The Olde Course at Loveland is Golden
2010 marked the 50th anniversary of The Olde Course at Loveland, originally known as Loveland Municipal Golf Course.
The dream began in 1955 when a committee of local, dedicated golfers tired of traveling to Fort Collins and Greeley for their golfing fix went before City Council to present their ideas and concepts for a golf course for Loveland. Acceptance was slow to come. In fact, it was not until 1958, through the generosity of Mr. & Mrs. John (Alyce) Donahue, that reality was born. The Donahues donated 100 acres to the City of Loveland for the purpose of developing a municipal golf course with an option to acquire an additional 30 acres.
Henry Hughes of Denver was selected as the golf course architect to develop an 18-hole layout and, in 1960, the first nine holes opened for play. Don Fox became the first golf professional in Loveland, a position he held for 31 years.
It would take another five years before the back nine were completed. The first hole-in-one preceded the completion of the back nine when B.I. Madsen aced #8 on April 6, 1963. A contest was being held until recently awarding the next senior (55 years of age or older) a $500 Olde Course Pro Shop Gift Certificate for recording a verifiable hole-in-one on #8. This contest was won in May of 2010 when Mac Goshorn accomplished the task from the white tee at 135 yards using a 4 iron!
The Olde Course has enjoyed great success over the years, due in large part to a challenging yet fun course layout and excellent course conditions. But it was not until 1982, 22 years after opening, that the course turned a profit. It was at that time that the Golf Enterprise Fund was formed and since that time, no tax dollars have supported any of the City of Loveland courses.
To this day, The Olde Course continues to far out-distance any other northern Colorado golf course in number of rounds played each year. It continues to bring enjoyment to each person who steps onto the well-manicured grounds.
