There can’t be too many followers of golf or the 007 movie franchise who aren’t accustomed to this now iconic scene from the movie Goldfinger, which noticed our fearless hero, James Bond, performed by Sean Connery,
enjoying towards all-round baddie Auric Goldfinger (Gert Frobe) in a high-stakes recreation at Stoke Poges Golf Membership, because it was known as then.
Though the match begins out at ‘a shilling a gap;, Bond raises the stakes considerably when he drops a gold bar on the inexperienced ‘to make issues attention-grabbing’.
Goldfinger resorts to some underhand – and slight-of-hand – ways so as to attempt to win the match, however Bond, and his devoted caddie are smart to caddie Oddjob’s dropping of a substitute ball down his trouser leg.
Having beforehand discovered his opponent’s ball within the tough, however quite unsportingly not declared his discovery, Bond goes on to win the match with the traditional line “You play a Slazenger 1, don’t you? Properly, this a Slazenger 7.”
Cue Goldfinger stomping off the 18th inexperienced the place later Oddjob could be seen crushing the ball together with his naked hands- exterior the clubhouse.
Connery himself was one thing of a latecomer to golf, solely taking over the sport in his 30s. The calls for of the Goldfinger script resulted within the Scot taking a course of classes to fine-tune his swing in order that he may movie the golf scenes himself quite than need to rely of some considered modifying with a stunt double golf professional.
Filmed in 1964, this yr marks the sixtieth anniversary of the discharge of Goldfinger, which went on to change into a field workplace smash, recouping the prices of manufacturing in simply two weeks and grossing over $120m in cinema ticket gross sales alone.
In fact, all followers of Ian Fleming’s books know that the golf course on which the match happened was a thinly disguised model of Royal St George’s Golf Membership in Kent (known as St Mark’s within the guide) the place Fleming was a lifelong member and resulting from be Captain of the membership earlier than his dying, however it’s Stoke Park that has fairly understandably entered Bond folklore and attracted a lot consideration from followers over the past 60 years.
Stoke Park was chosen to stage the golf scene partly due to its proximity to the Pinewood Studios in close by Slough, the place Goldfinger’s indoor scenes have been shot, but in addition due to its spectacular Palladian mansion home, which additionally served because the clubhouse on the time.
Stoke Park has not been shy about buying and selling on its hyperlinks to the movie, internet hosting quite a few Bond-themed golf tournaments and occasions through the years celebrating its connection to one of many world’s hottest movie franchises.
Since Stoke Park was bought into personal arms in 2021, the golf membership shut and the clubhouse reverted right into a household residence, though a brand new clubhouse is presently on the planning levels and 18 holes of the Harry Colt designed course re-opened simply final month for pay-and-play guests and company golf days and occasions, permitting golf followers and Bond aficionados to as soon as once more stroll within the footsteps of movie and sporting historical past.
