Hastings Golf Club - Bridge Pa
Hastings Golf Club (also known as ‘Bridge Pa’) saw the first of the Wattie’s professional tournaments in 1963. The first was won by Bob Charles, fresh from his success that year in the British Open. Charles went on to win four of the eight Wattie tournaments staged and establish himself as a great favorite of the Hawke’s Bay crowd. Another terrific thrill for golf followers in Hawke’s Bay during the Wattie tournament era came when Stuart Jones won the 1965 event. Stuart Jones is rated as New Zealand’s best ever amateur golfer and a member at Bridge Pa.
The Bridge Pa course had undergone a number of changes of layout since its establishment in 1912 when in 1970 president Roy Skittrup spearheaded a plan which saw the course altered radically to provide the two even nines which exist today. While the changes to Bridge Pa initiated by Skittrup and Harold Christie took some time to develop (and for players to adjust to), by midway through the 1970s the Hastings course was being hailed as something special, not just by people from other parts of Hawke’s Bay and New Zealand, but overseas as well.
Now ranked amongst the Top 10 New Zealand Golf courses you’ll find a round of golf at Bridge Pa a challenging and enjoyable experience set amid picturesque surroundings.
