The property opened as the Country Club of Buffalo’s new home in 1902, with the course “laid out by club member Ganson Depew.” Seeking a national championship, the club consulted Walter J. Travis in 1910–1911 to harden and modernize features; the U.S. Open arrived in June 1912 and was won by John McDermott. These details come directly from Erie County’s official course history, which also emphasizes the survival of portions of that pre-war layout.
During World War I, the club engaged Donald Ross to redesign the course. County documentation dates his work to “1917–18,” describing a return visit the following year to check construction; a county press release in 2025 reiterates the 1917–1918 timeframe. Some tourism copy has loosely cited “1920,” but no primary minutes or Ross office ledgers are reproduced in public sources to confirm a 1920 date. In the absence of club correspondence or Tufts Archives job files released online, the 1917–1918 window is the best-documented.
Institutional changes shaped the course thereafter. The City of Buffalo acquired the club in 1925 and renamed the grounds Grover Cleveland Park; in 1947, the city transferred 16.5 acres to the U.S. government for a VA hospital, costing “three holes and part of a fourth.” Three replacement holes—today’s 7th, 15th, and 16th—were inserted, altering the Ross-era routing. In 1982, ownership moved to Erie County.
Unique Design Characteristics
County materials identify “very difficult green complexes designed by Donald Ross,” singling out the 3rd, 14th, 17th, and 18th as surviving examples. The present 17th is described as a “Redan”-style par 3—played over a diagonal carry to a green that rewards a shaped approach—while the finishing stretch features broad, canted putting surfaces and contouring that create strategic angles despite modest overall yardage. These attributions are important because much of Ross’s influence at Grover Cleveland registers on and around the greens rather than through a fully intact routing.
The county also specifies which holes still trace to the 1912 U.S. Open course—today’s 1, 2, 4, 5, 8, 9, 10, 12, and 13—giving context for where Travis-era corridors persisted through Ross’s work and later municipal alterations. The blend places Ross’s greens (notably 3, 14, 17, 18) adjacent to earlier corridors, a mosaic typical of urban sites that experienced piecemeal takings. Without access to Ross’s construction drawings or contractor invoices, public sources do not break down exactly which bunkers or sub-grade green profiles from 1917–1918 survive in original form, but the identified holes provide the clearest living test pieces.
Historical Significance
Grover Cleveland is historically significant as the site of the 1912 U.S. Open—Buffalo’s major championship—which pre-dated Ross’s involvement. Its significance within Ross’s corpus lies not in a new build but in an interventional redesign for an already prominent championship venue. Few public courses in North America can document contributions from both Travis and Ross; Erie County explicitly frames Grover as “the only public golf facility in North America” to bear their combined design signatures, a claim that deserves further verification but speaks to the site’s unusual pedigree. After the Country Club of Buffalo moved to its 1926 Ross course in Williamsville, subsequent USGA events (e.g., 1931 U.S. Women’s Amateur; 1950 Curtis Cup) were hosted at the new club, not at the present municipal course—a point worth clarifying because some summaries have conflated the two venues.
Current Condition / Integrity
Publicly available county documentation provides the most specific statement of integrity: nine holes from the Open-era course remain (today’s 1, 2, 4, 5, 8, 9, 10, 12, 13), while four greens (3, 14, 17, 18) are identified as Ross creations still driving the course’s identity. The 1947 land loss and the introduction of holes 7, 15, and 16 broke the continuity of Ross’s routing, and decades of municipal maintenance inevitably altered bunker forms and mowing lines. County-led work in recent years has centered on irrigation, re-establishing fescue rough to better articulate fairway edges, and “rebuilding many of the bunkers to designs that harken back to the days of Travis and Ross,” but no named restoration architect is credited in public postings. Assessing the originalness of specific green pads would require comparison against Ross’s plans or early aerials (e.g., 1920s–1930s), which the county hints at by linking “Historic Maps” but does not publish in high-resolution with attribution online.
On the ground today, the course remains a short par-69 whose defense is concentrated at the greens. Independent reviews note that the property is “extremely short” yet the greens are the memorable features, aligning with the county’s emphasis on Ross’s surviving complexes (particularly the Redan-type 17th). Practice amenities and a driving range serve a busy public constituency, but the historical value for Ross scholarship resides at the identified greens and their immediate surrounds.
Sources & Notes
Erie County Parks, Recreation & Forestry — “Grover Cleveland Golf Course” (official page). History, present-day yardage/par, list of surviving 1912 Open holes (1, 2, 4, 5, 8, 9, 10, 12, 13), attribution of Ross greens (3, 14, 17, 18), 17th as Redan-style, 1917–1918 Ross dates, 1947 VA land transfer and replacement holes (7, 15, 16), 1982 transfer to county. Updated June 30, 2025.
Erie County Parks — Grover Cleveland scorecard (PDF). Confirms 5,621 yards (back tees) and par 69.
Erie County Executive press release on Schenck House (2025). Restates 1917–1918 Ross redesign on the site.
Erie County Parks — Golf landing page. Summarizes Open/Travis/Ross chronology and nine surviving Open holes.
GolfPass course listing. Notes presence of driving range and putting green (current facilities). Treated as secondary, present-day amenity confirmation.
Golf Digest course page (travel info). Observational note that the course is short and the greens are its best features, aligning with county emphasis on Ross green complexes. Secondary commentary.
USGA — U.S. Women’s Amateur champions list. Confirms that the 1931 championship was at the Country Club of Buffalo’s later (1926) Ross course in Williamsville, not at today’s Grover Cleveland municipal course. Included to correct common conflation of venues.
USGA/USGA News & local coverage (2023). Confirms the Country Club of Buffalo’s subsequent USGA events; supports venue differentiation.
Visit Buffalo Niagara course page. Secondary tourism copy that refers to a “1920” Ross redesign date; cited here only to note the discrepancy with county documentation. Verification would require primary records.