Lions Municipal Golf Course, nicknamed Muny, is a municipal golf course at 2901 Enfield Road in Austin, Texas. Constructed in 1924, was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2016. The golf course was the first desegregated golf course in the South. In 2017, the National Trust for Historic Preservation included the course on its annual list of the 11 Most Endangered Historic Places in America.
History
In 1924, the Lions Club in Austin established the Austin Municipal Golf and Amusement Association, which built the course on the "Brackenridge Tract" of land owned by the University of Texas at Austin. The 18-hole golf course lies west of the city of Austin, in a bend of the Colorado River. It is unclear who designed the course: Tom Penick, John Bredemus, or both.
In 1936, the Austin Municipal Golf and Amusement Association transferred its lease of the course from the University of Texas to the City of Austin. The Association formally dissolved on April 21, 1938.
The golf course is nicknamed "Muny" among residents of the Austin area.
The course was Austin's first public golf course, and is historically notable for being the first golf course south of the Masonâ€"Dixon line to racially integrate. The desegregation of the course occurred in 1951 while the Austin city council was weighing whether it was more economical to build a separate golf course for African Americans or allow them to play Lions. However, before a decision was made, two black youths arrived at Lions and began playing a round of golf. Upon hearing of the ongoing round, the mayor of Austin rushed to city hall to consult with two city councilmen. The group concluded that they should allow the players to continue their round, permanently opening public golf to African Americans in the south. The desegregation of Lions is unusual in the fact that it was voluntary, whereas other southern municipalities fought against the integration of their public courses in court.
The Texas Historical Commission erected a historical marker on the course in 2009, marking the site as the South's first racially integrated golf course.
One month prior to winning the 1950 U.S. Open, Ben Hogan played an exhibition match with Harvey Penick, Morris Williams Jr., and Ed Hopkins in front of a large gallery. When Hogan approached the tee at what is now #16 he claimed it to be "the only hole I've ever seen without a fairway." After birdying the difficult par 4, the hole became known as "The Hogan Hole."
The current lease over the course expires in May 2019. Potential commercial development of the course has been explored, which prompted the National Trust for Historic Preservation to include the course on its annual list of "11 Most Endangered Historic Places in America" in 2017.
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