In 1897, when the course first opened for play on the Hempstead Plain in Long Island Village, it was in the middle of rural countryside. Today, Garden City Golf Club is an oasis in the middle of suburban sprawl. Devereux Emmet originally designed the course in 1896. In 1902, the 9th US Open was staged here – Laurie Auchterlonie was the eventual winner. Walter Travis made some modifications to the course in the Roaring Twenties and he can probably claim to have turned Garden City into the fascinating layout that it is today.