Lake Placid-North Elba Historical Society co-presidents Perry Babcock, left, and Betsy Hlavacek, right, address the competitors at the society’s inaugural One-Club Golf Tournament on Wednesday, July 9. (News photo — Chris Gaige)

LAKE PLACID — Stepping onto The Pristine Nine golf course at the Lake Placid Club during the sun-soaked afternoon of Wednesday, July 9, one could be forgiven for second-guessing whether it’s 2025.

The Lake Placid-North Elba Historical Society hosted its inaugural one-club golf tournament, with 14 teams of three taking part. The competitors were encouraged to dress in their best vintage attire, and the outfits did not disappoint, according to tournament organizer and LPNEHS co-president Perry Babcock.

“Everyone had a ball out there,” he said. “We had some really, really fun outfits.”

Team Young/Lyon Floor Covering won the tournament, with a closely fought four-way tie for second place with scores of 30, which Babcock said was just one over par for that course. After matching cards, Team Lussi finished in second place, followed by Team Long Run Wealth in third, Team Detwiler in fourth and Team Roode/Quayle/Zygo in fifth. Sixth place went to Team Neill and Team Bookstore Plus/Galvin rounded out the upper-half of the tournament with a seventh-place finish.

The closest to the pin competitions included wins by Rick Young, Parmelee Tolkan, Kip Testwuide and Russ Steinberg — who eliminated Tom Connors in a putt-off, according to provided results.

Team Lussi at the Lake Placid-North Elba Historical Society’s One-Club Golf Tournament on Wednesday, July 9. From left are Serge Lussi, Katrina (Lussi) Kroes and Art Lussi. (News photo — Chris Gaige)

As for the costumes, the best-dressed honors went to Art Lussi in the men’s division, Erica Burns in the women’s division and Leo McKenna winning the “cool kid award” for his attire.

Prizes included copies of Seymour Dunn’s original book on instructional golf that was donated by his family, as well as a litany of other donations provided by the Lake Placid High School golf team and Long Run Wealth, as well as the Craig Wood, Saranac Inn, Whiteface Inn and Lake Placid Club golf courses.

“All of the area courses contributed to the event,” Babcock said. “It’s kind of cool that we actually had links with Saranac Inn, with Lake Placid, with Craigwood and with the Whiteface Club. … People are excited and there’s a good vibe. Golf’s a unifying sport.”

Following the golf, participants were invited to the LPNEHS museum for a reception and awards ceremony. The tournament — and vintage attire — was an ode to the museum’s newest exhibit on the history of golf in Lake Placid. That was made possible by a large donation by Nevton Dunn, the grandson of Seymour Dunn. Nevton, a former LPNEHS board member, donated troves of photos and other heirlooms that had been in the family before he moved out of Lake Placid last year.

Seymour was born and raised in Scotland before coming to the U.S. and ultimately moving to Lake Placid. In addition to playing as a professional golfer, Dunn designed numerous courses throughout the U.S. Locally, that included the Links Course at the Lake Placid Club and the Craig Wood course. Dunn also operated a club manufacturing shop in Lake Placid. For more information on the exhibit, visit tinyurl.com/3up7ncmu.

Competitors smile at the Lake Placid-North Elba Historical Society’s One-Club Golf Tournament on Wednesday, July 9. (News photo — Chris Gaige)

“Nev’s contribution to the museum was a huge catalyst for everything,” Babcock said. “And then we just took it from there.”

Babcock, an avid golfer, said he and other museum staff and volunteers were awestruck by the breadth of Nev’s donation — as well as that Seymour Dunn’s Lake Placid legacy wasn’t more widely known, given how foundational he was to local golf. Given how popular golf is in Lake Placid, Babcock said the opportunity to put an exhibit together from the donation was a no-brainer.

He credited Parmelee Tolkan and Jon Prime with a lot of the heavy lifting and artistic finesse that were instrumental to putting an appealing exhibit together. Babcock said it has been well-received by museum visitors this season.

“There’s a lot of chatter around town about it,” he said. “People are making an effort to come and see it.”

The historical society’s History Museum is housed in the historic Lake Placid train station, 242 Station St.

Standing from left are Marcy Fagan, Michael Butler and Eli Schwartzberg. At front is Elliot Schwartzberg. They were competing in the Lake Placid-North Elba Historical Society’s One-Club Golf Tournament on Wednesday, July 9. (News photo — Chris Gaige)

During the summer, it’s open from 1 to 4 p.m. Wednesday through Friday, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday and 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Sunday. For more information, visit lakeplacidhistory.org.

From left, Jake Burns, Leo McKenna and Erica Burns smile at the Lake Placid-North Elba Historical Society’s One-Club Golf Tournament on Wednesday, July 9. (News photo — Chris Gaige)

Roger Neill takes a swing at the Lake Placid-North Elba Historical Society’s One-Club Golf Tournament on Wednesday, July 9. (News photo — Chris Gaige)