Merdeka – and then Think Big
The Federation of Malaya was finally granted Independence on 31 August, 1957. To this day, many a proud nationalist still cherish the memory of the emotions evoked by our first Prime Minister Tunku Abdul Rahman Putra Al-haj. In his distinctively composed manner, he rallied the nation with cries of “Merdeka”, to which the response of the thousands who jam-packed Stadium Merdeka (with throngs of others outside) was hesitant at first, but picked up quickly and reached a crescendo that might have brought the roof down! The Tunku stopped after the 7th call of “Merdeka”.
Educated in Cambridge where he read law before the war, the Tunku was a keen sportsman, with golf and thoroughbred horse racing among his main interests. When he became the Chief Minister and then the Prime Minister, he used to begin his day with a round of nine holes at the Club, after which he would then have breakfast in the Clubhouse and attend to the serious affairs of state. Journalists, news reporters and paparazzi would park themselves in the Club’s vicinity and, more often than not, would be rewarded with a scoop and pictures taken in the Clubhouse with the Tunku in golfing attire.
Merdeka! Merdeka!
Whenever apposite, the Tunku would invite foreign dignitaries like Thanat Khoman (Thailand’s foreign minister) and Lee Kuan Yew for a friendly round of golf – the perfect panacea – where they would resolve whatever thorny issues that were at hand and iron out diplomatic intricacies such as the merger of Singapore with Malaya, Sabah and Sarawak to form Malaysia and also subsequently the formation of the ASEAN bloc with the other countries in the region.
Other senior members of his Cabinet were also encouraged by the Tunku to play golf and before long, his next three successors became permanent fixtures at the at the Club (known as SGC at the time). The Yang di-Pertuan Agong, DYMM Tuanku Syed Putra of Perlis who, for a long time was a very keen tennis player, readily switched to golf under the influence of the Tunku and began to frequent the Club soon after. Most fittingly, it was His Majesty who conferred the “Royal” designation on our Club in 1963 and from then on, the Club became officially known as the Royal Selangor Golf Club, formalised by the passing of a Special Resolution at an EGM on 15th July 1963.
Midnight – Merdeka Eve, the birth of a new nation
Besides golf, the Tunku’s other passion was for horses, which led him to set up the National Stud Farm near Ipoh for the breeding of race horses as an industry to provide gainful employment for the local lads, and with the hope that perhaps one day Malaysia could produce a worthy champion. His pastime as a horse owner earned him many trophies, in particular the Sultan’s Gold Vase over the 1,000m straight in Ipoh, won by his favourite horse, the diminutive Pisang Mas, an Australian import. But his best was yet to come.
On the first Tuesday of November 1975, the Tunku in partnership with Tan Chin Nam, a Club Member, stamped Malaysia on the map when their horse Think Big charged home to win the much coveted Melbourne Cup. Such ineffable joy it was to Tunku, especially as the sweet success came shortly after his poignant retirement from politics. Interestingly, besides Think Big’s victory (the horse’s second, as it had won it the previous year) Chin Nam had the distinction of setting a record by winning two more races in later years with Saintly and Viewed – all of whom were trained by the legendary “Cups King” Bart Cummings.
The moment when Tunku Abdul Rahman declared Malaya free from British rule on 31st August, 1957
That record was only recently beaten by Australian billionaire Lloyd Williams of Crown Casino fame who has been, for decades, winning everything under the sun Down Under! And yet it was only in 2016 that he managed to equal Chin Nam’s record and finally surpassed it the following year with his fifth Cup – in an epic race where Williams had six runners out of a field of 24!
Lee Kuan Yew welcoming the Tunku at Rumah Temasek
Malayanisation and Expansion
In the first post-war contest for the Club’s Presidency, Chua Boon Guan (B.G. Chua) became the first Asian to be elected President in 1963, paving the way for other distinguished Malaysians to hold that post thereafter. The following year A.S. Machado became the first Malaysian Club Captain and apart from A.K. Jones who filled this demanding role in 1967, the Captaincy has been held by Malaysians ever since. Machado was a true leader and never viewed that coveted position as his inherent right as a Malaysian.
He believed that the best man should get the job and after stepping down upon his completion of a two-year tenure, for Chang Sow Khong, he strongly supported A.K. Jones’ candidacy for Captaincy, not because he was later to donate the Seladang Cup for the match against RBSC, but in recognition of his years of diligent service to the Club as a Committee member.
Prize presentation ceremony: from right Bart Cummings, Tan Chin Nam and the Tunku
With the patronage of royalty and an influx of cabinet ministers, senior government officials, diplomats, captains of industries and those in the upper echelons of society, the RSGC soon became the place to be seen in. Even those with no interest whatsoever in golf or tennis became Members to show that they had arrived.
The Club’s growing popularity not only as a status symbol but also as a venue for international and national competitions caused a major problem, that of course-congestion. This was promptly addressed at an EGM in December 1967 where the following motion was carried:
The biggest and best hotel in KL, then- all spruced up for Merdeka
“…. statistical information from course surveys revealed that the courses were overcrowded and Members inconvenienced….. The only way to decrease congestion was to reduce the number of resident Members. The Committee felt that a comfortable figure would be 1,200 Members. This could be achieved over two and a half years by restricting the intake of new Members to about 10 per month, and to increase the entrance fee to RM1,000 and for ladies to RM200….”
It was reported that the Committee expected the target of 1,200 Members to be achieved by September 1970. A year later, the figure for the ceiling of the number of Members was increased to 1,300 and in 1973 it was increased once again to 1,350 where it remained until the 1980s.
In July 1980, the Committee decided to open the gates for 100 new Members to be selected by lot and that all applications were to be accompanied by a RM1,000 deposit. A total of 618 applications were received and the Committee then decided to accept 400 applicants with the remaining 218 applicants given the option to remain on the waiting list or to withdraw with a full refund of their deposit. On 6th October 1980, the Committee selected the 400 by lot.
B.G Chua
Two years later the Committee opened 100 Ordinary Memberships to Bumiputras only, selection to be at the discretion of the Committee. In 1984 the Committee again opened Ordinary Membership to Bumiputras only, with 200 selected in January 1985, out of 464 applicants.
In July 1987, the cessation of life membership was implemented with the passing of a resolution at the AGM in May. Those affected who were residing outside Malaysia and Singapore could opt for Absentee Membership.
A.S Machado
The following year, in response to requests from Members to ease the financial burden on some retirees, the Senior Membership category was created where Ordinary and Lady Members aged 70 and above with 25 years membership would be exempted from payment of monthly subscriptions.
The Committee in October the same year once again decided to admit a further 200 new Members. For this intake an Ordinary Member qualified to do so could propose four candidates for consideration. The exercise was completed the following year.
Other categories of Membership were created in 2002, included those of Overseas Membership, to distinguish those working overseas from those studying overseas, and of Distinguished Person Membership for Cabinet Ministers, Deputy Ministers and other Senior Civil Servants on a holder-to-position basis.
A year later at an AGM in July 2003, an important resolution was carried to approve a new Membership of up to 150 new Members from the public, at RM80,000 and RM40,000 for Ordinary and Lady Membership respectively. In addition, another 150 Memberships for children of Ordinary Members who had earlier missed the opportunity to become Members for whatever reason, were to be given a 50% discount on the above stated entrance fees. The total proceeds from this exercise targeted at RM40-50 million over a few years would greatly augment the Club’s financial position. The response from the public was overwhelming. Within the first year, there were 232 applicants of which 183 were successful. However, due to some (mis)interpretation of the provision of Division 5 of Part IV of the Companies Act 1965, whereon the Club expressed its viewpoint and maintained its stand that the Membership of RSGC did not fall within the purview of that provision, the Committee prudently suspended all such memberships temporarily. Thankfully the matter was subsequently resolved and that set the stage for an important landmark decision in the Club’s history.
Everyone shall equal be
Yong Poh Kon in his June 2007 Captain’s Corner wrote:
“The Annual General Meeting papers are being sent out and amongst the resolutions to be presented will be one on the admission of women as Ordinary Members. When a similar resolution was last presented in December 2006, there appeared to be a lack of clarity as to how current Lady Members and future widows may be treated. This caused confusion, and as a result, we believe Members were unable to fully support the motion This time around the issues are clear: present Lady Members may convert their membership into Ordinary membership by topping up to the concessionary entrance fee of RM40,000, or they could elect to maintain their current status as Lady Members; as for future widows, a special category of privileged membership called “Guest of the Club” will be created for them so that they could continue to enjoy the Club by paying monthly subscriptions without having to pay entrance fees.
The key thrust of this resolution is to once and for all end discrimination against women. We would like our sisters and daughters to have the same rights as our brothers and sons and this resolution would achieve this goal.”
As is the wont of a responsible Committee, a dialogue was held at The Green on 15th June prior to the AGM to obtain the views of and feedback from Members. The discussion also focused on the option to give an opportunity to the Club’s existing Lady Members to take up Ordinary Membership.
This was in line with the Resolution proposed by the Committee to seek Members’ approval at the AGM for the move towards gender equality and doing away with the existing discriminatory practices against ladies.
The dialogue attracted the participation of 26 ladies and 13 men. It was only natural to see a good response from our Lady Members and some wives of Members: this topic was about them and for them. A total of five Members from the Committee and Membership Subcommittee were present. After a detailed slide presentation on the Resolution and Frequently Asked Questions by the Membership Convenor Eddy Chung, a Questions & Answers session followed.
Many concerns were raised on the RM40,000 entrance fee to be paid by existing Lady Members who wished to opt for the conversion. Powerful and well-presented cases were made out by some of the attendees. It was an evening well spent by the time the dialogue ended at 9.00 pm. With that session, the Committee and Membership Sub-committee were hoping to help enlighten the participants and pave the way for a more informed decision during the voting of the Resolution at the AGM.
Two months later in the August 2007 Circular, the Captain was delighted to report
“…. The admission of women into Ordinary Membership must be regarded as a landmark event that will in some ways change the character of our Club, and to the credit of Members present that afternoon, the Committee’s resolution was passed with a resounding margin of nearly 9:1.
This represents the third time in as many years that the issue was brought before the membership by the Committee and I am glad to say that Members have finally come to realise that gender inequality in a social club is no longer acceptable. For those Members who have campaigned tirelessly for this change over the past 15 years or so this must be welcome relief and a happy ending.”.
Happy ending it was but not until a few loose ends were tied up as the Captain went on to explain in the October 2007
“Corner” that “…..the affected Lady Members who wish to opt for Ordinary Membership now instead of waiting for the next general meeting (probably in December) could do so by topping up to RM40,000. And if the applicable entrance fee is subsequently reduced to RM30,000 then RM10,000 would be refunded to them.
There were also requests that existing Lady Junior Members be given an option when they reach 21 to either become Lady Members or Ordinary Members. However, it was made very clear at the last General Meeting when the resolution was tabled that we had to move towards gender equality, and therefore there should only be one category of membership for both men and women with effect from the date of passing the resolution. Thus, no women would henceforth be admitted to Lady Membership. This policy is consistent with the law, that we do not discriminate based on gender. Therefore girl Junior Members, like the boys, on reaching the age of 21, will have to pay the entrance fee of RM30,000. Those of them who do not wish to take up Ordinary Membership will have their current Junior Lady Membership fee refunded.
The third common request refers to the deadline to convert to Ordinary Membership. The original deadline was for all applications to be received by end 2007. The Committee has deliberated on this request and has agreed to extend the deadline by another year to 31 December 2008. This means that all existing Lady Members who do not wish to convert to Ordinary Membership by end 2008 will automatically lose their right to become Ordinary Members and will remain as Lady Members.
In a nutshell, all Lady Members who have young children and a husband who wish to make use of all the Club’s facilities especially golf and/or who would like to vote on issues affecting the Club should become Ordinary Members as soon as possible. We look forward to their full participation in Club affairs.”
The first Lady Ordinary Member – Lim Ai Chiin
Finally – a historical, watertight watershed!
The lady membership steadily increased and their elegant presence at general meetings not only adds a semblance of normalcy in a civilized society that we are very much a part of but also creates a more polite and less raucous environment. It did not take long before one of them, having decided to take on a more positive role, courageously threw her hat into the ring to vie for a position as Committee member at the AGM of 5 June 2016 (by that time the lady membership had already risen to nearly 300). And thus another piece of history was created when Yau Su Peng became the first lady to be elected to TC – and she garnered the highest number of votes to boot. Tung Yu Peng followed suit the following year when she too succeeded, which meant of course that in the year, the ladies had a 20% representation in TC. Perhaps in time the RSGC will have a lady Club Captain? Or President? Why not.
The total number of Club Members to date is close to 6,700 of which about 1,000 are overseas. It is not possible to determine the exact number because some senior Members being seventy years and above and exempt from subscriptions, have inactive accounts and regrettably do not respond to correspondences sent to them. This failure in communication has given rise in the Club’s records to the number of nonagenarians and centenarians whose present whereabouts cannot be verified.
It is noteworthy that throughout RSGC’s 125-year history, the Club Presidents and Captains have been invariably gentlemen of considerable standing in the community as exemplified by W.H. Treacher (British Resident), A.T.D. Berrington (Supreme Court Judge), Frank Swettenham (the First Resident General), A.R. Venning (State Treasurer) D.F. Topham (Managing Director of Harper, Gilfillan & Co.) to name a few in the pre-War era; and they were followed by a host of prominent Malaysians who held positions like Governor of Bank Negara, Menteri Besar, Lord President, Chief Justice, Federal Court Justice, Chief of Defence Forces, Secretary General in the Civil Service, Attorney General and captains of industries.
Among the ranks of the ordinary membership too are prime ministers (no less) and a number of well-heeled patriarchs and matriarchs of “dynasties” and their scions, as well as many highachievers, the “self-made men” if you like, such as Azman Hashim, Tan Pauson, Paul Koon, Hussein Awang, Ng Keng Hooi, Mohd Hassan Merican and property magnate Tan Chin Nam who as mentioned earlier, was the envy of the horseracing world when he proudly held the record of 4 Melbourne Cups for 9 years up to the first Monday of November 2017.
The “flying doctor” Mani Jegathesan is another member who made his mark on the world stage by being Asia’s fastest man in the 1960’s and qualifying for the semi-finals of the 200m in successive Olympics in 1964 and 1968 while in the midst of his medical studies, leading to a stellar career as a pathologist in microbiology. He was essentially only a part-time athlete competing with hardened professionals!
Unsurprisingly, quite a number of them had streets and landmarks named in their honour, like Treacher Rd, Swettenham Rd, Port Swettenham, Venning Rd, Belfield Rd, Jalan Tunku, Bukit Tunku, Jalan Tun Razak, Jalan Tun H.S. Lee, Tun Hussein Onn National Eye Hospital, Jalan Kia Peng and many more.
Perhaps Malvolio summed it up best in Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night with
“Some are born great Some achieve greatness And some have greatness thrust upon them.”
And that, arguably, is pretty much the quintessence of the RSGC membership.
