Royal Nairobi Golf Club is a prestigious private members’ golf club. RNGC is the only club in Kenya with the royal status and it reciprocates with all other Royal chartered clubs worldwide. It was founded in 1906, and in 2006 it celebrated a century of golfing. It is Kenya’s oldest club that was founded as a 9-hole golf course with a basic club house. The first captain of the club, Mr. C. Hirtzell, was duly elected on 14th April 1908, and first president, Sir Charles Bowring, took office in 1920, while first lady captain took office in 1923.
The history of golf in Kenya is intertwined with the history of RNGC. RNGC being the oldest golf club in the nation is, ‘the real home of golf’ in Kenya. RNGC continues to host the oldest golf tournament in Kenya: Easter Tournament. It brings together the country’s top amateur golfers over three days during Easter since 1924. In 1938, it was decided to rename the trophy awarded to the winning team during the Tournament as the Tannahill Shield, in appreciation of Mr. Tannahill who donated the shield, and was the first Honorary Secretary of Kenya Golf Union (KGU). He also served as the president of RNGC. The first meeting of KGU was held at RNGC in 1923.
LOCATION
The RNGC is situated only 10 minutes’ drive from the country’s capital city, Nairobi, off Ngong road. The club is well maintained with a challenging 7,021 yards, 18-hole course layouts with excellent fairways, well placed bunkers, numerous water features and large greens. The front nine is slightly hilly and undulating; while the back nine is relatively more flat. The club house terrace faces the 18th green and is a wonderful place to relax after a game. Some of the key services that RNGC offers include but are not limited to food and beverages, swimming pool, gym, spa facilities, driving range and golfing facilities.
The club has done well over the past few decades by increasing its service offerings, and providing state of the art facilities to the golfing community. However, RNGC seeks to be a first- rate golfing club. Among the values that Royal Nairobi Golf Club aspires to uphold in pursuit of its objectives include teamwork, professionalism, member-centric and innovativeness.
THE ORGANIZATION OF RNGC
The Royal Nairobi Golf Club is made up of the members, the Board of directors, the management which is headed by the General Manager and staff.
MEMBERS
Members are the owners of the club. The club has about 1,811 members. The members have instituted a Memorandum of Understanding and Articles of Association as the primary legal document that establishes the club, its functions and relationship among the various parties in the club. Beside the Memorandum of Understanding and Articles of Association, members have enacted By-laws to govern the day to day operations of the club. Every year, the members appoint a new Board to guide the running of the club.
THE MANAGEMENT TEAM
The management is appointed by the board to run the club on its and members’ behalf. The management is a team of professionals who ensure that the club’s strategic plan is successfully implemented and the organization meets it objectives sustainably.