A meeting to establish the Yallourn Golf Club was held at the Yallourn Tennis Pavilion on the 1st of May, 1926. Subsequently, the State Electricity Commission (SEC) advised that they would grant the Club 85 acres of land suitable for a golf course, at a site about half a mile from the Yallourn Township. Plans were prepared for the first 9 holes by Mr. G.D. Jones, an enthusiastic golfer who was also the SEC’s Head Surveyor.

Work began almost immediately on the site, which was located across the road from the Yallourn Hospital. During construction, the newly formed Club conducted its competitions at the Morwell Golf Club. on the 9th of June, 1928, the Course was officially opened by the inaugural President of the Club, Mr. C.H. Kernot, who drove the first ball in the 9-hole stroke competition which he subsequently won.

The Club was very successful in its formative years, and expanded from 9 to 12 holes and then 18 holes by obtaining land on the Hospital side of the road.

During the bushfires of 1944, the Clubhouse was burnt down. It was replaced by an ex-Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) building from Sale. However, by 1949, the SEC advised that the land currently occupied by the Golf Club would be required for further development of the open cut coal mine early in the 1950’s, a fate also destined for the entire Yallourn Township. Negotiations with the SEC resulted in the Club being leased Crown Land located on the Newborough side of Yallourn, and it is at this site that the Club remains today.

The new Course was designed and laid out by a long standing Member, Mr. H. Born, who was the Chief Surveyor of the SEC in the Latrobe Valley. His principle in the layout of the Course was related to the fact that at that time, golf was considered a winter game, with play commencing in the afternoon. He determined that players should never have to ‘look into the sun’ during play.

Considerable voluntary labour was involved in the relocation of greens, the Clubhouse and equipment from the old site to the new site. By 1953, the move was complete, and a rudimentary Course established. On most nights and weekends, Members of all categories were able to be seen moving along the fairways in a line, picking up sticks, stones and other debris to enable the virgin fairways to be levelled and sown. A Member, who had an earth-moving contracting business, constructed an earth-walled dam on the Course, and another high-ground dam above the Course to enable a watering system to be established to service the greens, tees and fairways.

In 1957, with the Course and Clubhouse facilities steadily improving, the Club applied for, and was granted, a liquor licence. By 1960, there was a need to upgrade the Club’s water resources, particularly the drinking water. Members with trade backgrounds in plumbing laid a 3km supply line from the Yallourn Reservoir to a holding tank above the Clubhouse and then on to the Club. The Club was able to purchase both treated water and untreated water (For Course purposes) from the SEC and therefore become independent of seasonal weather conditions.

Extract from golf club website.