The idea of building a six-hole course on the grounds of the Vatican was once pitched to the Pope in a bizarre request, but it never came to fruition. Coverage of the recent papal election has dominated headlines around the world, with Robert Prevost winning the crucial majority vote. He is now known as Pope Leo XIV and is the first pontiff to come from the United States.
The new Pope is known to be fond of sport and is a keen tennis player in his spare time. It is not known whether he is a fan of golf but he was born in Chicago, where some iconic courses are located. Chicago Golf Club, Shoreacres, Butler National, Canyata and Medinah are up there with the very best courses in the state of Illinois.
There are no golf courses at the Vatican given its small size, but the possibility of building one was considered nearly 100 years ago. Arthur Findlay, who was the manager of the Wanamaker department store in New York, took it upon himself to pitch the idea.
Back in 1926, it was reported that Findlay wanted to construct a six-hole course on the grounds of the Vatican. He made the suggestion to Pope Pius XI, the pontiff at the time, but his request was swiftly turned down.
“When in Rome recently, he tried vainly to have the Pope build a six-hole golf course on the grounds of the Vatican,” read a report in the New York Times newspaper.
“Findlay told of settling on a ranch in the American West following immigration from Scotland and of playing golf on the prairie, much to the amusement of the natives.
“Until, at length, they were converted and formed what he claims to have been America’s first golf club. This, he says, attracted many famous visitors, including [Franklin] Roosevelt and Buffalo Bill.”
It remains to be seen if the new Pope will be open to building a golf course at the Vatican at some point in the future. It would, of course, be entirely impractical given the city-state’s tight borders and lack of green space.
Such a move could also be seen as diminishing the holiness of the Vatican, meaning it is unlikely to come to fruition any time soon. For now, the Pope will need to cross the border into Italy if he ever gets the urge to rip up some fairways.