The Kennemer Golf & Country Club was founded on December 11, 1910 during a meeting at Hotel Hartenlust in Overveen. A 9-hole course was constructed in Santpoort opposite the Duin & Kruidberg estate with great energy. Two dune holes and seven holes in the meadows, through which the railway line Haarlem-Alkmaar ran straight through. The stately Huis te Velsen was converted into a club house. In the summer of 1911, the course and clubhouse of the Kennemer Golf Club were officially opened.

The course has undergone a number of adjustments over the years, also to connect with the development of the golf game. For example, some bunkers have been moved forward. In 2007, in collaboration with golf course architect Frank Pont, the club developed a longer term course plan in the spirit of the original architect Harry Colt. Advice is also periodically sought from other job architects, such as Donald Steel, Frank Pennink and Martin Hawtree. The latter is now the permanent job architect of the Kennemer, under whose supervision the final adjustments are made.

De Kennemer has a rich flora and fauna. The club is the oldest 27-hole golf course in the Netherlands and the club house is the oldest existing golf club house in the Netherlands. Nevertheless, the maintenance of the track has a progressive approach.

As part of the nature policy, the Kennemer took the initiative several years ago to stop using artificial fertilizers and pesticides for the maintenance of the fairways and greens. In the summer there is only limited spraying, worthy of a true links course.

De Kennemer has hosted numerous national and international competitions. For example, 23 International Open Championships and five International Ladies Opens.