They purchased 184 acres (0.7 km²) of rolling, sandy ground deep in the pinelands of southern New Jersey, and gave George Arthur Crump, who knew the area from hunting expeditions, the opportunity to design the course.

The site was challenging and the project became something of an obsession for Crump, who sold his hotel in Philadelphia and plowed his money into the course.

[8] A settlement was reached in May 2023, in which the club agreed to end discriminatory employment and housing practices, and educate their employees about the state's civil rights law.

In addition to these changes, the club also agreed to pay $100,000 to the Division of Civil Rights, and spend another $100,000 to create scholarships supporting the participation of women in golf.

[12] The club voted on April 30, 2021 to remove all gender-restricted language from their bylaws after learning of the investigation by the New Jersey Division of Civil Rights.

[12] Notable members of the club have included George H. W. Bush, Sean Connery, Ben Crenshaw, Tom Fazio, Robert Trent Jones Jr., Connie Mack, Bob McNair, Arnold Palmer, Gary Player, Dan Quayle, Brian L. Roberts, Jay Sigel, George C. Thomas Jr., and A. W.

[15] Pine Valley hosted the Walker Cup, an amateur competition between teams from the United States and Great Britain & Ireland, in 1936 and 1985.

In 1962, Pine Valley was the venue for an edition of Shell's Wonderful World of Golf, a match between Gene Littler and Byron Nelson.

The club admits spectators for one day in late September every year to watch the Crump Cup, a nationally recognized tournament featuring elite mid-amateur players.

[20] Since at least the 1970s, the public can, on the day of the final round, tour the golf course and view tournament play.