Treasure the past while embracing the future.

Both Exeter Golf and Country Club and the Wear Park estate have a long history in Exeter.

Exeter Golf and Country Club started life, back in 1895, in the Pennsylvania area on the outskirts of the city. The golf course opened with just 96 members at Stoke Wood Farm.

In 1927, the growing membership needed more room, and the Wear Park estate was purchased to accommodate an 18 hole golf course, club house and, later down the line, tennis courts. The rest, as they say, is history. Until this point, Wear Park itself has it’s own story to tell with generations of wealthy families owning, and living, in the manor house.

The heritage of both the club and the Wear Park estate underpins the ethos of Exeter Golf and Country Club today; moving forward to the future while respecting the legacy of the founder members and all those who have shaped the club in the decades since.

A glimpse into the past

Luckily an archive of memorabilia, photographs, newsletters and handbooks has been preserved by both members and employees over the years, so the history of Exeter Golf and Country Club is well documented. One of these prized artifacts is a 1940s Official Handbook recently donated to the club by the family of one of Jose Bruce – one of the club’s longest-standing members – having been a golfer into her 90s. Jose passed away in 2022.

The handbook is primarily a longer version of what we might now call a Course Planner. The handbook has been typed into a PDF by the 2023 Ladies Golf Captain, Vicki Rogers.

1200s

The Manor of Weare Park belongs to the Buckenton family in the reign of Henry III.

1300s

The land was passed via female heirs through the families of Bathe, Medstead.

1400s

The Duke of Exeter, John Holland was the first person to settle building the original property on the site of Wear Park house.

1700s

Wear Park was passed through the families of the Foulkes, Rodds and then the Spicers.

1804

Sir John Duckworth purchased the house and estate, making significant improvements to the property, as it currently stands today. He died in 1817, with his body brought back to Wear Park house until his funeral in Topsham Church.

1895

Exeter Golf Club opens with 96 founder members at Stoke Wood Farm in the Pennsylvania area of the city, with panoramic views to Exmouth, Woodbury, Sidmouth, Dartmoor and Crediton.

1919

Captain George Henry James Duckworth-King sold the estate.

1923

Ernest Charles Eveleigh and his wife resided in the house until his death. He is buried in Topsham Church.

1929

Exeter Golf and Country Club open the city’s first 18 hole golf course at Wear Park designed by acclaimed golf architect, James Braid, famous for designing the Gleneagles course. The club also offers tennis courts and accommodation in the house with 420 members.

1943

US Navy Supply Depot occupies part of the golf course, with the largest such facility of its kind in the south of England. Wear Park house accommodated American Army personnel who were wounded and recuperating.

1945

The house and part of the land were returned to the golf club while a large area was retained by the MOD as a Naval Store – now a housing development.

1955

The golf course was re-designed by James Braid according to the new land boundaries.

1970s

Dutch Elm Disease changes the tree line of the course.

1976

The first Pro Am takes place.

1990

Storms kill another 20 trees changing the landscape again.

1993

Golf course architect Donald Steel redesigns parts of the course taking into account developments in technology and the changes to the course from the loss of trees.

2016

The ‘Twenty Sixteen’ Golf Course opens after a significant redesign of the 9th, 10th, 17th and 18th holes by international golf architects Mackenzie and Ebert, following issues with the course boundary and neighbouring housing developments.