A family tradition since 1914

In 1914 a group of enterprising young men combined their vision, 250 acres of farmland and their desire for a first-class golf club in their own backyard which propelled them to establish a beautiful course on 120 of those acres.

A fraternity of leading gentlemen of Winnetka sought to establish a place where "games and play and entertainment of all kinds may be practiced and pursued…" As ground was broken for this new club, many Indian relics were discovered and found to emanate from a variety of tribes, from the Miami Indians to the Pottawattomies of Michigan. The parcels of farmland purchased are believed to be ancient Indian burial grounds, from which came the permanent club name: Indian Hill Club.

Initial course layout designs from Herbert H. Barker, designer of Chevy Chase and Columbia courses in Maryland, were revised shortly with the hiring of O.C. Simmons, a noted landscape architect. In addition to Barker, two renowned golf architects, H.S. Colt and Donald Ross (acknowledged to be one of the greatest golf architects of all time) were called in to perfect the course and bunker designs.

"The natural rolling character of the land supplies excellent opportunity for diversity of play… A more desirable location or land better adapted to golf course construction would be hard to find," praise by Ned Sawyer, a former Western Amateur champion and a newspaper journalist. "From the standpoint of golf, it can be predicted that… this course will furnish as severe a test of the various golf shots as any inland course."