T

he Jakarta Golf Club, the oldest golf club in Indonesia, held a gathering on Sunday to honor the contribution of its members as well as to celebrate its newly renovated facilities.

“The Jakarta Golf Club enters its 138th year thanks to the hard work of its managers and members,” club chairman M. Harjono Kartohadiprodjo said. “We invite the seniors today to attend out ‘Tribute to Seniors’ event to pay our respect and appreciation to their contribution to this club.”

During the event, organizers handed out awards to the club’s five oldest members and another five to the longest-running members.

The five oldest members were R. Soekardi (90 years old), Sutarmin Kok (89), Tjoet Rachman (88), Kemal S. Fachrudin (88) and Uripto Widjaja (86).

The five members with the longest running memberships were Rudolf J. Rumawas (46 years and seven months), Budi Satiadarma (44 years and seven months), Rudolf A.P Lisapaly (44 years and four months), Minarsih Soedarpo Sastros (44 years and four months) and R. Soekardi (43 years and nine months).

“As part of this club, we feel responsible to maintain the glory of the Jakarta Golf Club that has been pioneered by the seniors since this club was established,” Harjono said.

Therefore he added, the organizers renovated the club building and its facilities between May and December this year, ran the clubs regular tournaments, and conducted training for caddies, among other initiatives.

One of the club’s managers, Januarius Kuki, said that during the renovation, 100 absorption wells were dug to help absorb excess water and 18 water hazards were made that could accommodate 281,692 cubic meters of water on the 36-hectare course.

“When it rains heavily, the puddles on the course only last two to three minutes,” he said.

The course is also home to almost 4,000 trees, leading the Jakarta administration to acknowledge it as a public green space and historical site on August 2010.

The club, located in Rawamangun, East Jakarta, was originally called the Batavia Golf Club when it was established in 1872 by British expatriates.

Notable members included, among others, Indonesia’s first vice president, Mohammad Hatta, former strongman Soeharto, and Prof. Dr. Supomo, one of the architects of the Constitution.