Tea and tees: Discover India's fascinating golf history
Summary
India's tea estates became a cradle of golf due to colonialism, and a handful of enthusiasts are taking the two forward
The first flush is just starting and while I wait for these teas, I decided to catch up on some tea history, on tea and golf’s shared beginnings here in India.
Back in the early 19th century, as British planters set up large tea estates, far removed from towns and cities, they needed a place to unwind and relax. The clubs, already a British institution, were the inspiration and several planters’ clubs came up. By way of recreation, these clubs offered plenty of sporting opportunities, including, sometimes, a golf course, a game they played at home.
Kolkata got the first golf course outside Britain in 1829. In Assam, the first course came up in Jorhat thanks to tea planter D. Slimmon, who also started the Jorhat Gymkhana Club.
Also read: Travel for tea
As the tea industry expanded, more clubs came up, and golf became a part of some of them, often as 9-hole courses. In 1964, the Upper Assam Golf Association (UAGA) was formed and today, most of its 150 members are from tea or oil or the Armed Forces stationed in the area. Their Assam Open is a highlight in their annual calendar, taking place in the 18-hole Digboi course. “Each of these golf courses have a history," says Siddharth Chaliha, planter and UAGA secretary.
And what history. In December 1900, the British Viceroy Lord Curzon arrived in Jorhat to announce the partition of Bengal. The avid golfer made time to also inaugurate the Jorhat Club. A few years later, he went on to design a golf course in Himachal Pradesh.
There’s a story from the Rydak tea estate in the Dooars, where in the 1980s, then manager Chirinjiv Bedi chanced upon a letter from the 1950s congratulating the estate manager on a good game. A golfer himself, his curiosity was piqued, and it set him to discover the remnants of a golf course right there on the estate. He rebuilt a 9-hole golf course that played host to golfers for a good many years.
With the tea industry looking at multiple revenue sources to boost business, tourism is being considered seriously. It’s an opportunity to convert heritage bungalows for hospitality and conserve them. Perhaps too, an opportunity to conserve these heritage golf courses.
I ask Chaliha what makes playing golf on a tea estate so special and he talks about the experience of being amidst so much nature and with great views all around. And there is something to be said for that. I don’t play the game but recall a trip to Munnar a few years ago, when I had the opportunity to lunch at the rather private Kundale Club, part of the Kanan Devan Hills Plantations Ltd. It was a gorgeous building with plenty to gawk at if you are a history buff. And then you emerge on to the veranda and the view just takes your breath away—a 9-hole course surrounded by forest.
TEA TAKES
While golf tourism is yet to catch up, tea-loving amateur golfers can get in touch with the UAGA online or travel planners like Assam Tours (assamtourjrt@gmail.com) to add a few courses to their bucket list.
Tea Nanny is a fortnightly series on the world of tea. Aravinda Anantharaman is a tea drinker, writer and editor. She posts @AravindaAnanth1 on X.
