more attractive and visitor-friendly Sta. Barbara golf course.
Built in 1997 and opened in 1998, the new and modern clubhouse is in itself an achievement of the local membership. It was designed to accommodate a growing number of active members in 1997. Coming into the golf course centennial at decade later in 2007, the problem of overcrowding in the locker rooms and a lack of space is again facing the club as it did in the late 1900's. Expansion plans are in the works.
National Historical Marker
On July 12, 2005, IGCCI received a letter from Mr. Ocampo, Chairman of the National Historical Institute (NHI) officially recognizing the historical significance of Sta. Barbara Golf Course as the "Oldest Existing Golf Course" in the Philippines . With this confirmation, the Centenary Committee is planning to install a "Historical Marker" in the golf course as part of our Centenary celebration in 2007.
The Iloilo Golf & Country Club Inc. (IGCCI) forges ahead to make the Santa Barbara Golf Course a premier golf destination in the Philippines. Maintained by some 268-strong active members and an even bigger number of corporate shareholders, it will continue its development plans towards a more challenging, more attractive, environment friendly and world-class golfing and recreational facility.
