Nine private golf courses in St. Louis County have been improperly taxed as commercial properties since 2003, an appeals court ruled Tuesday.

The courses, which included Old Warson Country Club and St. Louis Country Club, fought the commercial classification because it hiked their assessed values and subsequent taxes.

The Missouri Court of Appeals, Eastern District, agreed the golf courses were not viable as future commercial properties or public golf courses. The immediate most suitable economic uses for the areas are residential properties like the lavish homes lining the courses, the court decided.

Now the country clubs will demand a refund for the four years of higher taxes they paid ...