The Royal Canadian Golf Association (RCGA), branded as Golf Canada, is the governing body of golf in Canada. Beginnings Golf Canada was founded on June 6, 1895, as the Canadian Golf Association at the Royal Ottawa Golf Club. The Royal prefix was granted to the CGA in June 1896 by Queen Victoria through then Governor General of Canada, Lord Aberdeen. Aberdeen was a patron of the RCGA. The first real international boom in golf happened in the 1890s. In response to this, the first golfing associations were formed, the Golfing Union of Ireland in 1891 and the Ladies' Golf Union in 1893. The organization of golf in Britain itself was directed to The Royal and Ancient Golf Club of St Andrews as the historic seat of golf. In 1894 two attempts to establish a national championship in the United States were made, neither of which became recognized as the national champion. Later in 1894, representatives from five prominent U.S. clubs gathered to form the United States Golf Association. Founding, stages Canadian Amateur The first meeting to discuss the formation of a Canadian Golf Association was held on June 6, 1895, at the Royal Ottawa Golf Club. The secretary of the club, Alex Simpson, was a strong proponent of organizing a national organization to conduct national championships. In 1895 he invited clubs from across Canada to attend "the first national golf championship", and to discuss the organization of an association with the mandate of conducting such events. It was agreed that such an association should be formed, and would hold its first Annual General Meeting on September 27, at the time of the Interprovincial Matches between Ontario and Quebec. The constitution drawn up for the purpose stated the objectives of the organization as: "promote interest in the game of golf; the protection of the mutual interests of its members; establish and enforce uniformity in the rules of game by creating a representative authority,; its Executive Committee to be a court of reference as a final authority in matters of controversy; to establish a uniform system of handicapping; to decide on what links the Amateur and Open Championship shall be played." The constitution was signed by the following ten clubs from across Canada: Royal Montreal Golf Club Royal-Quebec Golf Club Royal Ottawa Golf Club Kingston Golf Club Toronto Golf Club Rosedale Golf Club Hamilton Golf and Country Club London Golf Club Winnipeg