Pine Hills Golf Club

About the club

nique to Central Illinois, Pine Hills golf course has been described as a Canyon Course complete with bluffs, valleys, hills and hundreds of trees. It is a challenge to both the beginner and the seasoned golfer and is one of the oldest and most scenic golf courses in the area.The course began as Ottawa Country Club. It came to it's South Ottawa location in exchange for an original Naplate site purchased by Libby-Ownens-Ford in the 1920's.Pine Hills golf course was designed by Thomas Bendelow and opened in 1924. It is well known for it's natural scenic beauty. Bendelow was the designer of many famous golf courses including Medinah and Olympia Fields in Illinois. Mike "Pro" Sipula took over the pro shop in 1930 and when the club was troubled by the Depression and World War II he bought it with two partners at auction in 1943. In 1944, Sipula bought out his partners and renamed it Pine Hills Golf Club because of it's beauty and multitude of trees. The original Club House was situated on a bluff 80 feet above the first fairway. It is the only change in the original design with today's number one tee and Club House at the bottom of the bluff. The original Club House still stands and is now a private residence. The course, always progressive, improved year to year. It was one of the first area courses to have major watering systems for irrigation. Throughout the 1940's and 50's "Pro" played in professional tournaments winning the Peoria Open seven times and also the state PGA Championship. Mike and his wife, Ellawyn, ran the golf course and during the years had four sons who helped with the business. In October of 2010, Pine Hills Golf Club was sold to Paul and Julie Pike of south Ottawa. Their daughter, artist and landscaper Adrienne, took the position of Course Superintendent and their son, Jeremiah, became the new Club Manager and Director of Golf. The Pike Family completely remodeled the Clubhouse and opened the Pine Hills Bar & Restaurant in 2011. The kitchen staff is lead by Chef RJ Swett whose delicious dinner entrees are quickly becoming favorites in addition to the Pine Hills Menu. Pine Hill’s signature pizza is an award winning recipe shared by family members Larry & Sandy Pike who own the Silo Restaurant in Lake Bluff, Illinois. The Silo’s Pizza has been rated the “best pizza on the North Shore” by the Chicago Tribune. Pine Hills makes all their dough in house and plants a kitchen garden to help provide fresh herbs & vegetables for cooking. Also in the newly renovated Clubhouse, the Pine Hills Pro-Shop is full of great golf gear ranging from clubs to apparel with competitive pricing. If the Pro-Shop doesn’t have what you are looking for the staff is happy to special order it. Pine Hills hosts summer youth clinics and is one of the home courses for the OHS Golf Team. The new ownership has also made key improvements on the Course. They addressed some major drainage issues and updated a large portion of the irrigation system. The green crew built a new bunker on hole 5, added new elevated men's tee box on hole 7 and added new ladies tee boxes to holes 5 and 7. They have worked diligently on rejuvenating the greens, tees and fairways and also added a 300 foot planter between the first fairway and parking area.