The club already has a St Andrews Cross, which was presented by Charles Ritchie Howden in 1872 and has been competed for annually ever since.
The returned cross was presented by the then-president of the club, William Hutchinson, a member of the House of Representatives, in 1893 and was played for over the next six years.
However, it appears that Andrew Todd won the trophy in 1899, but it was never engraved and was not played for again.
Todd's granddaughter, Marion Falconer, from Gore, found the trophy in a box when her father, Rowland Todd, died in 1970 and intended to find out where it came from.
"I asked the local golf club at the time, but they didn't know and then I forgot about it.
"I didn't realise its significance," she said.
The trophy remained hidden in a draw for the next 39 years until Falconer rediscovered the little box again early this year and contacted the Gore Historical Museum to find out what it was and whom it belonged to.
After establishing it was an Otago Golf Club trophy, she sent it back to the Otago Golf Club last week.
In an accompanying letter, Falconer explained: "My grandfather, Andrew Todd, played golf and it may be he won the medal but never returned it."
The Otago Golf Club has several historic trophies, including The Olde 1871 Cup for senior champion, the St Andrews Cross (1872), the Brunsfield Medal (1873) and the Telfer Medal (1875).
The Telfer Medal was won by Professor John Shand, one of three professors at the University of Otago.
His daughters donated the medal back to the club and current member Warren Patterson became the second winner 95 years later.
The Otago Club is unsure whether the returned cross will be added to the large list of trophies which Balmacewen golfers compete for annually.
Both the Falconer family and the club are hoping someone might provide more information about the club's latest acquisition.
Andrew Todd died in 1947 at the age of 93 and his son Rowland kept the little box and the trophy in a drawer until he died 23 years later.
