Rock Ridge Country Club Marks A Milestone Anniversary

And Opens A New Chapter In Its History

By Kaaren Valenta

Once the site of the weekend estate of a prominent New York City doctor, the Rock Ridge Country Club celebrated its 50th anniversary with a $4.1 million project that included the construction of a new clubhouse and renovation of the swimming pool facilities and tennis courts.

Located on Sugar Street (Route 302) in the Dodgingtown section of Newtown, the club covers 40 acres and boasts of having the area’s most challenging nine-hole course, one where a tee time is never necessary.

“The members can just show up and play,” club president Chris Donohue said. “That sets us apart from many other golf courses and is a real advantage.”

The construction/renovation project began five years ago when the club had an option to buy 140 acres of additional land off Robin Hill Road to expand the golf course to 18 holes.

“The contract was subject to approval of our membership, and it lost by 12 votes,” Mr Donohue said. “So we hired a golf course consulting group, the McMahon Group, to survey the membership on its desires and concerns. They said we should do something about the clubhouse.”

The old stone clubhouse had been expanded years earlier but, even using all of the rooms, it didn’t adequately seat all of the membership for social events.

“We had three buildings: the clubhouse with the restaurant and bar that was the original house, plus a pro shop that almost looked like a trailer, and locker rooms that weren’t much better than high school,” Mr Donohue said. “Now everything is under one roof.”

The elegant new building has a dining room that seats 150 and offers fine cuisine with views of a large terrace and the golf course. There is a centrally located bar-grille room with a fireplace and two television sets, an adjacent lounge (with a $5,000 exhaust system) where smoking is permitted, a room for small group events, a pro shop with a large selection of clothing and equipment, upscale locker rooms, and two comfortable seating areas near the front entrance.

Fifty years after the club’s founding, none of the charter members are still around. But Estelle Zimmer, who became the club’s bookkeeper in 1960, remembers the early days well. In a Founding Fathers presentation at the club’s 50th anniversary dinner in December, she said the early years were a time when members of the Jewish faith often found the doors bared to membership in country clubs.

“As a sign of the times, during the 30s, 40s, and 50s, country clubs were restricted,” she said.

So Seymour R. Powers of Brookfield Center and Julius Lipton of New York City, who also owned the Arrowhead Point development on Candlewood Lake, bought the property on what was then called the Dodgingtown-Newtown Road and began to sign up members, many from the Bridgeport and lower Fairfield County areas. The club, which had no religious restrictions, was to be known as the Pine Tree Country Club; membership was $300 a year.

“The property consisted of a summer cottage, 65 acres, and a very small, round swimming pool,” Ms Zimmer said. “The new owners had the task of adding onto the cottage to make it a clubhouse, fill in the pool, and build a nine-hold golf course. The name Pine Tree Country Club came from the fledgling pine trees, which adorned the roadway entering the club. Our logo, the pine tree, still appears on our stationary.”

The name did not remain, however. At the end of 1953 the venture went into bankruptcy. The following year it was reorganized, the name was changed to Rock Ridge Country Club, and the club was incorporated.

The club drew a diverse membership largely through its chief attraction, Danny Lawler, Jr, a Professional Golf Association (PGA) pro who was also a major league baseball scout, served as pro for many of the players, and was an instructor at a Florida university. Widely written about, he coached television personalities like Ed Sullivan, ball club owners, and more than 200 players over his long career as a golf pro.

Bill and Pat Denlinger joined the club in 1976. By then membership was dwindling as older members were retiring and fewer members were attracted from the Bridgeport-Fairfield area.

“In the late 70s some of the older members made it clear that they would like the club to grow with members from the local area,” Mr Denlinger said. “We took the challenge. We held meetings, we advertised, we had open houses. At one open house, we had a large family of gypsies appear and drink beer until they were gently persuaded to leave.”

Brian Burke, who served as president in the early 80s, recalled the years when the septic system had to be replaced and the locker room building caught fire and burned. Finally the club embarked on a golf course irrigation system and constructed four tennis courts and a new swimming pool.

As part of the most recent improvement project, the asphalt tennis courts were given a new Har-Tru quasi-clay surface that resists cracking and is easier on the knees. A new tennis pro, Dave Fowler, joined the club to greatly expand the program with a tennis ladder, interclub play, and a large junior program of tennis. The club also offers youth golf and swimming programs.

The heated swimming pool was replastered, the cabana renovated, the pool seating area expanded, and starting blocks were added for the swim team. There is a separate kiddie pool, diving area, and a lap lane. A new maintenance/golf cart building also was constructed.

The project took almost five years, partly due to issues involving the entrances and exits to the club. Once these issues were resolved, construction began. Newtown Savings Bank provided the financing for the multimillion dollar project.

“The bank was fabulous,” Mr Donohue said. “Our volunteers also did an incredible job. George Trudell [club second vice president who is also a local builder] literally was here all the time. It was like a second job for him.”

Newtown resident Bill Flood is the golf pro for the PGA-sanctioned club.

“Bill Flood is a ton of energy — he is a driving force here,” Mr Donohue said. “A pro’s job almost never ends.”

There are golf events and tournaments, plus golf programs that include a men’s Thursday night league, ladies’ 9- and 18-hole scrambles, and mixed evening scrambles. The club also holds monthly social events, tournament dinners, and holiday celebrations.

The club has three basic types of memberships: full golf, with use of the clubhouse, pool, and tennis courts; a social membership that includes use of all facilities plus one monthly weekday use of the golf course; and a weekday golf membership that includes use of the clubhouse. There also is a junior membership for applicants who are 30 years of age and younger.

The club currently has a membership of 188 (down slightly from its peak of 200), most of which are families. Current officers, in addition to Chris Donohue and George Trudell, are Martin Gersten, first vice president; Edward Sherrick, treasurer, and Joseph Golden, secretary.

For more information about the club call 426-2106.