The 18-hole Engineers Country Club was established in 1917 on the former site of the W.R. Willet Manor estate by members of Manhattan’s Engineers Club. Featuring a golf course originally designed by famed English architect Herbert Strong and later redesigned by Devereux Emmet and Frank Duane, the Engineers Country Club is one of the most famous in the Roslyn area.

Also occurring at the club in 1917 was a major fire which destroyed the club house and caused roughly $40,000-$50,000 (1917 USD) in damages. As the structure was not located near any fire hydrants, crews had to use water from the nearby pond to extinguish the flames.

The Engineers Country Club has held major golf tournaments over the years. In 1919, the Engineers Country Club’s golf course was the site of that year’s PGA Championship, and in 1920, it was the site of the United States Amateur Championship, during which Chick Evans defeated Francis Ouimet. A young Bobby Jones was defeated by Quimet in the semi-finals. In 1924 Mike Brady won the Metropolitan Open held at the club.

In the spring of 2016, a major renovation project was completed at the Engineers Country Club. According to an article from Newsday, the re-opening of the club in May 2020 included a ribbon-cutting ceremony and a speech by the club’s President, Cliff Saffron. The club was sold in 2018 to RXR Realty, and in 2022, plans to construct luxury housing on the property were underway.

In January 2022, Newsday reported that RXR was handing over day-to-day management of the club to ClubCorp, a Dallas-based firm that runs more than 200 private clubs and will later assume ownership of the Roslyn Harbor venue.

Sources:

-Engineers Country Club. Roslyn Harbor, New York.

-Bryant Library Local History Collection. Roslyn, New York.

-America's Linksland by William Quirin

-Newsday

-The Roslyn News.

-The Roslyn Times.

The original clubhouse. Courtesy of the Bryant Library Local History Collection

Bunker shot being hit on to the "2 or 20" green during the 1919 PGA.

Dave Herron driving from the 15th tee in 1920.

Officers and Governors (1920), Courtesy of the Bryant Library Local History Collection

Jordan Fensterman, vice president of the Roslyn landmark Society, seen on the Engineers' course with the “2 or 20” hole ‘postage stamp’ green in the background. The bunkers that used to prevent a ball from rolling down the hill during 1917 to 1923 that are shown in some of those old photos have been removed since that time. The tee-off for "2 or 20" hole is just below the trees back past the green.