Greenock Country Club was listed as a USGA member club in 1895, making it one of the earliest formally recognized golf clubs in the United States. The original 19th-century 9-hole layout remained largely unchanged until Donald Ross was hired in 1927 to modernize it, introducing elevated greens, closely mown chipping areas and integration of the natural terrain. It is one of the few surviving 9-hole Donald Ross designs and is included on the Donald Ross Golf Trail; in the early 2000s the club restored many greens toward their original composition.