History of the East Hampton Golf Club
Prior to the opening of the East Hampton Golf Club in June 2000, the idea of turning the 126 acre parcel of land into a golf course had been contemplated for almost 50 years. Pete Bistrian owned and farmed a portion of the land for decades, but always envisioned the possibility of building a golf course on his property. In 1978 the Bistrian family broke ground on a nine hole golf course that Pete Bistrian, an avid golfer, was instrumental in designing. The course existed for nearly 20 years before the family members made a major decision to contact golf course architects and create a prestigious 18 hole course. The family partnered with Credit Suisse First Boston and began a quest to find the right design team for the project. After meeting with several architects, Bill Coore and Ben Crenshaw were selected in 1998 to design and oversee the construction of the resulting 18 hole course. The golf course officially opened for play in the summer of 2000, the same year Lee Munder bought out the CSFB interest and became the managing partner in Hampton Golf Club LLC, the governing entity of the East Hampton Golf Club. The club began selling golf memberships in 2000 and simultaneously filed paperwork with the town of East Hampton to build a 20,000 square foot golf clubhouse along with on course comfort stations and maintenance facility. In addition to these structures, the club began purchasing existing houses located in close proximity to the golf club, in order to provide housing for golf staff, caddies and food and beverage personnel. There was some resistance from the town of East Hampton as well as some local organizations with regards to granting a permit to build the clubhouse. However, after many months of spirited debate a permit was obtained and construction of the clubhouse commenced in 2002. Architectural plans were produced by Chapman, Coyle, Chapman from Marietta, Georgia with Barry Coyle as the lead architect. Ben Krupinski builders was chosen to construct the clubhouse and Pembroke and Ives, with Andrew Schienman as the lead interior designer, given the task of furnishing and decorating the building. In April of 2005, the clubhouse opened to members and guests and was a great juxtaposition from the trailer that served us for a few years. The exterior design featuring cedar shingles and river stone coupled with a contemporary interior design has received many accolades over the years. Every year we have consistently made improvements to the golf course, clubhouse, and our other associated properties. Since its construction no expense has been spared in keeping the buildings and furnishings in pristine condition. EHGC has had a full complement of 250 members for almost a decade. The golf course, considered by many course raters as a little gem, has been awarded the prestigious “platinum club designation” as a top 50 golf club in the country. The award is voted on by a panel of experts including industry leaders, owners and managers. Many of the club’s staff are celebrating 20 years of service including the general manager, who has vast experience in resort and prestigious club management and the head golf professional who shares his professional seasons with East Hampton and Augusta National. In addition, many other staff including the executive staff have been with the club since the completion of the clubhouse in 2005. Our staff at every level is totally focused at providing our members a memorable and enjoyable experience. While we are very proud of the physical plant, we are even more proud of our staff. The caddies, considered by many the best on the east end of Long Island, are sourced from a professional service and are housed in our properties. The reputation of East Hampton Golf Club is derived from our attention to all the fine details including golf facilities, food service, teaching techniques, clubhouse ambience and comfort. The dedication of our talented staff to our members is the final and most important ingredient to contributing to the club’s continued success.