Madras Gymkhana Club


The Madras Gymkhana Club is a club in Chennai, India, which was founded in 1884 to promote sports and social and cultural activities. It owns and operates one of Chennai's two 18-hole golf courses, one of Asia's oldest courses. Tamil Nadu Governor Surjit Singh Barnala published The Glory Years, a coffee-table book commemorating the club's 125th anniversary, in 2009.

History

The club was founded in April 1884. Early membership was restricted to garrison members, British executives and some upper-caste Indians. A tent was erected, and early activities included polo and pigsticking. The Raja of Venkatagiri donated a grandstand. In addition to playing polo, members began trap shooting and playing cards, rugby, tennis and golf. The South Indian rajas made donations for buildings, billiard tables and polo ponies.
The club's history is intertwined with the history of India. Although an ordinance expelled its German members at the onset of the First World War, the club later learned that most of the German settlers had already fled. Women were allowed to join the club.
A bowling green was established, along with a ballroom in the paddock. Dance nights concluded with grand suppers, where dancers were photographed. A swimming pool was built, at which the American Olympic gold medalist Sammy Lee performed a diving exhibition. The club kitchen was upgraded with an ice-making plant, an ice–cream machine and freezer. A miniature golf course was built, and the bar was renovated.
YearName
1884Lt. General C. B. Johnson
1885Brig. Gen. Johnson
1886J. A. Boyson
1887H. McLeod
1888–1889G. J. Smart
1890–1891G. M. J Moore
1891–1892T. Vanstrauveiy
1893–1898G. M. J. Moore
1916–1921J. H. Symons
1921–1923L. H. Bewas
1924–1925C. E. Odgers
1926G. W. Chambers
1927A. D. Charles
1928–1929C. G. Alexander
1930Owen Beasley
1931–32G. A. Bambrioge
1933J. W. Wyles
1934M. A. Angus
1935V. Mockett
1936H. M. Small
1937K. R. Simpson
1938F. W. Gentle
1939–1940C. A. F. Hingston Keobe
1941–1942K. M. Kelso
1943K. R. Simpson
1944–1945G. Gill
1946–1947S. Jackson
1948R. J. J. Perry
1949A. Sinclair Rose
1950–52R. Wright
1953K. H. Chambers
1954R. Wright
1955R. M. King
1956H. I. Cormack
1957–58K. M. Nanjappa
1959–60K. Ramunni Menon
1961J. V. S. Milne
1962K. Ramunni Menon
1963–64I. G. Macintosh
1965–66V. S. Subramanian
1967–68R. N. Manickam
1969G. A. Phadke
1970–71N. Seshachelam
1972–73S. Vishnu Mohan
1974–75J. M. Thambuswamy
1976–77K. S. Vaidyanathan
1978–79P. L. Reddy
1980–81C. R. R. Pillay
1982–83A. R. Ramanathan
1984–85R. G. Phadke
1986–87K.S. Vaidyanathan
1988–89R. J. Rajasekhar
1990–91N. R. Santhanam
1992–94T. K. Singaram
1994–96Rabi Rajaratnam
1997–98B. Surender
1998–99M. V. Raghunathan
1999–2001K. J. Ramaswamy
2001–03P. B. Santhanakrishnan
2003–05C. S. Sivanandan
2005–06V. V. Mohindra
2006–08D. V. Seetharama Rao
2008–10Arvind Ramarathnam
2010N. A. Mirza
2010–13P. V. S. Vencatasubramaniam
2013–14M. R. G. Apparao
2014–16P. V. S. Vencatasubramaniam
2016–18S. B. P. Anand Mohan
2018–presentC. Venugopal

YearName
1884G. S. Barister
1885 – May 1886John F. Caldwell
May–December 1886Seymour Biscoe
1887–1893H. L. Ansted
1893–1894H. S. Fraser
1894–1897J. Campbell
1897–1898N. Michael
1898–Mr. C. Lane
1913–1915Mr. Birley
1915–1916J. Leask
1916–1921A. McBulloch
1921–1922D. Stewart
1922–1923A. C. Rowdon
1923–24F. C. Bishop
1924J. M. Wilson
1925–1926J. E. Cumming
1926–1929A. W. Hutton
1929–1930J. W. Wyles
1931–1932A. C. Mercer
1932–1934A. Feebles
1934 – March 1935A. Mackenzie
March 1935 – January 1936J. E. Inglis
February 1936 – 1938W. B. Horrocks
1939–1940G. L. Rossiter
1941–1944J. Malvenam
1944–1945R. J. Perry
1945–1946F. W. Johnson
January – October 1947W. I. Lavery
October 1947 – October 1948G. L. Rossiter
October 1948 – March 1950H. E. Hele
March – September 1950N. S. Fridinger
September 1950 – January 1951A. J. Martin
January – April 1951H. H. Chambers
April 1951 – May 1954N. S. Fridinger
1954–1955J. Ashton
1956–1957E. F. G. Keyser
January – February 1958I. G. Macintosh
March – May 1958J. V. S. Milne
June – August 1958J. E. Peters
September 1958 – February 1959I. G. Macintosh
March 1959 – 1960Mr. T.T.P. Abdullah
1961 – September 1962B. Devaraj
September – November 1962L. V. Hermon
November 1962 – 1964N. Seshachalam
1965–1969S. Vishnumohan
1969–1970P. L. Reddy
1970–1971T. C. Krishna
1971–1976P. L. Reddy
1976 – June 1980M. M. G. Appa Rao
June 1980 – 1984T. C. Krishna
1984 – September 1985N. R. Santhanam
June – August 1986K. V. Srinivasan
August 1986 – 1990T. K. Singaram
1990–1992Rabi Rajarathnam
1992–1995M. V. Raghunathan
1995 – March 1997K. P. Sashidar Rao
March 1997 – 1998K. J. Ramaswamy
1999–2000P. B. Santhanakrishnan
2000–2001C. S. Sivanandan
2002–2003V. V. Mohindra
2003–2004D. V. Seetharama Rao
2004–2006Arvind Ramarathnam
2006–2008N. A. Mirza
2008–2010P. V. S. Vencatasubramaniam
2010–2013S. B. P. Anand Mohan
2013–2014Giridhar Bail
2014–2016A. P. Suresh Kumar
2016–2018C. Venugopal
2018–presentT. Gunasagaran

Accommodations

The club has 15 rooms: three deluxe, six regular and six suites. Accommodations are provided for members of domestic and internationally affiliated clubs. All rooms are air-conditioned.

Sports

The club has four lighted tennis courts, and Vijay Amritraj played there. It has hosted several International Tennis Federation tournaments and the women's national championships. The club also has a gym, swimming pool, billiards, table tennis and a cards room.

Other facilities

The MGC also has a sports shop, salon, beauty parlour, ice-cream parlour and book and DVD libraries.

Guindy annexe

Originally on the Island Grounds, the golf course was moved to Guindy around 1887. It originally had nine holes before increasing to 14, 16 and 18 holes. Golf here was originally played off the browns; the transition to greens occurred during the 1980s. The Guindy course was known for its roughs, made challenging by the shifting wind. The 6,325/5765-yard course is within the oval of the Guindy Race Course.
Ross Thompson was the first captain of the golf club. The first inter-club competition between the MGC and the Bangalore Golf Club was held in 1878, and it remains the world's oldest continuing competition between two golf clubs. In 2002, the golf club celebrated its 125th anniversary.
The par-70 course is about 6,258 yards off the regular tees. There are also ladies tees and a set of championship tee boxes. It has over 50 bunkers, most guarding the relatively-small greens.