HISTORY

Iron Masters History, by Ken Love

 

In the spring of 1960, a group of local businessmen conceived the idea of building an 18-hole golf course to serve the southern Blair County community.

During May of that year, the group – which included Rex Hershberger, Irvin Honsaker, Joe Hinish, Wes Lingenfelter, Jim Manifold, Red Metzler, Joe Myers, Ralph Over and George Wineland – invited interested local residents to discuss their plans at a meeting held at Hershberger’s Garage in Martinsburg.

Soon after this initial meeting, the group began a fund-raising campaign that included an initial stock sale (at $250 per share). Several sites for the new course were considered, with the board of directors eventually deciding to purchase a portion of the Metzler Farm (between Martinsburg and Curryville).  That same year, the corporation officially registered a name for the new links – Pleasant View Golf Course.       

However, by mid-summer of 1960 Dr. Ken England and other board members learned of a new property for sale – the old Steward farm on Bloomfield Hill near the Bedford-Blair County line.  This property totaled 230-acres and included a mixture of pasture land and oak groves, along with several abandoned iron ore pits.

Plans quickly changed, and the Steward farm became the club’s new site.  It was now time to hire an architect, and while men like Robert Trent Jones and George Harrison were considered, Ed Ault of Silver Springs, Maryland was chosen as the man for the job.  Construction would progress through all of 1961 while club officials officially changed the name of the course to “Iron Masters”.  The directors also finalized the new club’s policies which included no golfing before noontime on Sundays.

In late May of 1962, the newly-completed Iron Masters Country Club was opened to the public.   The 6,623-yard, 18-hole golf course featured new head pro John Felus and greenskeeper Clyde Brinker. The club’s annual membership cost that first year was $50.

Over the next few years, much work was still needed in order for the course to be considered top-notch.  Golfers today can be thankful for the club’s early members who did much of the work themselves.  Among the most labor-intensive projects were the ‘rock-picking’ parties held to remove stones and debris from all the fairways.  Members eventually ‘adopted’ fairways of their own and were tasked with removing all remaining rocks until each fairway was finally stone-free. 

The history of Iron Masters’ also includes a legacy of fine head professionals.  They include Felus, Chad Garlena, Jim Sroka, Dick Forney, Tom Koehle and Rick Grubb.  The same goes for the club’s head superintendents, which include Clyde Brinker, Joe Felus, Jerre Over, Mike Nati, Steve Hricko and our current superintendent-in charge, Kellie Aungst.    

When considering competition at the club, Iron Masters has been blessed with many talented golfers over the years.  Founding-member Wes Lingenfelter still holds the record for club championships with seven, while on the women’s side, Gwen Paden captured her 34th club title in 2021.

No mention of club history would be complete without mentioning the club’s most popular event – the annual Iron Masters Classic.  This best-ball event was first held in 1977 and attracts the best golfers in central Pennsylvania who compete for titles during the last weekend each year in July.

With a history that spans six decades, Iron Masters Country Club has established itself as a picturesque golf course that serves members and greens-fee players alike.  Over the years, the club has remained a public-entity, run by elected directors who seek to provide a fair and challenging golf experience to the community.