Club History

Sunset Hills Club History

For over 100 years, Sunset Hills Country Club has stood high on the Illinois bluffs overlooking the city of St. Louis, Missouri.  In 1922, business leaders from Edwardsville and the surrounding communities – recognizing the need for a social and recreational epicenter for their fast-growing community – came together to create the Madison County Country Club.  They chose to purchase farmland on the outskirts of town, in part, for the location’s fine (at the time) view of the St. Louis skyline.  In the following years a lake was dug, a nine-hole golf course was created, a clubhouse was built, and a membership was cultivated.

As was intended, the club was quickly the center of social activity in the region.  Summer days were spent golfing, playing tennis and swimming in the lake; and summer nights were spent dining, dancing, and socializing in the clubhouse.  The newspapers of the time were filled with notices of the comings and goings at the club.  When Amelia Earhart visited Edwardsville in late 1936, there was no question as to where she would dine – the ladies of the club treated Ms. Earhart to a dinner in the clubhouse dining room before she spoke to a group of young girls at Edwardsville High School.

The Great Depression and World War II had their understandable effects on the Madison County Country Club and by the mid-1940s the club was forced to reorganize in order to keep its doors open.  On May 17, 1946 the club was rebranded as Sunset Hills Country Club.  Also on this date, a group of club members created a “syndicate corporation” called the E-G Golf Club, Inc. which was formed to act as a holding company and would oversee the direction of the club for years to come.

The rebranded club returned to glory during this time.  The membership of Sunset Hills Country Club flourished and lead to an enlargement of the clubhouse in 1954 and the expansion of the golf course to eighteen holes (designed by golf course architect Larry Packard) and the addition of a new swimming pool facility in 1960.

Through Fire, Our Traditions Endure

Misfortune struck the night of July 23, 1966, when a fire tore through the clubhouse, burning it to the ground.  Luckily no one was hurt, and by 1968 a new brick clubhouse was built that was able to better meet the needs of the membership in the decades to come.

The 1970’s were a boom period for the club.  With a several-year waiting list, it became clear that additional amenities were needed to meet the demands of the members.  An improved four-court tennis facility was built overlooking the lake, and talks began on various ways to expand and enhance the golf course.

Expanding Our Values

The club purchased adjacent land in 1984 and again in 1989 and the golf course was expanded with course architect Gary Kern designing the new holes.  This expansion allowed the restructuring of the entire course and the addition of a large practice range.  Also during this time, the “new” clubhouse saw an expansion and total interior renovation with the addition of a downstairs grill and upstairs ballroom.

Centennial Celebration

The years leading up to the club’s Centennial brought many changes to the grounds and facilities.  In 1997 the club engaged with renowned golf course architect Keith Foster for a redesign of many of the older holes.  The clubhouse’s upstairs dining facilities were completely remodeled in 2013 into the open-concept bar and dining area called the Bistro.  In 2019 the club partnered with neighboring Southern Illinois University Edwardsville in building a state-of-the-art indoor practice facility complete with driving bays, putting greens and a simulator bay.  In 2020 the Outdoor Bar was opened, allowing members the perfect place for a cold drink on a hot day. 
 
And in 2022, Sunset Hills Country Club joined a small but esteemed group when it celebrated its 100^th year of providing our community with a refuge for families to play and grow together. 

Timeless Traditions

So much has changed in the past century.  A small patch of farmland on the outskirts of town was transformed and developed into a challenging but rewarding golf course.  Instead of cooling off in the lake on hot days, families can relax with an ice-cold drink by the pool.  The sounds of Pickleball paddles now echo through the air at our Racket Sports Facility.  But it’s what has remained the same for over one hundred years that are the club’s defining hallmarks – community, integrity, family and fun have always been the standard at Sunset Hills Country Club and will remain so into our next hundred years.

Golf course routing artistry credits to Maddie Aunger, SIUE class of 2017