[JeffJ]

What are your monthly's and what do you get for it?

To me the initiation is a sunk cost and you cant really worry about it. I am thinking about joing a semi-private course that has $210 a month plus $20 per round for cart or $300 month carts included. The course is less than a mile and three minuted from the house. Great shape.

For the monthly you get:

- unlimited golf for me only. Kids under 10 are free.
- handicapping
- unlimited range and member only area
- 15% proshop discount
- $45 friend and family rates when they play with you. Rates are normally $90-100.
- blocked primetime tee times w/ 14 day advance
- member only clinics with good teaching staff
- mens league, weekly games and sunday skins

I am forgetting some stuff.

[KTS1010]

For our semi-private course the fees and benifits are as follows:

Individual: 198 a month

Family: 208 a month

Membership Benifits:

• Member Charging Privileges
  
• May reserve Tee Times 14 days in advance
  
• May participate in Member Tournaments and in the Men's and Women's Golf Association
  
• Yearly range program available
  
• Yearly Member Lockers available
  
• Members Only Walking Privileges
  
• 20% Discount on Golf Shop Merchandise
  
• Special Pricing on Food and Beverage
  
• May participate in monthly Social Events
  
• Couples Golf Night Weekly
  
• Weekly Stag Night
  
• Member Appreciation Social Gatherings
  
• Monthly Member Specialty Dinner
  
• Discounts at Area Theaters and Restaurants
  
• Members receive a special rate to reserve the Clubhouse
  
• Complimentary use of Conference Rooms during Club operating hours
  
• Special Member Guest rates

Do not get unlimited range balls except for another yearly fee and carts cost $20 or a yearly fee.

[hbear]

Wow that's pretty cheap for a private course....

Not sure where you guys are located but at the private course I play at our yearly dues are just under 5k....with a minimum $700 food/beverage spending/year.
Nevermind the share/transfer fees....25-30k total.

To add, we only get to play 5-6 months a year!

Actually I re-read your post and still for semi-private we generally run about 3200/year here in Alberta.

[Double Gee]

My course is on the outskirts of LOndon, UK.

Annual fee of £1300 (around $2400) for 7 day membership.

Unlimited golf with my guests paying a reduced green-fee of £15.
Cheaper Bar/drinks prices.
As much competition golf as you could possible desire etc etc.

If you live outside of London then the same can be had for a yearly fee starting from £450 !!

[silliwilli]

My course is home to a Champions Tour Event.

$1500 a year
$200 minimum yearly spend in bar.

Unlimited golf and competitions
Reduced Fees for guests
2 practice putting greens and large short game area
Grass Range
15% discount on bar and restuarant.

[yuck]

Private, $260 a month for family (Kids must be students if between 19 and 24 years old), no food and beverage minimum, unlimited range balls. year round golf. Carts not included but you have a choice to walk, pull cart, rent a elec cart or pay a trail fee and us your own. Downside, non equity club, so initiation fee is not refundable. I have lived around the country and private golf costs are hugely variable, especially initiation fees, not just by region, but by current economic conditions. I have seen initiation fees from 1000 to 40,000 and monthly rates from 200 to near 700. The rates and initiation fees have not necessarily been correlated with the quality of the course, more closely tied to local supply and demand.

[sedowney]

Private club, for the family 10K initiation, 295/month dues, 35/month food and bev minimum. Range is included, all the balls I can hit, 2 putting greens, short game green, and 3 hole par 9 course for shorth game/kids as well. Cart fee is 10-15 bucks. The food is fantastic, oh yeah the golf is great too lol.

[Marbelizer]

I think i got it made, Im sporting 2 golf club memberships, the first is $500cdn a year cause its a military base, and the 2nd is 550 a year cause i have dual memberships. Little do they know but i got my money out of both of them about 20 rounds ago. Its nice cause i can golf where ever i like and never worry about tournys.

that and its good to get away from the base for a while.

[SteveL1]

Prices quoted above seem really cheap. Around here, St. Louis, MO, I don't think there is a private course that isn't at least $350/month + restaraunt/bar minimums up to $500/month, not to mention the $7,500 to $60,000 initialtion fees.

I was a member at one of the more modest clubs in town back in the early '90s and my monthly costs averaged around $500 once you figure in a few lunches and dinners.

[QWKDTSN]

$300 initiation (military, normally $600)
$112 /month dues (military, normally around $145)

Includes all the golf you can play
Year range pass $175 all the balls you can hit (normally $2-5 for buckets)

Membership includes clubhouse access.

Additional fees for handicap tracking, personal locker in the locker room, cart rental (I never rent, but $18 to rent, I think?)

My club is semi-private and doesn't offer much other than golf - no pool or extravagant clubhouse. Just a nice little place to relax after the round, drink some inexpensively priced beers, order great food from the kitchen, and watch TGC on the big screen. Nice little practice green with a bunker, and a pitching green. Marginal range, to be honest.

Greens fees are $32 so, being a member, I get my member's dues worth of golf in a week, easy. If I were paying by the round I would be in trouble...

[againstthegrain]

Not many of us including myself are gonna post those numbers here. The prices above all seem like a huge bargain compared to the coasts or major metropolitan areas where expenses are very high. Clubs cost a huge amount to run. In an area where it's not a year round virtually all the revenue is generated in ~7 - 9 months, but expenses are year round so that is another factor.

[choeppner]

I got lucky on mine. Membership is normally $500.00 down and $95.00 a month.

Owner cut me a deal, and we did 0 down and $80 a month. Membership includes:

Greens Fees paid for the month.
* $ 12.84 cart fee per round, regardless if riding in a homeowner's cart.
* Unlimited use of the driving range.
* Handicap priviledges.
* 20% discount off retail price on apparel, bags and clubs in pro shop.
* 10% discount on lunch at Creekside Grill.
* Member only tournaments and functions.

-Chris

[63Brummie]

Double Gee, on Aug 20 2008, 02:57 AM, said:

My course is on the outskirts of LOndon, UK.

Annual fee of £1300 (around $2400) for 7 day membership.

Unlimited golf with my guests paying a reduced green-fee of £15.
Cheaper Bar/drinks prices.
As much competition golf as you could possible desire etc etc.

If you live outside of London then the same can be had for a yearly fee starting from £450 !!

Where are you a member?
63Brummie
fairways and greens

[stellablue14]

I am a member of a private country club, initiation 25K, annual dues 15K, monthly food minimum $200, monthly misc. charges $225. I get full golf, tennis, pool and house.

[Under99]

The three clubs I'm familiar with (not a member) are all about $500/month, with small food minimum that you easily hit.
These are resort quality courses in the Midwest
Initiation is $5000, $18,000, and $63,000

I've heard another club, well-respected, is $5000 init, and $350/month.

I don't know what "semi-private" is, but I would think that anything less than full private should come at a huge discount, like, maybe $2000/year including carts .

We have many courses that offer "all you can play" annual memberships, but are open to the public on a per-round basis, and these are about $2000 for the good courses (under $1000 / year for the goat tracks)

I don't know where you live but $300/month seems high to me if you're paying year-round.

[bub72ck]

I belong to a private club in Southwest Virginia. Not nice enough to host a major tournament but we have bermuda fairways, good rolling greens, and the grounds are well maintained.

$1,000 initiation (i was a second generation member so the fee was waived)
$115.00 monthly dues with no food minimum
$3 for ranges balls or $25 per month for unlimited
$12 for cart fee but the course is walkable

We have no tee times and thats the way its always been. Very rarely is there a problem as people get in line and wait their turn. One of my friends teaches lessons 5 days a week and he is very good. We also have a swimming pool, dining room, and snack bar.

Overall I think I have a great deal. My wife and I both play 3-7 rounds a week so the monthly dues are well spent.

[kklick]

Highlands golf membership

The junior membership is a steal. 124 a month, no minimums, unlimited range, no cart included. 25.00 initation fee is pretty good deal as well.

[bumaverick]

WOW!!! I envy a lot of you guys for what you pay. My course is really nice and 96 years old, 36 holes, nice clubhouse, grass range etc., no bookings required.

Initial dues: $20K
Yearly dues: $5K
Bar tab: $700 min/ year
This is for a full share membership. A buddy has another membership class and only pays about $4K in dues.

But what pisses me off is that i pay all this to play 6-months out of the year. The other 6 months the course is filled with snow

I used to live in Hong Kong for 3 years and was a member at the Clearwater Bay Club. All i can tell you is that you need a mortgage for the initiation fee... Plus monthly dues were around $1K a month. My company was renting a members membership for me to play...

[wolfgame]

$8k initiation....$300 Month, $40 food minimum per month, $15 Carts, $12 Locker....golf, tennis, pool, range. All amenities available to myself, wife and kids.

[hurricanewarning]

They are offering me $325 monthly dues and a initiation fee of 9,000 (non-refundable) and I have 2 years to pay the entire amount.
That includes $20.00 Green Fees
20% discount in proshop and the 3 resort restaurants.
2 Pools, Tennis, I hace access to the resort beach and Fitness Center
Unlimited use of the driving range, locker room and members lounge.
And all the benefits are shared with my wife (she doesnt play golf but can certainly enjoy the other perks while I play)
It's a resort links golf courses in very nice condition, playable all 12 months of the year no problem. The only thing holding me is that I'm currently playing it at the twitlight rate of only $42 bucks. The bad about that is that as you might imagine the course gets a little crowded around the twilight time which is at 3:30 PM. This is the only club I have nearby so I have nothing to compare it with, I dunno what you guys think.

[cherokee8215]

Mine is:

Single "junior" golf membership (under age 35) at a fully private club. 18 hole course plus a 9 hole "practice" course that plays to about 2,400 yards.

Only restriction is I can't tee off before noon on weekends on the 18-holer, which works out well for me. To get that privledge is another $100/mo.
$340/month including unlimited carts. However, as I do, you can walk and carry your bag or use a pullcart anytime at no charge.
Spouse or children under 23 can play free on the 18 holer any day in the afternoons. More privledges available for them for more $$.
Myself, spouse, children under 23 can play the 9-holer with no tee time restrictions.
Unlimited use of pool, driving range, and tennis for me, spouse, & children under 23. Locker and bag storage for me alone is included.
Full dining facility - formal dining room and more casual grill/pub plus patio and poolside dining in the summer.
We have reciprocal privledges with 3 clubs within 45 minutes of here. We can play them for just a cart fee (you can still walk though).

There is a food & alcohol minimum of $75/mo. Also an annual assessment that ranges from $300-$600 per year.

Nonrefundable initiation used to be $12,000 for full voting members and $5,000 for juniors. That was 5-10 years ago. Now it's $3,000 for full voting members and $1,000 for juniors.

[fore_life]

Semi-Private

I got in when they had no initiation fee, so that saved me 3 grand.
$200/month for unlimited golf/range on the regulation 18 course and the exectutive 18, which happens to be the home of the Arizona Short Course Open.
Cart fee is extra. No minimums in the bar/grill. 25% off the proshop, 14 day tee times, guests of members get the lowest prevailing rate, either 50% off rack rate or lowest available special.
All kinds of tourneys, 3 weekly skins games, twilight scrambles, lots of cool stuff. The company who owns the property bought The Duke in Maricopa a few months back, so now we can play there for a cart fee only. New properties are in the works as well.

Overall, I play golf about 3-5 times a week, 18-36 holes. In the summer it pretty much breaks even but in the winter I feel like Im robbing the place blind.

[matpatsheehy]

My monthly is $210 plus a $50 food minimum and a $10 cap renewal. Total of $270. This is until I am 40 and then the monthly goes up to $400.

My yearly costs are $85 for bag storage, $225 for range fee, and $100 for locker.

I had no initiation when I joined because the club was running a special and looking for Intermediate / Younger members.

The club has a full range, a beautiful eighteen hole golf course, a beautiful locker room and men's grill, a pool, and plenty of dining space / banquet space. It is close to the city and takes about 10 minutes to get there.

I pay $20 to use a cart, can walk for free after 5 p.m. any day of the week, or I can take a caddy.

Great staff and always a game to go around.

[odshot68]

there is a BIG DIFFERENCE between a semi-private and private club. At my private club I can walk out and play almost anytime (exception of member events and few outings) versus semi-private where you have to make tee times and get stuck behind public play (who are hacks many of times) and getting 18 holes in after work...semi-private is public IMO...

[sefty7]

Play a a private course, and since I'm 21 I fall into their Intermediate category as far as membership. $1,300 for the summer which includes unlimited range. Anytime Monday-Friday, after 2 Saturday-Sunday. No mimimum spending, unlimited amount of guests (each individual only 6 times though), club storage/washing, locker room.
Biggest bonus is that the course is moving summer 2011 to what is supposed to be one of the top courses in Canada.
Plus everytime I go to the course I get to drool a bit in the parking lot looking at some of the vehicles.

[hurricanewarning]

odshot68, on Jul 30 2009, 12:11 PM, said:

there is a BIG DIFFERENCE between a semi-private and private club. At my private club I can walk out and play almost anytime (exception of member events and few outings) versus semi-private where you have to make tee times and get stuck behind public play (who are hacks many of times) and getting 18 holes in after work...semi-private is public IMO...

I agree that semi-private is almost public. I'd definitly go private if I could, but I don't have any in a 100 mile radio, even when I have plenty of golf clubs around, non or them are all private. I've hear so many good things about private club members that just makes me wish I had one nearby. There were only 2 private clubs in my state but they are both going pubic 2 days a week because they need new sources of income.

[volrus]

Just curious how you guys justify your memberships. I have tried hard to justify a membership to my local public (semi-private as some of you all call it) course, but just can't (just ask my wife). I guess I don't play enough.

The course has a $3k initiation fee which is throw away money and $300/month dues. This includes range balls, no cart fees, 10% pro shop discount, etc. The daily fee at the course is $45. So, given these numbers I would have to play twice a week EVERY WEEK OF THE YEAR just to break even and that doesn't even include the $3k initiation. I don't know about you guys, but I'm lucky to play once and sometimes twice a week during the "golf season" and hardly at all during the winter months. So really, I would have to play 3 or 4 times a week during the golf season to make the numbers work.

Do you all play that much? If so, I'm assuming you're single with no kids

[CPSOX]

volrus, on Jul 30 2009, 08:59 PM, said:

Just curious how you guys justify your memberships. I have tried hard to justify a membership to my local public (semi-private as some of you all call it) course, but just can't (just ask my wife). I guess I don't play enough.

The course has a $3k initiation fee which is throw away money and $300/month dues. This includes range balls, no cart fees, 10% pro shop discount, etc. The daily fee at the course is $45. So, given these numbers I would have to play twice a week EVERY WEEK OF THE YEAR just to break even and that doesn't even include the $3k initiation. I don't know about you guys, but I'm lucky to play once and sometimes twice a week during the "golf season" and hardly at all during the winter months. So really, I would have to play 3 or 4 times a week during the golf season to make the numbers work.

Do you all play that much? If so, I'm assuming you're single with no kids

I don't think I'd ever join a semi-private because of the reasons you mentioned. Why buy the cow....just to watch everyone else skim the milk. I'd have a hard time watching a group w/ no skin in the game disrespect the course in even the slightest way while sending a dues check in every month.

However, I'm very guilty of buying into the fully private thing....my local membership is a full country club w/ big clubhouse/pool/tennis/ and 2 great courses. I'm also a national member of a "golf club" that's about 2.5 hours away. Very difficult course, most members are single digits. On top of that, I jumped at the opportunity to join a world renowned club that's a few states away just this summer.

How do I justify it? I don't gamble/drink (much)/smoke/drugs or any other major vice. My wife is a teacher, she uses the local club a ton during the summer. I can play anytime I want with a wave to the staff as I head to the first tee. Come and go as I please and can treat friends to great golf experiences. If I tried to cost-justify my 3 sets of dues, I'd quit them all tomorrow....but there are so many benefits over just trying to play golf the cheapest you can that a private club provides.

I'm not single....but definitely no kids (yet!).

[fore_life]

I wouldnt have been able to join my semi-private place if it wasnt for tehm waiving the initiation fee. $200 a month is good for me considering its so close to home, and I play about 4 times a week. Ive posted like 90 rounds already this year, and have probably played about 130??????

I dont know if I'd fit in at a full private anyways. Im the youngest member at the course (27).

[Bluefan75]

volrus, on Jul 30 2009, 09:59 PM, said:

Just curious how you guys justify your memberships. I have tried hard to justify a membership to my local public (semi-private as some of you all call it) course, but just can't (just ask my wife). I guess I don't play enough.

The course has a $3k initiation fee which is throw away money and $300/month dues. This includes range balls, no cart fees, 10% pro shop discount, etc. The daily fee at the course is $45. So, given these numbers I would have to play twice a week EVERY WEEK OF THE YEAR just to break even and that doesn't even include the $3k initiation. I don't know about you guys, but I'm lucky to play once and sometimes twice a week during the "golf season" and hardly at all during the winter months. So really, I would have to play 3 or 4 times a week during the golf season to make the numbers work.

Do you all play that much? If so, I'm assuming you're single with no kids

I'm on a trial this year, and have been keeping track just to see. What is nice is the place I'm at also includes club storage and locker in your dues. You don't pay extra for those things, so that is nice.

I've conservatively valued things this way(this is Canada btw): a bucket of balls, the amount I hit cost me $9 at a diving range, 9 holes would cost me $30, and I put 18 holes at $50. I am very likely shortchanging the 18 holes in particular when considering what I would have to pay to play a course of similar quality. YOu can play from April until NOvember around here(sometimes you get lucky in March). Using the metric above I've already played enough golf to make up 70% of the dues I paid this year, and that is with April being a near write-off due to the weather we had).

But the value goes beyond that. I never played 9 holes after work last year. I had no interest in rushing to a course, hoping I can get in the right spot in the cattle line so that the slow play that is sure to ensue does not keep me out there past dark. I had no interest in having top fight for a rain check if it rained. My game has improved significantly from the fact I am playing/practicing 2-3 night a week after work alone. Can you put a dollar figure on that? I don't know, but to me, there is huge value in that alone.

Not having to bring my clubs back and forth all the time is a real plus, although I have had issues with how the kids clean the clubs, but I could always clean them myself.

If you are looking to improve, and possibly try to compete in some tournaments, there is value in the fact that you have paid your dues, so you better use it. The weather this season has pretty much sucked all year. I can only imagine I would have played 25% of the amount I have played, due to the simple fact as a public player, if the weather was dicey, I didn't go. I didn't want to pay the money and then get screwed by the weather. With the membership, I go out and play, and learn to deal with the elements(because they don't suspend tournament play at the first sign of rain), and I can hang around if it gets too bad, and then head back out.

It has been stated many times on this site: You can use the amount of play to justify a fair bit of the dues/costs associated with joining a club, but you will never fully justify it on play alone. There are other factors that come into play that may or may not have value for you.

[retep]

mine is 540/month usd.
cart if you don't walk is 19$
range is extra or a plan if you want
chipping area/sand/putting area all included
150/quarter for food minimum.

Bottom line? not worth it. why? cause you miss playing other courses too much. How can it be worth it? when you make enough dough that you can drop 30-120/round without thinking anything of it while you are paying for your own club... i'm guessing that is 2x what i make now!!!

i guess it is all proportional to what you make money wise...

[toms1090]

after you pay an initiation fee and your monthly dues, do some still have to pay a greens fees? I think the OP said they did.

[cherokee8215]

Here's one way I justify private club membership, in addition to the many good friends I've made at my club:

Due to work constraints (I work a 40 hour job plus have a side business), I am generally only available to play golf during the week after 5pm or on weekends after noon. Playing my local public courses (with the exeception of one that's a total dog track that barely qualifies as golf) after 4pm on weekdays is virtually impossible because they all have leagues that send people off both nines from 4 to 7pm. Sure, maybe they could sqeeze you in, but you won't get more than 9 holes done before dark. On the weekends, playing public courses in the afternoons in my area is a guaranteed 5-5.5 hour round.

At the times I am able to play, my club is pretty much deserted. I can tee off at 2pm on a Saturday, finish 18 holes in less than 3.5 hours, and maybe play through a couple of groups (almost everyone lets faster players through at my club). I can tee off alone at 6pm on a weeknight and get 18 in before dark, walking. To me that is priceless. I am able to play 100+ rounds a year because of this. I have a lot of other expenses I'd cut before dropping my membership if I had to. I'd buy my golf shirts from the Salvation Army and ride a bicycle to the course if I had to.

[openwater32]

cherokee8215, on Jul 31 2009, 12:51 PM, said:

Here's one way I justify private club membership, in addition to the many good friends I've made at my club:

Due to work constraints (I work a 40 hour job plus have a side business), I am generally only available to play golf during the week after 5pm or on weekends after noon. Playing my local public courses (with the exeception of one that's a total dog track that barely qualifies as golf) after 4pm on weekdays is virtually impossible because they all have leagues that send people off both nines from 4 to 7pm. Sure, maybe they could sqeeze you in, but you won't get more than 9 holes done before dark. On the weekends, playing public courses in the afternoons in my area is a guaranteed 5-5.5 hour round.

At the times I am able to play, my club is pretty much deserted. I can tee off at 2pm on a Saturday, finish 18 holes in less than 3.5 hours, and maybe play through a couple of groups (almost everyone lets faster players through at my club). I can tee off alone at 6pm on a weeknight and get 18 in before dark, walking. To me that is priceless. I am able to play 100+ rounds a year because of this. I have a lot of other expenses I'd cut before dropping my membership if I had to. I'd buy my golf shirts from the Salvation Army and ride a bicycle to the course if I had to.

+1

[Blues Golfer]

I pay less than 300 a month for a full membership at a private club (including a minor food minimum). Golf, tennis, pool, bar and dining room. You can fish in the ponds if you like. Driving range, chipping green, putting green. In NC you can play year-round. Handicap service. Beer is cheap in the bar.

I paid 4k initiation.

Annual range plan under 250.

Annual cart plan (I walk, I don't buy it) is 1200 or so. Cart fee is 14 I think, less for nine.

It's very easy to justify this.
1. I play as often as I like, always the same price.
2. I play when I want and can, not when they have a time.
3. A slow round is 4 hours. Getting on is a problem between seldom and never.
4. 12 minutes from home.
5. A family of four, for one weekend round, with two carts, on any public course in this region, is OVER 200 bucks. For just ONE round. When you are teaching your kids to play golf, THAT is impossible on a middle class salary today. (yes a few courses have kid discounts, one has no fee with an adult. That is still 100 bucks per round.)
6. Major family time.

The best part is, the course is phenomenally kept, and the golf is great.

Like someone else said, I'd give up just about anything to keep that membership.

[volrus]

Blues Golfer, on Jul 31 2009, 09:37 PM, said:

I pay less than 300 a month for a full membership at a private club (including a minor food minimum). Golf, tennis, pool, bar and dining room. You can fish in the ponds if you like. Driving range, chipping green, putting green. In NC you can play year-round. Handicap service. Beer is cheap in the bar.

I paid 4k initiation.

Annual range plan under 250.

Annual cart plan (I walk, I don't buy it) is 1200 or so. Cart fee is 14 I think, less for nine.

It's very easy to justify this.
1. I play as often as I like, always the same price.
2. I play when I want and can, not when they have a time.
3. A slow round is 4 hours. Getting on is a problem between seldom and never.
4. 12 minutes from home.
5. A family of four, for one weekend round, with two carts, on any public course in this region, is OVER 200 bucks. For just ONE round. When you are teaching your kids to play golf, THAT is impossible on a middle class salary today. (yes a few courses have kid discounts, one has no fee with an adult. That is still 100 bucks per round.)
6. Major family time.

The best part is, the course is phenomenally kept, and the golf is great.

Like someone else said, I'd give up just about anything to keep that membership.

So you don't pay any extra for pool, family playing golf? That's an awesome deal, if I got all that at a club here in TN I'd be all over it, but there aren't ANY deals like that around here.

[ezra76]

I need to move.

Private course under a corporate membership.

Mon. - Fri. unlimited golf
Carts are $18/round with 30 mandatory for the membership
Food requirement is $100 and does not include tax, gratuity or alcohol. We are charged a 15% automatic gratuity but doesn't count towards the $100.
I purchased the range pass, $170 extra
Handicap was supposed to be $25 but they threw it in.
Guests are $50/round

My boss is in good with the Pro so we get weekend afternoons occasionally. We've also gotten a few reciprocal rounds at other private courses that are far more expensive.

I pay $208/month plus the food, so $308 a month. It will never be $308 a month though. My bill for July is over $600. Then again, I did play over 20 rounds of golf plus meals. The range pass is on that bill along with some carts and about $100 in beer. I'm going to cut out the drinking though. When you get right down to it, I'm still saving money. The decent public tracks are $35-$45 to walk. So if I'd played that many rounds at the "average" public price it'd be $800. Plus I hit a few thousand range balls.

[ezra76]

openwater32, on Jul 31 2009, 02:16 PM, said:

cherokee8215, on Jul 31 2009, 12:51 PM, said:

Here's one way I justify private club membership, in addition to the many good friends I've made at my club:

Due to work constraints (I work a 40 hour job plus have a side business), I am generally only available to play golf during the week after 5pm or on weekends after noon. Playing my local public courses (with the exeception of one that's a total dog track that barely qualifies as golf) after 4pm on weekdays is virtually impossible because they all have leagues that send people off both nines from 4 to 7pm. Sure, maybe they could sqeeze you in, but you won't get more than 9 holes done before dark. On the weekends, playing public courses in the afternoons in my area is a guaranteed 5-5.5 hour round.

At the times I am able to play, my club is pretty much deserted. I can tee off at 2pm on a Saturday, finish 18 holes in less than 3.5 hours, and maybe play through a couple of groups (almost everyone lets faster players through at my club). I can tee off alone at 6pm on a weeknight and get 18 in before dark, walking. To me that is priceless. I am able to play 100+ rounds a year because of this. I have a lot of other expenses I'd cut before dropping my membership if I had to. I'd buy my golf shirts from the Salvation Army and ride a bicycle to the course if I had to.

+1

Well said here. The main reason I joined was to play more golf in less time. I've walked 18 there in 3hrs. many times. My buddy was amazed. He has to work 2nd shift and is always worried about finishing in time. We teed off at 8:30, played 18, hit range balls, had lunch and he was out of there by 12:30. Same deal around here with the public courses and leagues. I've started a routine where if I'm working, I try to get there by 5-5:30. I hit the range to work on my swing or go to the practice green on alternating days, then play 9. If I don't have work, I play 27 and have lunch after 18. Played 36 a few times but that puts a beating on me walking.

[Blues Golfer]

volrus, on Jul 31 2009, 10:50 PM, said:

Blues Golfer, on Jul 31 2009, 09:37 PM, said:

I pay less than 300 a month for a full membership at a private club (including a minor food minimum). Golf, tennis, pool, bar and dining room. You can fish in the ponds if you like. Driving range, chipping green, putting green. In NC you can play year-round. Handicap service. Beer is cheap in the bar.

I paid 4k initiation.

Annual range plan under 250.

Annual cart plan (I walk, I don't buy it) is 1200 or so. Cart fee is 14 I think, less for nine.

It's very easy to justify this.
1. I play as often as I like, always the same price.
2. I play when I want and can, not when they have a time.
3. A slow round is 4 hours. Getting on is a problem between seldom and never.
4. 12 minutes from home.
5. A family of four, for one weekend round, with two carts, on any public course in this region, is OVER 200 bucks. For just ONE round. When you are teaching your kids to play golf, THAT is impossible on a middle class salary today. (yes a few courses have kid discounts, one has no fee with an adult. That is still 100 bucks per round.)
6. Major family time.

The best part is, the course is phenomenally kept, and the golf is great.

Like someone else said, I'd give up just about anything to keep that membership.

So you don't pay any extra for pool, family playing golf? That's an awesome deal, if I got all that at a club here in TN I'd be all over it, but there aren't ANY deals like that around here.

Nope, nothing more. the pool is part of the full membership, and my monthly rate is a family rate. If we take a cart, we pay for it. If we walk, nothing more.

Yes, I know I am very lucky to live so close to such a great club.

[dpb5031]

Sounds like some reasonable deals out there. I live in NJ (where everything is EXPENSIVE) and belong to a private, non equity club. I joined 15 years ago pre-construction and paid a $5000 non refundable initiation. I think it is around $20 or $25k now.

Our dues are paid annually, not monthly. Here is the breakdown:

Dues: $7200 annual - family membership includes unlimited golf for all of us (although only my 10 year old daughter and I play.) We also have a nice pool/swim club. (a single golf membership is around $6k)

Carts: Net out to $25 for 18 hole 1/2 cart with tax, but we can walk for no charge at any time except club sponsored tournaments.

Food Minimum: $100 per month food only.

They also nickel and dime me for a full sized locker, club storage and GHIN fee...plus they absolutely rape us on drinks.

As a rule of thumb, if you spend a lot of time at your club, you can figure on spending at least as much as you do on dues, in food & beverage, cart fees, tournament fees and pro shop purchases throughout the year. It adds up real quick.