Under the guidance of golf course architect Ian Andrew, the Cutten Club has completed a major renovation project that involved upgrading the entire irrigation system and the restoration of all of the golf course's 90 bunkers. From the outset, the intention of both the club and Andrew was to restore the golf course to its original layout which dates back to May, 1929. It was then that founder Arthur W. Cutten, and architects Charles (Chick) Evans and Stanley Thompson, began construction of the Cutten Club. Stanley Thompson not only built the course, but later owned and lived on the property. The Cutten Club officially opened for play on June 10, 1931.
Craig Moore, the Cutten Club's general manager, has played an integral part in the restoration project.
"Restoring the course layout to Stanley Thompson's original design has been my main focus," said Moore, the club's general manager since 2003. "The 1930's represented a classic time period in golf course architecture in North America and we are very fortunate to have a club that personifies that era. Stanley Thompson wanted the game to be challenging but not punishing. I think with the work we have done to the course, we have recaptured his original intentions."
Moore feels that the return to the club's origins is the result of a steadfast commitment by the membership to preserve the longstanding history of the Cutten Club.
"This project saw the course undergo much needed restorative measures but allowed us to bring together the past and the present," Moore said. "I'm excited about the next 10 years as I think we have created something special for our members and their guests."
Moore also praises the work of golf course architect Ian Andrew, who has been involved in other restoration projects at the Cutten Club since 2003.
"Ian has a true sense of what Chick Evans and Stanley Thompson set out to create many years ago and has done a remarkable job protecting the integrity of our golf course," Moore said. "Our members are very pleased with the end result."
Ian Andrew, a course designer for almost 20 years, is equally satisfied with the outcome of the project.
"Using a 1955 aerial photo, we knew what the course looked like just after Stanley 's death and we set out to restore the course to that time," Andrew said. "It was fun duplicating Thompson's work along with some original Evans bunkers that were left over from 1930. The course is a bit of an amalgamation of the two architects but it manages to work together beautifully."
The Cutten Club has experienced many changes in its 75-year history. True to Arthur Cutten's original vision, the club started as a pay-as-you-play facility accessible to all the citizens of Guelph . From the late 1950's to the early 1980's, the Guelph Golf and Recreation Club Ltd., or the Cutten Club as we know it today, was owned and operated by the University of Guelph . In 2005, a 40-year lease agreement was signed with the university and a new not-for-profit operating structure was adopted.