ST. LOUIS — At least eight St. Louis-area local private golf and country clubs received approval for federal pandemic relief funding, according to government data.
The local clubs were among few nationwide able to apply for loans from the U.S. Small Business Administration’s Paycheck Protection Program.
The $649 billion PPP program, designed to help companies cover payroll and other key expenses during the pandemic, has been one of the federal government's main COVID-19 relief tools for business. But thousands of country clubs and social clubs found themselves ineligible for the PPP program because of their status as tax-exempt 501(c)7 organizations, which were not able to apply for the forgivable loans.
About 3,500 private social clubs nationwide are registered as 501(c)7 entities, according to the National Club Association. That includes several prominent clubs in St. Louis, including Bellerive Country Club, Old Warson Country Club and St. Louis Country Club, all of which were shut out from receiving PPP loans.
But the SBA data shows several other St. Louis-area clubs were approved for PPP funding. They include:
- Persimmon Woods Golf Club in Weldon Spring was approved for a loan between $150,000 to $350,000.
- The Legends, a country club located in Eureka, was approved for $150,000 to $350,000 in PPP funding.
- Lake Forest Country Club in Lake St. Louis was OK’d for a loan between $150,000 to $350,000.
- Glen Echo Country Club in Normandy was approved for a loan between $150,000 to $350,000.
- Whittaker Golf Inc., which is affiliated with Whitmoor Country Club in addition to multiple public golf courses, received approval for between $350,000 to $1 million in PPP funding.
- Norwood Hills Country Club in North St. Louis Country was approved for a loan between $350,000 and $1 million. Norwood Hills in October is set to host the Ascension Charity Classic, a tournament that is part of the PGA Tour Champions.
- KMT Golf LLC, an entity tied to Old Hickory Golf Club, was approved for a loan between $350,000 to $1 million.
- Bogey Hills Golf and Country Club in St. Charles was approved for a loan between $350,000 and $1 million.
The local clubs approved for PPP funding could not be reached or declined comment. The SBA's data, which lists PPP loans of $150,000 or more, does not indicate whether PPP loan recipients used or returned the money — many companies returned loans after deciding they did not need them. In all, nearly 6,000 companies in the St. Louis area received approval for PPP loans of at least $150,000.
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Editor's Note: There have been a number of reports that the U.S. Small Business Administration's initially released information is incomplete or contains inaccuracies. St. Louis Business Journal is reporting the latest information released by the SBA and will update its database whenever new data is available to the public.
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