CLUB HISTORY

In the Beginning.....
It all started with an idea/dream of Bert Stamps (the eventual course designer and 1st Golf Professional). He pursued the notion of a golf club out here in 1954 and approached Frank J Sanders, who was extremely instrumental in getting things started. Bert, who designed Airways Golf Course in 1946 (his first course) was getting very excited about the idea of shaping the second of what would soon become a string of courses up and down the Golden State.

Frank and Bert, after being unsuccessful in acquiring some land near Clovis Ave and Belmont Ave., approached Walt Tomerlin. He owned the 94 acre parcel on which the course now resides. That land was then divided into sections that included the golf course, streets, and home lots sold to who would later become members. The circle drive (Sanders Court) that the course wraps around,is named after Frank J Sanders. The original parcel was previously a grape vineyards farmed by Walt

After some of the particulars were worked out,the Belmont County Club was built in 1955 and opened in october of 1956. Frank, Bert, and Walt (and a few others) formed a corporation called "Belmont Park Corporation" and they sold shares, which went for a whopping $100.00 each. Now that was a lot of "Green" in those days. Walt Tomerlin and Frank J Sanders were major holders and, as was mentioned before, had a lot to do with the early success of the club. (Interestingly enough, Mr Tomerlin owned a set of golf clubs but never played.)

In 1956, the regular membership had an invitation of $250.00 and monthly dues were$18.50> A couple of years later, the initiation went down to one hundred and fifty dollars. The goal at that time was 250 members. The golf shop was run by Bert Stamps and he had a young assistant by the name of Hap Rose. (Incidentally,Bert Built the 1st home on the property.) The building in which pro shop and club office now reside in the same building these two men worked out of some 40+ years ago. At that time it was used a pro shop, Coffee Shop, Office,and storage facility. There was a ranch house that stood just west of the pro shop and where our current cart barn is now.It was here when the course opened.,but was moved within a year and a half to a lot just north of where the current fifth tee sits. (After being vacant for many years, Bob and Julie Wyrick bought the home in 1996 and renovated to its current beauty.) A swimming pool (and small cart barn) was built where the ranch house previously stood. The pool was enjoyed by young and old, for many years until its demise in 1992. The lack of use and direpair (and need to modernize the existing cart storage area) triggered the new cart barn facility, which was also built in 1992, supervised by a member and then contractor, George Alexander.

The members bought the course from the corporation in 1962. At that time , the club sold "Lifetime Memberships" to who ever was interested. They were going for $2400.00 each and fifteen people purchased them.(These individuals were free from monthly dues and assessments.)

PROFESSIONALS
Professionally speaking, Bert Stamps was in command until Hap Rose took over in 1959 and remained until 1978. Larry Babica, Kelly Wolfe, and Mike Schy Each were resident Professionals for roughly 5 years each. Current Professional, Kenny Collins Has been in place since December,1994. The first Superintendent was Owen Stone and he was here from 1956 to 1975. The Stone family has been in the business of looking after Golf Courses in the area for forty years and currently there are several Stones affiliated at prominent clubs up and down the valley. They say that if you are fortunate enough to have a Stone at your facility, you have the wisdom of all of them put together.
The Professional with the greatest impact and the longest tenure was Hap Rose. He did a great deal for this club and, by all accounts, Hap went way beyond the call of duty. He lived on the course and did what ever was necessary to keep the place moving forward. His wife, Pretz was an active part of the program as well, helping whenever needed and also enjoyed playing with the other ladies. Hap was the assistant for three years and then the head professional for another nineteen, moving on in July of 1978. Gary Bauer, Professional at Fig Garden, was the assistant to Hap for many years and he was famous for his salesmanship. When Hap went on his month long annual hiatus back to Minnesota, where he was from , Gary would sell the shop bare. He, aside from being a phenomenal golfer, would wheel and deal with the best of them and have no problem thinning out Haps inventory for him while he was in Minnesota.

Jet
There was another "assistant" by the name of Jet. An amazing dog he was. Hap trained him to stay within the boundary of the course and he did. The black lab was a fixture around Belmont. That dog was many things, not the least of which was rescue messenger and delivery agent. If a cart went down on the course, Jet was summoned by whistle. A note was scribbled out and placed in Jett's mouth and told to return to the shop. Hap would then come out with Ralph, the long time cart man, and take care of the situation. Jet would also amazingly deliver, upon command, things Pretz at home.We are talking about putting a dog a small bag, the mail, or a slip if paper in his mouth, traveling across the course to #5 tee. Now if someone would try and get close to Jet while in route, he snarl, growl, and simply not allow someone other than the receiving party, access to the goods. The dog was so protective of his territory too, continually chasing off stray dogs that wondered onto the course. He played an important role in keeping the morale up around here.

Fire/Social
The fire of 1982 was an especially trying time. It obviously caught everyone by suprise and was apparently caused by spontaneous combustion in the kitchen. Some of the members saw the flames from the "circle" and called the authorities. It was very difficult to all of a sudden not have a functioning clubhouse. People were in shock but dealt with it as best they could...and went on. Within a year and a half the new building was designed, built, and operational.
The Commeraderie was tremendous early on. The poolside patio area was the site of many a gathering. Especially during the years of the clubhouse fire, this area was a popular hangout for visiting, socializing,and general carrying on. Members would have parties out there all the time. During the socials, the occassional "swimmer" (willing or otherwise) was not uncommon. The coffee shop had a modest kitchen in it and would service te members for many years. In fact, even after the clubhouse was built (1958), the food was prepared in the coffee shop and then sent over and served in the banquet room. For big parties or small, that was the program until the clubhouse added the "new" kitchen in 1964.


Other significant events were:
Clubhouse was built     - 1958
Clubhouse additions     - 1960 (ballroom)
                                      - 1964 (kitchen)
Cable Fence around course  - 1980