The magnificent, stone clubhouse of Winged Foot, with its dark-stained woodwork and glass-panelled doors, projects a comforting sense of stability. Small wonder that Waterville GC has come to treasure a proud association with one of the most enduring and recognisable structures in golf.

This is, in fact, the silver jubilee of that cherished link and to mark the occasion, rather special photographs have been presented by Waterville managing director, Jay Connolly, to the American club. Dating back to the opening of the 18-hole links at Waterville in 1972, they now command a place of prominence among detailed murals, colourful portraits and general golf memorabilia.

In the centre of one of the photographs (main picture, above) is Claude Harmon, winner of the 1948 US Masters and the resident club professional at Winged Foot from 1946 to 1977. On the extreme right is Irish-American John A Mulcahy, whose wealth made the transformation of Waterville possible. And to the right of Harmon is one of Winged Foot's most illustrious members, the Honorable Joseph F Gagliardi.

Liam Higgins, the current professional at Waterville, recalls those early visits of Claude Harmon when he was accompanied by his sons, all of whom followed their father into professional ranks. "It was a tremendously exciting time, having such celebrities down here," he said.

At the time of his death in 1989, Claude Harmon was widely acknowledged as one of the finest teachers in the history of the game. "We saw him work magic with people who, in your wildest dreams, you wouldn't believe could hit a solid shot," said his second son, Craig.

The four Harmon boys have done rather well for themselves. Best-known of them is Butch, 53, who has gained international fame as coach to Tiger Woods and was on the Sky Sports commentary team for the Ryder Cup at Valderrama recently.

Dick, 50, is the professional at River Oaks Country Club in Houston and boasts such notables as Fred Couples and Lanny Wadkins among his pupils. Craig, 51, has taught Jeff Sluman in his capacity as head professional at Oak Hill CC, where the Ryder Cup was played two years ago. And 45-year-old Bill, whose clubs include Indian Wells, has worked with Jay Haas, Philip Walton's Ryder Cup victim of two years ago.

When Mulcahy, a Winged Foot member, set about constructing a new, 18-hole links at Waterville, it was not surprising that he should have turned to friends and colleagues from his home club in Mamaroneck, New York State. So it was that Claude Harmon and Judge Gagliardi helped Irish golf course architect, Eddie Hackett, shape a links which would be ranked among the world's best.

The Gagliardi family were members of Winged Foot since its inception in 1928, where young Joseph acquired his early skills at the game. He progressed to win the club championship in 1952 and 1954; captured the Westchester Amateur Championship in 1948; won the Hochster Memorial Tournament the following year and eventually went on to win the New York State Championship in 1956.

Against that background, it is ironic that the high-point of his amateur career should have come in defeat. On the Old Course at Saucon Valley CC, Pennsylvania in 1951, he was beaten 4 and 3 by Billy Maxwell in the final of the US Amateur Championship. All the while, he pursued a legal career which led ultimately to his appointment as Justice of the Supreme Court and Administrative Judge of New York.

Meanwhile, Waterville enjoyed tremendous popularity under the stewardship of Mulcahy for 15 years. During that period, the Kerrygold Classic was launched in 1975 when the American, George Burns, captured the title but wasn't long enough a professional to be eligible to accept prize money. So, he was presented with a "Bar of Gold," valued at $1,000.

The official first prize of £2,000 went to the 28-year-old Englishman, John Fowler, who was beaten by Burns at the second tie hole of a sudden-death play-off. The field included such notable Americans as 1957 US Masters winner Doug Ford and another player now in senior ranks, Larry Ziegler. Incidentally, current Sky Sports golf pundit, Warren Humphreys, claimed the princely sum of £90 for 32nd place. A year later, Tony Jacklin, who had been granted special permission to start his final round at the head of the field, was informed of his victory in the tournament while 35,000 feet in the air over Newfoundland, en route from Shannon to New York. And it was staged for the last time the following year when, appropriately, victory went to the local professional, Higgins, with a record aggregate of 287.

Ten years later, Waterville was sold to the current owners, a group of Irish Americans from Connecticut, all of whom happen to be members of Winged Foot. They are: James J "Jay" Connolly, Leeda O'Grady Fletcher, Jay F Higgins, Richard F Leahy, James J McEntee and John W Meriwether.

So to the photographs: they happened to be among a group of old shots unearthed recently by Paul Mulcahy. He is a nephew of the former owner, who died in New York, on September 21st, 1994, aged 88.

"The timing was just right, given that Winged Foot were about to play host to the USPGA Championship in August," said Connolly. "We already get quite a number of the club's members over here at Waterville and it seemed like an ideal way of cementing the links between us."

Two months ago, in the course of a letter to William J Morley, chairman of the Library Art and Trophy Committee of Winged Foot, Connolly wrote: "Over 25 years ago, a Winged Foot member, John A Mulcahy, purchased and revitalised the 80-year-old Waterville Golf Club in Co Kerry, Ireland. In doing so, he set in motion a unique and continuing relationship between Winged Foot and Waterville.

". . . . With this in mind and in recognition of its 25th year, the owners of Waterville wish to present Winged Foot with these recently discovered photographs, which document the special relationship between the clubs and capture gifted people creating golfing beauty."

Connolly then sent a letter and copies of the photographs to Butch Harmon, informing him of the presentation. He added: "Liam Higgins has told me that you and your brothers often visited Waterville with your father, so I'm sure you will enjoy these photographs and the memories they stimulate. One can almost hear the photographs speak with creative genius, fueled (sic) by the odd Red Breast whiskey taken at Waterville House.

"Please accept these on behalf of my Waterville partners and share them with your brothers and sister in the hope that all of you will revisit Waterville soon."

When John A Mulcahy died, his ashes were buried on the famous, short 17th at Waterville, otherwise known as "Mulcahy's Peak." His legacy was two-fold. He left behind a stretch of golfing terrain which no less a figure than Sir Henry Cotton described as one of the greatest courses ever built. "If it were located in Britain, it would undoubtedly be a venue for the (British) Open," he said.

The other part of Mulcahy's legacy was an enduring association with Winged Foot. This has now been given tangible expression through those fascinating photographs from 25 years ago.