Origins and Purpose

Formed in 1952, the English Women’s Golf Association (EWGA) emerged from the post-war need to give women golfers in England a clear national identity within the wider structure of the Ladies’ Golf Union (LGU).

While the LGU managed golf across Great Britain and Ireland, the EWGA became its English affiliate, responsible for:

• National and county championships for women and girls.
• Administration of handicaps and course ratings through the Council of National Golf Unions (CONGU).
• Coordination of county ladies’ associations.
• The promotion of golf for women and girls in England.

The EWGA provided an organisational home for women who played competitively and for those who gave their time to running the game — committee members, referees, and administrators, many of whom had long served in club and county golf.

A Parallel Path: Senior and Veteran Women

The EWGA’s remit covered all ages, but it did not formally include the Veteran Ladies’ or Senior Women’s associations, which had developed independently since 1921 under Mabel Stringer and others.

These Senior and Veteran associations operated through a separate but parallel structure —

• County veteran associations affiliated to regional groups (Northern, Midland, Southern, etc.).

• Collectively they formed the Veteran Ladies’ Golf Association (VLGA) and later, modernised as Senior Women’s Golf Associations.

Although many EWGA members were also senior players, the two systems rarely overlapped administratively. The senior bodies emphasised camaraderie and age-category competition, while the EWGA managed the national competitive framework and governance.

This quiet coexistence — parallel but not connected — reflects both the social realities and the organisational boundaries of mid-20th century women’s golf.

Growth and Leadership

Through the 1950s–1990s, the EWGA coordinated:

• The English Women’s Amateur Championship

• The English Women’s Open Stroke Play Championship (est. 1984)

• Junior and girls’ championships across counties and schools

• The development of women’s handicapping and course rating systems

• International representation through the LGU

Its influence rested on hundreds of volunteers who served on county ladies’ associations and competitions committees, preserving the amateur ethos that defined English women’s golf.

Transition and Modernisation

By the early 2000s, the landscape of golf governance was changing.
Calls for a unified body representing both men and women — and for modern administrative efficiency — led to merger talks between the EWGA and the English Golf Union (EGU), founded in 1924.

After consultation and member votes, the merger was approved in 2011 and came into effect on 1 January 2012, forming England Golf, now the national governing body for all amateur golf in England.

The stated aims included:

• A single voice for amateur golf.

• Greater gender equality in administration.

• Streamlined governance and funding.

Legacy

The EWGA’s 59-year history represents a vital era in women’s golf — one of quiet professionalism, national organisation, and grassroots leadership.
Though it eventually merged into England Golf, its influence remains visible in:

• The structure of county ladies’ organisations.

• The continuing prominence of women administrators and referees in English golf.

• The national championships still bearing the EWGA’s stamp of fairness and integrity.

While the Senior Women’s associations continued on their independent path — social, regional, and deeply loyal to tradition — the EWGA provided the national framework that sustained the English women’s amateur game for more than half a century.

Together, though separate, they preserved the continuity of women’s golf — each carrying a part of the heritage that made the game enduring.

Key Dates

English Golf Union and English Women’s Golf Association agree merger | Golf | The Guardian