In South Wales, you can get a membership which includes a Ryder Cup course (2010) for 3.5k a year + 3k joining fee. Also get 2 other courses included in it.
My local course is about £500 a year lol.
I mean compared to my $50 (to walk) muni in Portland area, 500-600 per year would be incredible. You can't play for pretty much all of winter here because of the rain. If I played 10 times that membership would basically be paid for
You can 100% play year round here. You might have to deal with soggy conditions but there are nice days scattered throughout the winter. Or you can just deal with the rain. It's not a torrential downpour. Just constant light rain most of the time. Get a nice rain jacket and you are good to go! I played my 5th round of 2023 on Monday.
🙋♂️Hey fellow PDX'ers, what courses have you found in the area with good drainage? I know Langdon Farms has relatively good conditions all year but that's quite a drive for me.
Langdon, Stone Creek, and Elk Ridge generally have the best drainage. Heron Lakes Blue is playable all winter unless it’s rained hard for a few days straight.
Oh cool, been meaning to check out Stone Creek for awhile anyway, there's my excuse! Surprised to hear about Heron Lakes, last year I played there once in the winter and it was so sloppy I haven't even considered another winter round there. Thanks!
What do you do, and as someone with a Bachelors in Business Administration, and work experience as a test engineer and general IT; would I be someone of value to your team?
Sounds very promising. I run a mostly male escort service and I’m always looking for new talent. Must be willing to work flexible hours. We have lots of high profile clients that are often members of country clubs so you will get at least 18 holes in!
G4P sex work can be very lucrative if you can find the right clients. Think Republican senators, closeted actors and musicians, rich married men, etc. I know of people who do this work like one day a year and that pays for their tuition and most of their expenses.
We talking the “sex and BJs / handies expected” type of escort service or just “need some male company I can show off at a gala as my fake boyfriend” type of escort service? Cause I can do the latter for some free rounds at Augusta.
I've known members that have mentioned that Congos monthly actually wasn't that bad, is it really worse than 4k? From what they were saying it sounded like it was under 1k, but the initiation fee was way above 100k. They were also a little coy about it so who knows. Still waiting on an invite to play there.
Yeah my girlfriends family are members, it isn’t $4k per month. From what I recall when her dad was breaking it down to me, it’s like $150k init and $1.5k or so a month. Awesome fucking club though, I had the chance to play the blue course a couple times last year.
Location: Austin, TX
I’m currently between two clubs:
One is $10k initial buy in, then $750/mo, $1200/year food and drink minimum. It’s an incredible course, with fantastic practice facilities. Multiple putting and chipping greens, immaculate grass range, etc. (note this is the under 40 cost. After 40 I would owe another 10k)
The other is $2500 initial buy in and $5000/year. Still very nice course, but not as “interesting” to play as the first. Also the clubhouse is underwhelming in comparison.
My main reason for being on the fence is that I love playing different courses. When I was younger I had a junior membership at a club and while the social side was great, I got bored of the course after a summer of playing it every week. If I’m throwing down that much coin, I will feel the pressure to play that course over going somewhere else.
If I do pull the trigger it will most likely be the first though. The auxiliary amenities are just amazing. Beautiful tennis courts, a spa for my fiancé, great food and the members were incredibly friendly when I played with a few of them. They didn’t try to sell the club and instead shared all the good and bad gossip that I should know before making a decision.
Im looking at a club with similar pricing to the first and on the fence as well. Im sure I would love it for the next 5 years but its tough basically committing in perpetuity.
I haven’t played either, but my neighbor mentioned he prefers lessons with the pro at Cimarron vs our neighborhood course. May be a factor, especially with the practice facilities. I assume at a 10.1 you’re like me fighting to get in (and stay in) the single digits.
Lmao I pay $750/year for free golf April-November and a 25% discount for friends that are non members. Worth mentioning is that I live in Stockholm, Sweden
Edit: that’s for 3 full length 18-hole courses, one 9-hole course and one 6-hole pitch n’ putt.
Edit: lads it’s my second language cut me some slack, you all know what I meant with “free golf” lol
This blew my mind when I was in Ireland. No private clubs, and courses like lahinch are maybe a few thousand a year membership.
I lived in Spain for a while and became a member at El Saler. My monthly payment was like 200 euros and got privileges to the resort. Championship course with many holes on the Mediterranean. All you could play and had a nude beach 😂
What do you mean by private clubs? Like is it because visitors are allowed to show up and pay a green fee that it’s not private? Cause our clubs are still private in the sense that you probably can’t just rock up to any club in the country, pay the fee and just be a member.
Correct, for example here if I wanted to play a private course in US, without being invited by a member there's no way to play. At least you're able to play as a visitor but I know to actually be a member there's a bit more involved. Also as far as I can tell there's no huge initiation fee either?
Because they’re golf clubs, a lot of clubs in the us you pay for a litany of other things outside of golf. Also courses in Europe generally subsidize membership fees with outside play. There are still expensive/exclusive clubs there but it’s far less the norm.
Probably the best example of the euro model in the us would be pasatiempo (elite course with limited expensive outside play)
Nowhere on earth does it make sense to pay hundreds of thousands of dollars to be part of a club unless they offer you a blowy every time you walk into the building
It does if it leads to you making a connection that gets you hundreds of thousands of dollars plus. But yes 95% of the time private membership will not make sense on a purely financial basis. In saying that it could still make sense if you heavily value aspects of the club you join.
Because a membership in Europe is more akin to being a member at a semi-private course here in the US.
On top of that, US clubs are generally more than just golf clubs. They typically include social memberships, tennis, swimming pools, etc. That’s not really the case in Europe. Golf clubs are for golf, and social clubs are entirely separate.
I'll say it since noone else will. Europeans often have very low salaries compared to the US depending on the industry. Top ~10% in the US puts you in the top ~1% in just about every European country except like Switzerland.
It really is brother, especially seeing the crazy US prices. However, how playing golf works in Europe is rather different than the US as far as I can tell
Trump Jupiter is something like $500k intiation and then $5k/month, this is hearsay.
Coral Creek Club is $450k initiation and $4500/month and it's only open 9 months a year. This is fact, I know a grounds crew member. There's an airport on property that some LIV members fly into (Patrick Reed and Ian Poulter).
Florida is definitely more expensive than Arizona for golf.
My Bro-in-law knows a caddy at Trump National so that’s a nice hookup, friend of a friend’s fiancé is a club pro at Frenchman’s, buddy knows a guy at Jupiter CC and buddy’s dad is a member at Eastpoint. Played Jupiter Hills a handful too. It’s good to grow up in Jupiter, FL even though I live in Orlando now.
Greenskeeper at DM here.
It's $125K initiation and $2500 a month in members' fees. Not as bad as OP, but still steep.
Or you can cut grass and play for free.
Thanks! Means a lot.
Huge team effort. I was blown away when I learned all that goes into keeping the grass growing and courses playable. 100s of hours of labor are required for each of our courses everyday. We host members 364 days a year in Carefree, AZ.
I'm spoiled with where I get to work. Most folks in positions like mine don't have the funding for labor, maintenance, and ample equipment like we have at DM.
The fees are steep, but they put food on the table for me and the >600 other employees that staff the courses, club houses, and restaurants in and among the community. And we get to have a little fun while we work.
Definitely beats my old desk job, and far and away less stressful than working a corporate gig.
Some of the clubs out by me on Long Island are even more expensive than this. I believe The Bridge is $750,000 initiation and Sebonack is supposedly going to hit $1 million initiation soon if it hasn’t already. Dues for each are roughly the same as by you though.
Where in Canada are you? I’m in Vancouver and looking for a club. Most “good” private clubs are offering $1000x your age as initiation with about $600/month and about $250 quarterly F&B
Initiation: 3500
Obligation: 600/m + 600/y (f/b) - Includes: Unlimited (Range/Cart/Rounds)
Amenities: Locker Room/Tennis/Swimming/Fitness Center/Full Bar and Restaurant/Full practice facility with grass range (and nice mats for when it’s soggy)
*Orlando
Saaaame! The Dubsdread membership is a joke for how busy it is and you don’t even get priority on the range or for tee times (earlier booking but they’re always slammed).
Please stop visiting us, my local executive course that has sand for tee boxes is now $50 😭 At least I usually play an extra 18 for free so it balances out
Semi private, but definitely cheaper than that in the UP. Marquette golf club (includes greywalls and heritage courses) for me, plus heritage only for my wife, unlimited range and cart lease, and $300 to spend on food and drink (included from dues) will be right around 4k.
Had a tee time at Greywalls last September through a package at Island Resort. The weather was so bad they closed the course the day I was supposed to play there.
16 hours of driving, and didn't get to play the one course I wanted to play the most.
Nice. I just did heritage last year (first year at mgc) pretty sure I'm doing the greywalls membership this year with the spouse on heritage option. Did NMU for a couple years before that. I don't know too many folks out there yet, so hit me up if you ever need a playing partner.
If you're on the west side of Michigan (Grand Rapids area) look into redwater collection. I was a member and before I moved out of state dues were 2700 for my age group 21-29 for access to like 5 or 6 really nice private courses and a couple semi-private gems as well. The cost for the older age brackets weren't terrible either.
Bella Collina in San Clemente is kind of a secret cheap private course, but many people do hate the layout of this course.
It's like $7k initiation and $600/m. It's by far the cheapest you'll find in OC for a private course. Aliso the last time I heard was around $25k.
Only local CC in my small town is 1000 initiation and 200/month unlimited waking/pushcart golf,range,pool,lockerroom. 350/month if you want unlimited cart usage. $25 food minimum. Fairways are not in the greatest shape, but the greens are nice. I can always find tee times, and cart is $20 for 18.
Exactly how I do it too, played some great tracks around the country for £10-£25. I like the pot luck of it if I’m in a new place, or can pretty much play every course in the county for under £30. Book under an hour before tee off, makes so much more sense for me than a massive fee and the same course all year. That said I’m not into competitive golf and play for the escape so 75% of the time I play solo.
Exactly. I've been a member of a club when I got young persons discount and it was nice to be able to get Saturday morning tee times in advance. But, I askari live being able to play somewhere different each week.
Im renewing at an Edinburgh golf course just now for £550 a year (I still get a “young golfer rate” at 30 lol) which is on the lower end around here but I can justify paying that whilst regularly paying to play other courses on golfnow.
Carnoustie is £650($800) a year for the 3 courses (Championship + 2 smaller courses) but you have to live in Angus to get a ticket. It's unlimited golf and you are almost guaranteed to get a round 3 out of 4 weeks in the ballot on a Saturday morning.
Our club is about £60 ($75) per year but doesn't have its own clubhouse
I think St Andrews might be slightly less and you get access to 7 courses including the Championship.
Most of the publicly owned courses in Scotland will be similar
i’ve never been part of a club and i don’t understand the food and beverage minimum. doesn’t it mean you have to spend that much on food and beverage to remain a member?
No, it means they basically charge you $2,500 a year and you can credit your account when you eat / drink at the club. Once you go over it, you pay out of pocket. If not, they just keep the rest of the money.
Same thing happens the following year.
You are charged for it regardless if you use it. No penalty because you are paying full amount. I know lots of guys that get lobster rolls and lamb chops the last week of the year.
Imagine on 1/1 you buy a gift card that expires on 12/31 at midnight and you can only use it for food and drinks. It’s usually pretty easy to hit if you use the club, allows them to staff up, and maintain operations even if nobody shows.
As someone who is ignorant of the ways of private clubs, do you pay that $2500 regardless of whether you eat there or not? If you get to the end of the year and have only spent $1000 do they just top up your bill to 2500?
>As someone who is ignorant of the ways of private clubs, do you pay that $2500 regardless of whether you eat there or not?
Yes, it's usually a monthly fee you get billed for. Say it's $200 minimum monthly food and beverage.
Eat or drink nothing, you pay $200.
Eat or drink $150 worth, you pay $200.
Eat or drink $300, you pay $300.
And if you eat or drink nothing one month, and $400 the next month, you pay $200 + $400, or $600.
Finally a sensible reply. My club in Australia - $150 joining fee, $600au per year for men's membership, then you have a pay a few dollars if you play or comp feea. But it's just a golf course, not a country club.
I'm at $2,500 a year because I'm under 30. Next year, it'll jump to $4,800. Food and beverage minimums are $200/month. Once you factor in cart fees, tournament fees, and other miscellaneous expenses, I spent close to $10,000 last year, but I played 150+ rounds.
Most of these are ridiculous. Royal County Down here in Ireland is £5k a year and is consistently in the top 5 or 10 courses in the world. Wtaf is going down with US club membership prices?
USA private clubs are different by intentional design. They offer amenities that UK Clubs will not. This includes fitness facilities, Olympic size swim pools, tennis courts with different surface types, multiple full size restaurants, sports programs for the children that include swim team, dive team, tennis, golf and the list can continue. It's become a lifestyle and status membership.
This does not apply to all clubs but these are what most are posting about.
Then some USA residents are posting small annual amounts. My strong assumption is that these are annual passes at a public course.
Cheapest private I can find within 20 minutes of Boston (west/SW).
Does have excellent reciprocity with other clubs nationally and international benefits as well.
https://preview.redd.it/1dz0enhpv9da1.jpeg?width=3072&format=pjpg&auto=webp&v=enabled&s=7a37ce397103e71ad4908e798ca44b6eee7b2db2
Course was nice when I played. 27 holes, 18 championship seasonal, 9open year round, nice practice facility, pool for the summer, doing clubhouse renovations this winter. No bad holes. Also no water in play, so a few extra bunkers.
I held off on joining because there are whispers of major pullbacks of private club membership around here. In 2010-12 some clubs cut their fees in half to draw members in. Not sure we see that sort of pullback but I can be patient and just keep hitting McGolf for practice.
The nicest clubs in Birmingham, AL are $25k-$100k non equity buy in and $900-$1200/month including F&B. There are some good clubs you can get away with $5k buy in and $600/month though. Worth mentioning we do get year round golf here. Just hot and humid as hell in the summer.
RTJ is public except 1 location. I’ve played most of the trail sites and they’re all top tier and reasonably priced, mostly <$100. They’re not on the same level as our private clubs but they do a phenomenal job with those courses. If you get a chance to take a golf trip to Alabama those course and also my next suggestion is Pursell Farms Farmlinks in Sylacauga is where you wanna go.
$112.05 a month for unlimited golf with a cart. Reduced fees into our tournaments too.
Men's club membership is 40 bucks a year.
I'm in south central KS in a community of 3800 with an 18-hole par 71 course. Zoysia fairways and bentgrass greens. GPS on the carts too.
Houston, TX $400 a month for Monday through Thursday golf only. Can use the practice facilities anytime. Grandfathered in for this membership because they don’t offer it anymore. Works well for me because I don’t usually golf on the weekend and I play every Monday through Thursday and practice Friday morning. This place also has 2 different courses.
I’m a full member here and joined before they offered the weekday deal. It’s a steal. Unfortunately rubbed a lot of the full members the wrong way when weekday guys were paying guest or public rates on the weekends and paying less than full membership.
How are some of these prices so extreme? In the U.K. I would say over 95% of golf clubs would be less than £1500 a year for unlimited golf. Many are less than £700.
Where is the money going if you’re paying over $2500 per year? Seems insane to me. Are they proprietary clubs making huge profits from members?
Most of the higher end clubs *typically* double as social clubs as well so there are more expenses to add in like a full service restaurant, pool, etc.
SW Virginia = $1,500 initiation, $489/month includes $40/month F&B minimums
Central Florida = $3,000 initiation (paid in 2018), $315/month with $225/quarter F&B minimum and $80/qtr range fee
I pay £980 for a course just outside Glasgow and £260-300 (cant remember its such good value I dont even check the price of renewal)for a links trust membership because I say I stay at my parents address in St Andrews. £280 for 8 courses as many times as I want is ridiculous, plus I get on Kingsbarns for like 30quid. I get guest points as well for all the links trust courses that discount the price for anyone I bring on, I believe its like 60-70 for the Old Course as my guest, then even cheaper for the "better" courses like the New, Jubilee etc.
* Live in Pittsburgh, PA.
* Belong to Williams CC in Weirton WV
* Get the “Regional” rate >30mi away
* ~$3,500 per year total broken out:
* No Initiation
* $180/mo + $50 F&B
* $535/yr Golf Services fee
£1,200 annually. No food or beverage minimum each month or anything American style! Unlimited golf year round, although it’s normally waterlogged for a couple of months a year over winter.
Full golf initiation fee (non equity) is $27,000. Yearly membership dues are $14,000 + $400/qtr food minimums. So after the initiation fee it’s at minimum $1300/mo. We spend roughly $2000/mo in the off season and closer to $3500/mo May-Oct for dues, food, and other programs (tennis, league, cloths, kids stuff).
$1800 a year in Canada. Unlimited range access and 14 day advanced bookings and guest discounts. Course has 2 full length 18's. Will say I have an intermediate deal where I can't book between 7-10am
I pay CDN$5,000 a year at my club.
Private club with reciprocal memberships at around 15 other clubs.
\- My home course is two 18 hole course. 36 holes total.
\-Conditions are pretty good. Could be better for what I pay.
\- Getting a tee time is pretty easy after the May rush.
\- Nice natural grass range with ulimited balls. Nice short game practice range as well.
\- club house is not bad. Proshop, nice restaurant and bar. Staff is friendly and professional. Showers, towel service, steam room. Locker rooms are fully stocked with toiletry products. etc etc.
\- They got rid of the bar tab since COVID. But we have been warned it's coming back in 2025. $700/yr.
\- 10min drive from my house.
Only bullshit is that I live above the snow line. So it's only open May-Oct.
Most fees in Dublin Ireland are around 1000-1500 euros but some clubs you have to pay once off membership entrance which can range anywhere from 2000 -25000 euro
5.5k annual. It's the cheapest one in my area. The course is great and the local activity is super high making for fun meetings/chance encounters.
It offers year round play. Monterey bay area for those interested
.
Most in the area are 10k plus annuals.
There’s a course in Palm Desert, CA that you must own a house in the country club to become a member and the cheapest home is around $1million, then membership I believe is another $250k initiation fee, plus $2500 a month. And because of the location it’s basically only playable from November to April at best before the daily temp goes over 100°f.
Illinois. Private, downstroke 25k, monthly dues 1k, average monthly bill 2.5k monthly. Rounds per year 114.
Swim, tennis, golf and the closest bar and restaurant to my house(I live across the street from it).
Live in a rural town of about 20k in nsw Australia, course is ok... better then most rural courses, pretty well maintained.
I pay $900aud a year for unlimited walk-on golf.
East end of Long Island NY, currently $50k initiation and about $9k a year. No minimums but pay for cart or to walk. Still significantly less than most other courses which are often $250k+ initiation but you need to be invited and highly connected.
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In South Wales, you can get a membership which includes a Ryder Cup course (2010) for 3.5k a year + 3k joining fee. Also get 2 other courses included in it. My local course is about £500 a year lol.
Not sure you’d want to play it all year round though, very boggy!
I mean compared to my $50 (to walk) muni in Portland area, 500-600 per year would be incredible. You can't play for pretty much all of winter here because of the rain. If I played 10 times that membership would basically be paid for
You can 100% play year round here. You might have to deal with soggy conditions but there are nice days scattered throughout the winter. Or you can just deal with the rain. It's not a torrential downpour. Just constant light rain most of the time. Get a nice rain jacket and you are good to go! I played my 5th round of 2023 on Monday.
🙋♂️Hey fellow PDX'ers, what courses have you found in the area with good drainage? I know Langdon Farms has relatively good conditions all year but that's quite a drive for me.
Langdon, Stone Creek, and Elk Ridge generally have the best drainage. Heron Lakes Blue is playable all winter unless it’s rained hard for a few days straight.
Oh cool, been meaning to check out Stone Creek for awhile anyway, there's my excuse! Surprised to hear about Heron Lakes, last year I played there once in the winter and it was so sloppy I haven't even considered another winter round there. Thanks!
It’s definitely boggy, and you’ll need to play a clean and replace rule. But it’s drastically more playable than, eg, Eastmoreland.
Not eastmoreland
Three Rivers in Longview is great in the rainy season
Mid wales and mine is £572 for the coming year 👌
I need a better job
Work for me
What do you do, and as someone with a Bachelors in Business Administration, and work experience as a test engineer and general IT; would I be someone of value to your team?
Sounds very promising. I run a mostly male escort service and I’m always looking for new talent. Must be willing to work flexible hours. We have lots of high profile clients that are often members of country clubs so you will get at least 18 holes in!
Holy shit what a bait. Homie definitely thought he was about to strike it rich on Reddit 😂
I have made contacts in weirder places… (closes tabs and clears history)
Gotta shoot your shot tbh, these days networking in a random comment section on a golf sub could be an honest way to meet someone.
G4P sex work can be very lucrative if you can find the right clients. Think Republican senators, closeted actors and musicians, rich married men, etc. I know of people who do this work like one day a year and that pays for their tuition and most of their expenses.
Well that took a turn 😂😂😂
OP - Deflated.
*at least 19 holes in
Only do it for 23, my lucky number.
Hire me please. Not very handy with a stiff shaft but I'll give it a go.
18 is kinda on the low end, anyway to get the front and back in to double up? Just have to give my dog a break at the turn…
Flexible hours is double entendre.
He did say he is a bachelor.
We talking the “sex and BJs / handies expected” type of escort service or just “need some male company I can show off at a gala as my fake boyfriend” type of escort service? Cause I can do the latter for some free rounds at Augusta.
Gonna have to blow a congressional subcommittee to get on Augusta.
The course closest to my house is 50k initiation fee and $1100 a month
100k and 4k per month right outside DC. I said no thanks.
And that’s not even close to what Congo charges. Lol
I've known members that have mentioned that Congos monthly actually wasn't that bad, is it really worse than 4k? From what they were saying it sounded like it was under 1k, but the initiation fee was way above 100k. They were also a little coy about it so who knows. Still waiting on an invite to play there.
Yeah my girlfriends family are members, it isn’t $4k per month. From what I recall when her dad was breaking it down to me, it’s like $150k init and $1.5k or so a month. Awesome fucking club though, I had the chance to play the blue course a couple times last year.
Yea, this is Chevy. At least it was 6 years ago when I was thinking about it
$4k a month sounds very high
It is incorrectly high.
Holy fhak
That’s actually pretty reasonable for my area
This. Plus the 3k a month in bourbon and booze I spend….plus the untracked amount I spend on the birdie powder I keep in my locker.
I wanna play with this guy! lol
Same. That’s ludicrous especially when it was a quarter of that a few years ago
$600/year for unlimited walking. 🤷🏻♂️
I’d take this in a heartbeat
To be fair it’s only $14 green fee on the course, but it’s a nice Muni.
Where is this?
Holy fuck I’m poor
It is discouraging at times. You’re not alone at least.
Location: Austin, TX I’m currently between two clubs: One is $10k initial buy in, then $750/mo, $1200/year food and drink minimum. It’s an incredible course, with fantastic practice facilities. Multiple putting and chipping greens, immaculate grass range, etc. (note this is the under 40 cost. After 40 I would owe another 10k) The other is $2500 initial buy in and $5000/year. Still very nice course, but not as “interesting” to play as the first. Also the clubhouse is underwhelming in comparison. My main reason for being on the fence is that I love playing different courses. When I was younger I had a junior membership at a club and while the social side was great, I got bored of the course after a summer of playing it every week. If I’m throwing down that much coin, I will feel the pressure to play that course over going somewhere else. If I do pull the trigger it will most likely be the first though. The auxiliary amenities are just amazing. Beautiful tennis courts, a spa for my fiancé, great food and the members were incredibly friendly when I played with a few of them. They didn’t try to sell the club and instead shared all the good and bad gossip that I should know before making a decision.
Im looking at a club with similar pricing to the first and on the fence as well. Im sure I would love it for the next 5 years but its tough basically committing in perpetuity.
I haven’t played either, but my neighbor mentioned he prefers lessons with the pro at Cimarron vs our neighborhood course. May be a factor, especially with the practice facilities. I assume at a 10.1 you’re like me fighting to get in (and stay in) the single digits.
Lmao I pay $750/year for free golf April-November and a 25% discount for friends that are non members. Worth mentioning is that I live in Stockholm, Sweden Edit: that’s for 3 full length 18-hole courses, one 9-hole course and one 6-hole pitch n’ putt. Edit: lads it’s my second language cut me some slack, you all know what I meant with “free golf” lol
This blew my mind when I was in Ireland. No private clubs, and courses like lahinch are maybe a few thousand a year membership. I lived in Spain for a while and became a member at El Saler. My monthly payment was like 200 euros and got privileges to the resort. Championship course with many holes on the Mediterranean. All you could play and had a nude beach 😂
What do you mean by private clubs? Like is it because visitors are allowed to show up and pay a green fee that it’s not private? Cause our clubs are still private in the sense that you probably can’t just rock up to any club in the country, pay the fee and just be a member.
Correct, for example here if I wanted to play a private course in US, without being invited by a member there's no way to play. At least you're able to play as a visitor but I know to actually be a member there's a bit more involved. Also as far as I can tell there's no huge initiation fee either?
That's a fucking STEAL.
This is normal in Europe.
Why is a golf club membership so much cheaper in Europe?
Because they’re golf clubs, a lot of clubs in the us you pay for a litany of other things outside of golf. Also courses in Europe generally subsidize membership fees with outside play. There are still expensive/exclusive clubs there but it’s far less the norm. Probably the best example of the euro model in the us would be pasatiempo (elite course with limited expensive outside play)
Nowhere on earth does it make sense to pay hundreds of thousands of dollars to be part of a club unless they offer you a blowy every time you walk into the building
It does if it leads to you making a connection that gets you hundreds of thousands of dollars plus. But yes 95% of the time private membership will not make sense on a purely financial basis. In saying that it could still make sense if you heavily value aspects of the club you join.
Because a membership in Europe is more akin to being a member at a semi-private course here in the US. On top of that, US clubs are generally more than just golf clubs. They typically include social memberships, tennis, swimming pools, etc. That’s not really the case in Europe. Golf clubs are for golf, and social clubs are entirely separate.
I'll say it since noone else will. Europeans often have very low salaries compared to the US depending on the industry. Top ~10% in the US puts you in the top ~1% in just about every European country except like Switzerland.
It really is brother, especially seeing the crazy US prices. However, how playing golf works in Europe is rather different than the US as far as I can tell
Sounds like Golf South?
You need a roommate?
Scottsdale AZ - the most expensive golf Mecca in the country. $500k initiation, $2200/month dues.
The fuck
wtf
Which course? I’ll hook up a Stadium round if you can hook up yours
Trump Jupiter is something like $500k intiation and then $5k/month, this is hearsay. Coral Creek Club is $450k initiation and $4500/month and it's only open 9 months a year. This is fact, I know a grounds crew member. There's an airport on property that some LIV members fly into (Patrick Reed and Ian Poulter). Florida is definitely more expensive than Arizona for golf.
My Bro-in-law knows a caddy at Trump National so that’s a nice hookup, friend of a friend’s fiancé is a club pro at Frenchman’s, buddy knows a guy at Jupiter CC and buddy’s dad is a member at Eastpoint. Played Jupiter Hills a handful too. It’s good to grow up in Jupiter, FL even though I live in Orlando now.
Desert Mountain?
Don’t think DM is that much. Probably scott National or whisper rock or one of those
Greenskeeper at DM here. It's $125K initiation and $2500 a month in members' fees. Not as bad as OP, but still steep. Or you can cut grass and play for free.
This guy cuts 👊
Salute to a Greenskeeper. We so appreciate what you do for us.
Thanks! Means a lot. Huge team effort. I was blown away when I learned all that goes into keeping the grass growing and courses playable. 100s of hours of labor are required for each of our courses everyday. We host members 364 days a year in Carefree, AZ. I'm spoiled with where I get to work. Most folks in positions like mine don't have the funding for labor, maintenance, and ample equipment like we have at DM. The fees are steep, but they put food on the table for me and the >600 other employees that staff the courses, club houses, and restaurants in and among the community. And we get to have a little fun while we work. Definitely beats my old desk job, and far and away less stressful than working a corporate gig.
Not from the area but have played DM before. I was told (correct me if I'm wrong) that you have to have house in the community to be a member.
That’s my understanding. I know someone with a vacation home there. I’m lucky to get invited from time to time.
It’s like heaven.
If you want Riviera, and you don't want to be on the waiting list, initiation is $1M and dues are $50k/year.
Some of the clubs out by me on Long Island are even more expensive than this. I believe The Bridge is $750,000 initiation and Sebonack is supposedly going to hit $1 million initiation soon if it hasn’t already. Dues for each are roughly the same as by you though.
75k initiation and 12k a year in dues. But that’s Canadian so maybe 40 bucks of that American money.
Where in Canada are you? I’m in Vancouver and looking for a club. Most “good” private clubs are offering $1000x your age as initiation with about $600/month and about $250 quarterly F&B
Initiation: 3500 Obligation: 600/m + 600/y (f/b) - Includes: Unlimited (Range/Cart/Rounds) Amenities: Locker Room/Tennis/Swimming/Fitness Center/Full Bar and Restaurant/Full practice facility with grass range (and nice mats for when it’s soggy) *Orlando
What course is this?? I’m in the Orlando area and been looking for a place to play
Saaaame! The Dubsdread membership is a joke for how busy it is and you don’t even get priority on the range or for tee times (earlier booking but they’re always slammed).
Which sucks because I love the course. It’s just always insanely packed.
Orlando Davenport area champion gates about 3k a year
Semi-private club, best greens I’ve ever played on, $1500/year. Includes my food and beverage assessment.
Wheres that?
Looking at their history, I’d guess it’s [in Lewiston Idaho.](https://golflgcc.com/membership/)
Good golf if you can ignore the paper mill smell.
And living in fucking Idaho
DFW area has a semi private about the same level.
Good luck finding a private club in Michigan for less than $5000/year.
“Memberships” to municipal course in south Florida cost that much
I could not believe the spike in tee time prices when I visited south Florida last month, it’s not even fair.
Please stop visiting us, my local executive course that has sand for tee boxes is now $50 😭 At least I usually play an extra 18 for free so it balances out
Welcome to snowbird season!
Semi private, but definitely cheaper than that in the UP. Marquette golf club (includes greywalls and heritage courses) for me, plus heritage only for my wife, unlimited range and cart lease, and $300 to spend on food and drink (included from dues) will be right around 4k.
Had a tee time at Greywalls last September through a package at Island Resort. The weather was so bad they closed the course the day I was supposed to play there. 16 hours of driving, and didn't get to play the one course I wanted to play the most.
Rain? They don't close often, but I remember one or two heavy pours last summer that shut down. Those stay and plays are a great deal though.
Short season but damn I love both Greywalls and Heritage
I started playing last summer, ended up getting the half season membership at MGC which also gets me a discount on this years full membership.
Nice. I just did heritage last year (first year at mgc) pretty sure I'm doing the greywalls membership this year with the spouse on heritage option. Did NMU for a couple years before that. I don't know too many folks out there yet, so hit me up if you ever need a playing partner.
Well my golf club membership is $900 and if you want a bit of a nicer course nearby it’s $1115. That’s West Michigan counties though.
My old club in Metro Detroit (left last summer) was $235/month for the under 31 rate. Total bill averaged about $600/month though
Depends on age. Under 35 isn't too bad - the two Grosse Pointe clubs are under that annually, although fees to join are still about 4x that.
If you're on the west side of Michigan (Grand Rapids area) look into redwater collection. I was a member and before I moved out of state dues were 2700 for my age group 21-29 for access to like 5 or 6 really nice private courses and a couple semi-private gems as well. The cost for the older age brackets weren't terrible either.
4k a year… play mid March - Mid Nov
$50k initiation, $950/mo, $1200/quarter food and beverage minimum, $20 cart fee per round. And you can still barely get a tee time. Welcome to SoCal.
This is very similar to nice clubs in Birmingham, Alabama but maybe not quite as busy.
Dove or Coto?
Bella Collina in San Clemente is kind of a secret cheap private course, but many people do hate the layout of this course. It's like $7k initiation and $600/m. It's by far the cheapest you'll find in OC for a private course. Aliso the last time I heard was around $25k.
Only local CC in my small town is 1000 initiation and 200/month unlimited waking/pushcart golf,range,pool,lockerroom. 350/month if you want unlimited cart usage. $25 food minimum. Fairways are not in the greatest shape, but the greens are nice. I can always find tee times, and cart is $20 for 18.
Standard UK fees are about £1,200 a year. Which is still more expensive than just using teeofftimes to play 40 times a year.
Exactly how I do it too, played some great tracks around the country for £10-£25. I like the pot luck of it if I’m in a new place, or can pretty much play every course in the county for under £30. Book under an hour before tee off, makes so much more sense for me than a massive fee and the same course all year. That said I’m not into competitive golf and play for the escape so 75% of the time I play solo.
Exactly. I've been a member of a club when I got young persons discount and it was nice to be able to get Saturday morning tee times in advance. But, I askari live being able to play somewhere different each week.
Im renewing at an Edinburgh golf course just now for £550 a year (I still get a “young golfer rate” at 30 lol) which is on the lower end around here but I can justify paying that whilst regularly paying to play other courses on golfnow.
Thanks for the tip! Moving to the UK in may and was wondering what golf would look like.
Carnoustie is £650($800) a year for the 3 courses (Championship + 2 smaller courses) but you have to live in Angus to get a ticket. It's unlimited golf and you are almost guaranteed to get a round 3 out of 4 weeks in the ballot on a Saturday morning. Our club is about £60 ($75) per year but doesn't have its own clubhouse I think St Andrews might be slightly less and you get access to 7 courses including the Championship. Most of the publicly owned courses in Scotland will be similar
My food and beverage minimum amounts to about $2500/yr. As for dues, I plead the fifth.
local place near me is 2500/yr f&b minimum with 150k up front dues , is this accurate for you too
Clubs around me (the nice ones)would have that 150k up front, but would still have annual dues on top of the F+B minimum.
i’ve never been part of a club and i don’t understand the food and beverage minimum. doesn’t it mean you have to spend that much on food and beverage to remain a member?
You just have to pay $2500 a year wether you use it or not
No, it means they basically charge you $2,500 a year and you can credit your account when you eat / drink at the club. Once you go over it, you pay out of pocket. If not, they just keep the rest of the money. Same thing happens the following year.
You are charged for it regardless if you use it. No penalty because you are paying full amount. I know lots of guys that get lobster rolls and lamb chops the last week of the year.
Imagine on 1/1 you buy a gift card that expires on 12/31 at midnight and you can only use it for food and drinks. It’s usually pretty easy to hit if you use the club, allows them to staff up, and maintain operations even if nobody shows.
As someone who is ignorant of the ways of private clubs, do you pay that $2500 regardless of whether you eat there or not? If you get to the end of the year and have only spent $1000 do they just top up your bill to 2500?
Yes and yes. If you go over, you pay as you normally would.
>As someone who is ignorant of the ways of private clubs, do you pay that $2500 regardless of whether you eat there or not? Yes, it's usually a monthly fee you get billed for. Say it's $200 minimum monthly food and beverage. Eat or drink nothing, you pay $200. Eat or drink $150 worth, you pay $200. Eat or drink $300, you pay $300. And if you eat or drink nothing one month, and $400 the next month, you pay $200 + $400, or $600.
$600 per year, so $50 a month
That's amazing. I can't even play 1 round for $50
Finally a sensible reply. My club in Australia - $150 joining fee, $600au per year for men's membership, then you have a pay a few dollars if you play or comp feea. But it's just a golf course, not a country club.
I'm at $2,500 a year because I'm under 30. Next year, it'll jump to $4,800. Food and beverage minimums are $200/month. Once you factor in cart fees, tournament fees, and other miscellaneous expenses, I spent close to $10,000 last year, but I played 150+ rounds.
Flint Hills in KS - $2300/year for greens fees, cart and driving range for the whole family.
Flint hills is that cheap!?! I always assumed it was more like 2k per month. Seriously a phenomenal course
Most of these are ridiculous. Royal County Down here in Ireland is £5k a year and is consistently in the top 5 or 10 courses in the world. Wtaf is going down with US club membership prices?
USA private clubs are different by intentional design. They offer amenities that UK Clubs will not. This includes fitness facilities, Olympic size swim pools, tennis courts with different surface types, multiple full size restaurants, sports programs for the children that include swim team, dive team, tennis, golf and the list can continue. It's become a lifestyle and status membership. This does not apply to all clubs but these are what most are posting about. Then some USA residents are posting small annual amounts. My strong assumption is that these are annual passes at a public course.
Yeah this thread has my mouth wide open. People here paying decades worth of golf just to play 1 season, bonkers
It’s a status thing over here.
I pay 925 a month, plus f&b minimum spend Edit: San Jose, CA
Where’s this? I live in SJ. Sounds appealing.
San Jose Country Club. Feel free to DM me if you want more info
USD 5.5k that's on the lower end
I pay £64 a month for a club with an 18 and a 9 hole course, includes a gym, pool, sauna. This is in England though.
Cheapest private I can find within 20 minutes of Boston (west/SW). Does have excellent reciprocity with other clubs nationally and international benefits as well. https://preview.redd.it/1dz0enhpv9da1.jpeg?width=3072&format=pjpg&auto=webp&v=enabled&s=7a37ce397103e71ad4908e798ca44b6eee7b2db2
Damn. How is that course? The prices around here fucking skyrocketed in the last 5 years.
Course was nice when I played. 27 holes, 18 championship seasonal, 9open year round, nice practice facility, pool for the summer, doing clubhouse renovations this winter. No bad holes. Also no water in play, so a few extra bunkers. I held off on joining because there are whispers of major pullbacks of private club membership around here. In 2010-12 some clubs cut their fees in half to draw members in. Not sure we see that sort of pullback but I can be patient and just keep hitting McGolf for practice.
I live by Oakmont… so, naturally I play a muni that’s $1200/year
I live in a popular ski/summer destination. 325k initiation. 950/mo. Fun course. Amazing staff. Great food. Fantastic social events.
Jackson Hole? Tahoe?
The nicest clubs in Birmingham, AL are $25k-$100k non equity buy in and $900-$1200/month including F&B. There are some good clubs you can get away with $5k buy in and $600/month though. Worth mentioning we do get year round golf here. Just hot and humid as hell in the summer.
I've seen Birmingham specially mentioned a few times now... why so much for a city that (I thought) is in a MCOL area?
I’d call it a LCOL.
RTJ?
RTJ is public except 1 location. I’ve played most of the trail sites and they’re all top tier and reasonably priced, mostly <$100. They’re not on the same level as our private clubs but they do a phenomenal job with those courses. If you get a chance to take a golf trip to Alabama those course and also my next suggestion is Pursell Farms Farmlinks in Sylacauga is where you wanna go.
10k initiation and 6.5k a year
$112.05 a month for unlimited golf with a cart. Reduced fees into our tournaments too. Men's club membership is 40 bucks a year. I'm in south central KS in a community of 3800 with an 18-hole par 71 course. Zoysia fairways and bentgrass greens. GPS on the carts too.
$3300/yr plus $50/mo food in NM, under 40 plan.
Houston, TX $400 a month for Monday through Thursday golf only. Can use the practice facilities anytime. Grandfathered in for this membership because they don’t offer it anymore. Works well for me because I don’t usually golf on the weekend and I play every Monday through Thursday and practice Friday morning. This place also has 2 different courses.
Do you mind DMing the club? Understand it’s not offered but have been looking for something similar. Thanks in advance
I’m a full member here and joined before they offered the weekday deal. It’s a steal. Unfortunately rubbed a lot of the full members the wrong way when weekday guys were paying guest or public rates on the weekends and paying less than full membership.
$300 initiation and $160 a month. No food and bev mins. Portland oregon.
How are some of these prices so extreme? In the U.K. I would say over 95% of golf clubs would be less than £1500 a year for unlimited golf. Many are less than £700. Where is the money going if you’re paying over $2500 per year? Seems insane to me. Are they proprietary clubs making huge profits from members?
Most of the higher end clubs *typically* double as social clubs as well so there are more expenses to add in like a full service restaurant, pool, etc.
20k initiation fee and roughly 9k a year in dues at my club
SW Virginia = $1,500 initiation, $489/month includes $40/month F&B minimums Central Florida = $3,000 initiation (paid in 2018), $315/month with $225/quarter F&B minimum and $80/qtr range fee
Y’all are members?
I pay £980 for a course just outside Glasgow and £260-300 (cant remember its such good value I dont even check the price of renewal)for a links trust membership because I say I stay at my parents address in St Andrews. £280 for 8 courses as many times as I want is ridiculous, plus I get on Kingsbarns for like 30quid. I get guest points as well for all the links trust courses that discount the price for anyone I bring on, I believe its like 60-70 for the Old Course as my guest, then even cheaper for the "better" courses like the New, Jubilee etc.
* Live in Pittsburgh, PA. * Belong to Williams CC in Weirton WV * Get the “Regional” rate >30mi away * ~$3,500 per year total broken out: * No Initiation * $180/mo + $50 F&B * $535/yr Golf Services fee
£1,200 annually. No food or beverage minimum each month or anything American style! Unlimited golf year round, although it’s normally waterlogged for a couple of months a year over winter.
Full golf initiation fee (non equity) is $27,000. Yearly membership dues are $14,000 + $400/qtr food minimums. So after the initiation fee it’s at minimum $1300/mo. We spend roughly $2000/mo in the off season and closer to $3500/mo May-Oct for dues, food, and other programs (tennis, league, cloths, kids stuff).
$1800 a year in Canada. Unlimited range access and 14 day advanced bookings and guest discounts. Course has 2 full length 18's. Will say I have an intermediate deal where I can't book between 7-10am
I pay CDN$5,000 a year at my club. Private club with reciprocal memberships at around 15 other clubs. \- My home course is two 18 hole course. 36 holes total. \-Conditions are pretty good. Could be better for what I pay. \- Getting a tee time is pretty easy after the May rush. \- Nice natural grass range with ulimited balls. Nice short game practice range as well. \- club house is not bad. Proshop, nice restaurant and bar. Staff is friendly and professional. Showers, towel service, steam room. Locker rooms are fully stocked with toiletry products. etc etc. \- They got rid of the bar tab since COVID. But we have been warned it's coming back in 2025. $700/yr. \- 10min drive from my house. Only bullshit is that I live above the snow line. So it's only open May-Oct.
Most fees in Dublin Ireland are around 1000-1500 euros but some clubs you have to pay once off membership entrance which can range anywhere from 2000 -25000 euro
$450 a month so usually $7500 a year after food, booze, cart fees . Totally worth it
Clubs here in near NYC are going for that rate and even higher.
My club in Monterey Co is $500init + $400/mo. Full playing privileges for myself, my gf and my “step brother” roommate…. So sad i have to leave
NW Georgia Raynor course. 40k initiation. $900 per month Comes with tennis and pool and other club stuff
5.5k annual. It's the cheapest one in my area. The course is great and the local activity is super high making for fun meetings/chance encounters. It offers year round play. Monterey bay area for those interested . Most in the area are 10k plus annuals.
$200/year + $16/round for each round I ride.
175$ at a public course in VA
There’s a course in Palm Desert, CA that you must own a house in the country club to become a member and the cheapest home is around $1million, then membership I believe is another $250k initiation fee, plus $2500 a month. And because of the location it’s basically only playable from November to April at best before the daily temp goes over 100°f.
I paid $216 for a two year membership in minnesota. Not the greatest course, but better than some in the area.
350 a year north wilts Wiltshire england
Illinois. Private, downstroke 25k, monthly dues 1k, average monthly bill 2.5k monthly. Rounds per year 114. Swim, tennis, golf and the closest bar and restaurant to my house(I live across the street from it).
I pay $1000 aud for a year membership, plus discounted carts for when i play 18. Melbourne, Australia.
Live in a rural town of about 20k in nsw Australia, course is ok... better then most rural courses, pretty well maintained. I pay $900aud a year for unlimited walk-on golf.
Singleton NSW is $495 per year. Great little course
100k initiation 925 a month
East end of Long Island NY, currently $50k initiation and about $9k a year. No minimums but pay for cart or to walk. Still significantly less than most other courses which are often $250k+ initiation but you need to be invited and highly connected.
I pay 950/year Inclues play and range. No cart