The TANTALLON GOLF CLUB was formed on the 17th day of September 1853, by a meeting of Gentlemen residents in North Berwick and Edinburghof which the following is a Minute:

"The undersigned met this day for the purpose of forming a Golf Club, to be called the Tantallon Golf Club, and appointing Mr. Thomas Dail to be Secretary to the same. They authorised him to prepare a set of Rules and Regulations for the future guidance of the Club, to be submitted to a Meeting of those who wish to become Members, on Thursday evening, the 22nd inst., at eight o'clock."

And so Tantallon was formed.

The first winner of the Amateur Championship in 1858 was Robert Chambers who was elected captain of Tantallon Golf Club in 1880. He was Captain for eight years and presented the Club with a trophy in 1883 which is still contested today. In 1884, it was Chambers who suggested that the Club tent should be sold, and the members should acquire a permanent clubhouse. It was not until 1896 that the Club purchased Point Garry Cottage and converted the building.

Robert Maxwell and John E. Laidlay J.P. both have the distinction of being elected captain of Tantallon Golf Club, and during their careers both won the Amateur Championship twice. In February 1901, Robert Maxwell won the Tantallon Century Gold Medal and went on that year to become the leading amateur golfer in Scotland, winning the gold medal at the spring and autumn meeting of the Honourable Company of Edinburgh Golfers; the St Andrews Cross at the spring meeting of the Royal and Ancient and the gold medal at the autumn meeting of the Royal and Ancient.

Golfers at Tantallon have in subsequent years continued to represent the Club with distinction in a variety of competitions, winning East Lothian Winter League trophies and of particular interest, The Wemyss County Cup, the oldest double foursomes competition in the world. This trophy has been won twenty one times by the Club since 1870, most recently in 2012.

The Tantallon Clubhouse, built in 1878 and converted to a Clubhouse in 1896, incorporates one of the oldest Clubrooms in the world. This remarkable Clubroom with its pitched pine roof and decorative beams, picture window and fitments has changed little in over a century. The Captains' board over the fireplace, bears witness to the long history of Tantallon Golf Club , now celebrating 165 years of fellowship and a love of golf on the West Links.


In 1914, Tantallon Golf Club was presented with the original watercolour of the 'Vanity Fair' cartoon of Robert Maxwell, twice British Amateur Champion. This is now on permanent display in the British Golf Museum, and a copy hangs on the wall of the Tantallon Clubroom, alongside a painting of Ben Sayers.

Around the Clubroom walls hang irreplaceable photographs of the past-captains, including former Provosts and local dignitaries. Behind every picture is a unique story about Tantallon and the town of North Berwick.

Our clubroom has recently been refurbished and the Club pursues a policy of continual maintenance of it's premises for the benefit of all members.