Established more than 120 years ago, Columbia Country Club is a private, member-owned club, formerly known as Columbia Golf Club.

The Columbia Golf Club was organized on September 29, 1898, by nine men with a mission to promote "educational, literary and scientific purposes; social activities and mutual improvements; and to support athletic exercise, outdoor sport and amusement." The first location of the Club was on the east side of Brightwood Avenue, later known as Georgia Avenue, in the neighborhood of Schuetzen Park. In a short time, the Club moved to a site further north on the west side of the avenue where a vacant lot was converted into a crude nine-hole golf course. The Columbia Golf Club was disbanded following the last round of golf on December 31, 1910. At the time, 200 of the 600 members became supporters of the newly created Columbia Country Club.

The opening of the new Columbia Country Club occurred on the evening of January 1, 1911. The Connecticut Avenue site had been purchased in 1909 from the Chevy Chase Land Company. The certificate of incorporation is dated August 25, 1909. The clubhouse was designed by Club member Frederick B. Pyle.

The golf course is widely recognized as a Walter Travis design. Walter J. Travis, a pioneer in golf course architecture, and a legend in golf in the early decades of the 20th century, certainly laid claim to the design as his own. Herbert Barker and Columbia Founding Member Dr. Walter S. Harban, both close associates of Travis, are often noted as the official designers. Herbert Barker was the Head Professional at Travis’ home Club, Garden City, in New York. Harban and Travis were also co-designers of the golf course at East Potomac Park. Travis was a regular guest and competitor at Columbia and was formally hired as the first “US Open Doctor” in 1916 to help prepare the course for a national championship. Columbia is a member Club in the Walter J. Travis Society.

The Club has hosted three national golf championships - the 1921 United States Open, the 2003 United States Junior Amateur Championship and the 2021 United States Girls' Junior Championship. The 1921 U.S. Open was won by Jim Barnes, the 2003 U.S. Junior Amateur was won by Brian Harman, and the 2021 U.S. Girls’ Junior Championship was won by Rose Zhang, who also holds the competitive course record of 62.

The golf course has evolved over the century since its creation. Additional acres were purchased to extend and widen the track, practice facilities and a driving range were added and then improved, dams were constructed, creating two ponds that supplied one of the earliest automated irrigation systems on a golf course, bunkers and hazards have been adjusted, but the original layout remains intact. The Travis influence is still obvious in the approaches to characteristically undulating and segmented greens.

Tennis has a long and venerable history at Columbia; as a member of the Centenary Tennis Club, all Columbia members automatically become members of the Association of Centenary Tennis Clubs, an Association comprised of 66 tennis clubs all with roots going back more than 100 years. Columbia is also a Founding Club Member of the International Tennis Hall of Fame Club Affiliate Program. The Club has hosted numerous notable events in tennis including the Mid Atlantic & US National Boys Clay Championships.

“Paddle” (platform tennis) is very popular at Columbia and has been a center of physical and social activity for decades. Golfers and Tennis players find common ground on the paddle courts that have been host to numerous APTA Mid-Atlantic events.

The pool has been a center of social activity since the first pool was donated by Donald Woodward (of Woodward & Lothrop fame) in 1925. Columbia’s youth swim team competes annually in the Country Club Swim and Dive Association.

Since its inception, Columbia Country Club has grown and offers a full range of athletic, social and recreational facilities. These include indoor and outdoor tennis courts, indoor and outdoor pools, a state-of-the-art fitness center, a six-lane duckpin bowling center, platform tennis courts, a child-minding center, and more. Additionally, the Club maintains multiple restaurants, providing a variety of dining experiences for its members and their guests, and allowing members to host personalized private functions. In the end, the essence of Columbia is not defined by the dining rooms or the athletic facilities, but by the tradition, excellence and camaraderie of the membership that has become known as the Spirit of Columbia.