Washington Golf & Country Club

Overview: Washington Golf & Country Club in Arlington is a compact historic parkland course whose present character comes from several layers of design. Mature trees, rolling ground and quick changes in angle make the par-70 layout a precision test rather than a simple distance exercise. Donald Ross's work established the early language of the course, while later changes by William Flynn and Hugh Wilson made fuller use of the property. The result is a tightly connected routing with a remarkable amount of strategic variety in a small urban setting.

History: The club was incorporated in 1894 and first played at Rosslyn before moving to its current Arlington property. Nine holes were laid out at the new site in 1909, a second nine followed in 1910, and Donald Ross was hired to redesign the course. Later expansion work by Hugh Wilson and William Flynn made fuller use of the property, while some Ross holes remain identifiable. The club's history also includes a 1936 clubhouse fire and later rebuilding.

Did You Know? Washington Golf was central to the discovery and distribution of Washington Bent grass. In 1919, Dr. Charles Piper and Russell Oakley found a strain that resisted brown patch on an old green, then cultivated it for wider use. That local turf discovery helped influence the development of golf-course grass management well beyond Arlington.