Monday 2 December 2013

Jorhat Gymkhana Club - history and beyond!

The Clubhouse
Vying for a place in the prestigious "World Heritage Site", for its lush green golf course, this beautiful colonial architecture, bears testimony to the influence of bygone British era.


Established as a 'watering hole' for British
tea planters, this club was built by the then secretary, D.Slimmon in 1876. The club was out of bounds for Indians till the Annual General Meeting of 1929, where the general body voted to open the doors to Indians as well.

Fact file: -

  • the club has a parkland style 9 hole golf course, a mature treeline, small ponds and water bodies, enough to test anyone's' game. 
  • this golf circuit is considered to be the oldest in Asia and the third oldest in the world!
  • the club offers grass court tennis, swimming pool, billiards and of course, a bar.
  • Since its inception, the club has been the venue for horse races. The Governors Cup, is the major trophy which is awarded every year. The races are scheduled during the fourth week of February.
  • The ponies for the races belong to the Mising people, an indigenous plains tribe of Assam. So in a way, the club acts like a intermediary, in helping the indigenous Mising people to showcase their riding skills and also in upkeep of their ponies. 
  • They are all 'bare-back' riders!

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