WPGA Founding Club Series: Pittsburgh Field Club
By Josh Rowntree, Director of Communications  • July 11, 2024

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Tim Slavish considers himself a rookie at the Pittsburgh Field Club. But he certainly doesn’t feel like one when he arrives.

One of the most special and unique golf clubs in the region, the Pittsburgh Field Club has existed since the late 1800’s and was one of the five founding clubs of the Western Pennsylvania Golf Association 125 years ago.

As the club begins early planning for its 150th anniversary in 2032, it strives to maintain what has made the sprawling landscape situated in Fox Chapel so special for so long: a foundation built on family.

“Oh, it’s powerful,” says Slavish, who joined the Field Club in 1992, joining his wife — a lifelong member. “Every club has an identity. Some of it is because that’s what they want it to be some of it is because that’s who they are, whether they would appreciate you pointing it out or not. Our identity, I think, is pretty tangible when you’re around here.

“It’s like everyone’s second home. It’s a place you come to be comfortable and be with your friends.”

With nearly a decade and a half of existence, there is certainly plenty of history to go along with everyday happenings and feel-good environment crafted by the Field Club.

Originally called the Pittsburgh Cricket Club, some accounts say the origins of the club date back to as early as 1871 — a mere six years following the completion of the Civil War.

The Club incorporated in 1882, originally sitting in the Homewood-Brushton neighborhood of Pittsburgh. Cricket, swimming, tennis, paddle tennis, skeet shooting, fishing and bowling have all been activities. 13 years after incorporation, golf was introduced to the club for the first time, leading to a renaming.

Two years after joining the WPGA in 1899, a nine-hole golf course layout was developed and, in 1915, the Field Club began to blossom into the course that it is today.

Alexander Findlay mapped out the initial design of the land, while Fred Pickering constructed Findlay’s idea. It was altered by renowned golf course architect Donald Ross, as well as many others of the years.

While the Field Club isn’t as well known for top level competitions as some other local clubs, it does have a respectable history of welcoming the game’s elite players.

Denny Shute won the PGA Championship at the Field Club in 1937, becoming the fourth player in the event’s history to win in consecutive years. He defeated the likes of Sam Snead and Byron Nelson, and a replica of the Wanamaker Trophy sits inside of the clubhouse today.

In 1953, Ben Hogan finished atop the leaderboard at a U.S. Open Qualifying Round at Pittsburgh Field Club. He went on to win the U.S. Open, at Oakmont, weeks later.

“They played the Open at the wrong course,” Hogan said after, smitten by his experience at the Field Club.

The Field Club also hosted the Western Open in 1959. Arnold Palmer finished runner-up to Mike Souchak. And the low amateur was a 19-year-old by the name of Jack Nicklaus.

“Our history is a more modest history, but our professional history is notable,” says Slavish. “It isn’t Oakmont. I don’t think anybody would want to think that it is, because it’s just how we’re different.”

The course itself provides golfers with a competitive track that also contains plenty of exciting features. From the back tees, the course plays over 6,700 yards. It features roughed hillsides and large bunkers. Many trees have been removed over the years to aid with the turf, allowing for a majestic view of the entire course from the clubhouse high above.

The devotion to the maintenance of the course keeps it in pristine playing condition throughout the year.

“There’s always been a long-range masterplan, but the fundamentals of the golf course really haven’t changed, for a long, long time,” says Slavish, who praises the continual upkeep projects approved by membership.

“It’s been ongoing maintenance, upkeep and improvement...It just gets better every year because of the attention given to that sort of thing. Our superintendents have done a phenomenal job.”

The Pittsburgh Field Club also contains one of the most unique features in all of golf: an on-course elevator.

Built in 1938, the elevator — which is still operational — sits just off the 17th green and can carry up to four golfers at a time up to the 18th teeing area. It is 70 feet tall and includes a 265-foot walking bridge for golfers to access the tee.

Legend has it that the construction was pushed through due to multiple heart attacks suffered by members who, at the end of their round, would have to walk up the steep hill towards the clubhouse and final hole while battling the summer heat.

But beyond the unique traits of the course and the modern amenities that have been built over the years — such as a state-of-the-art training center located near the driving range — there’s that bigger reason people like Slavish have no intentions of ever leaving.

“It’s regarded as a family club,” he says. “There are families that are into their fifth generation of membership, and it goes back to deceased members. That is across the board and there's so much of that.

“Golf is important here. But the pool is important, the tennis courts and the paddle courts, the skeet range. Shooting is a big deal here and it all is part of why they called it The Field Club… In its makeup that is I think the most notable characteristic.”

On Monday, July 15, the Field Club will welcome the WPGA and local golfers for the 100th Father & Son and 12th Parent & Child Championships. It is a marquee event on the West Penn golf schedule, and there is no more fitting host club to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the competition than the Pittsburgh Field Club.

“That is a tailor-made event and it speaks to what the club is about,” says Slavish. “Those kinds of events that focus on family are as important as anything.”

To see Part 1 of our WPGA Founding Clubs Series on Edgewood Country Club, click here.

For media inquiries, please contact WPGA Director of Communications Josh Rowntree.

About the WPGA
Founded in 1899, the Western Pennsylvania Golf Association is the steward of amateur golf in the region. Started by five Member Clubs, the association now has nearly 200 Member Clubs and nearly 37,000 members. The WPGA conducts 14 individual competitions and 10 team events, and administers the WPGA Scholarship Fund and Western Pennsylvania Golf Hall of Fame.