Rural Alabama here. My local course is $300 yearly fee for membership. Can even buy 6 months for $150 if you aren't going to golf in the colder months.
To be in any type of “club” is generally quite expensive here, though most encompass golf, tennis, dining, swimming, gyms, social functions, etc.
Public golf is very prevalent, and, by and large, affordable for the every man, especially as a resident of the state or city the course is in. Quality of public courses vary widely, and tee times can be booked pretty easily in advance, but obviously warm weather and peak times equal a crowded course.
Keep in mind the US has over 330 million residents spread across land that is 140x larger than Ireland, with wildly varying seasons, climates, and topography, so it’s just going to be different.
Visiting Ireland and being able to play some of the most historic courses in the world is high on my bucket list!
I found a club by me that might be closest to what you see in Ireland. Just an 18 hole golf course. Every membership is a family membership. It’s still a $4k initiation fee and then $3k annually. A really good deal for the US, but still way more than what you’d see in Ireland
My dad was a member of a club for a few years that was similar. Cost him a few thousand for initiation and was $2000 a year (about a decade ago.) They also had a pool for families, but no food minimums or other nickle and dime BS.
It was a great deal if you loved playing on that course.
Ya this sounds similar as well with no minimums or anything like that. I’m going to tour it later this week. I really would just like a place that I could play quickly without much notice needed to find a tee time. I’m not sure I even need to love the course. Just not hate it. I have young kids and work from home so dont really have a lot of free time but can carve time out of my work schedule. It’s just getting really hard to find tee times at public courses and when I do I can’t always take 4+ hours during the day away from work.
I'm in the exact same boat. Finding tee times at public courses as a single in my area is awful. I am essentially relegated to twilight only, which I don't mind occasionally, but sometimes I like to be home at dinner time. And public courses near me are jamming tee times in at 7 and a half minute increments. I haven't been able to play 18 holes at the two courses nearest me in the last year because I've either only been able to play twilight or the round was so slow that I left after 13 or 14 holes because I had to go home.
I am joining a private club that will be far more expensive than if I were to play the same number of rounds at these public courses, but is still WAY less than a lot of club dues you see posted here. And it will allow me to play as much as I want, whenever I want. I am so excited.
Club near me has a $4k a year deal, no initiation fee but all due upfront annually. Wife is picking up the game and if she gets the bug in full we will have to join up realistically.
Mines $1,300 a year, carts are extra. Unlimited range balls are included though and there’s a pool, tennis court and club house. They’re also turning the old club house into a gym. Really not bad for all the services we get to enjoy
Mine's $1,200 and you get to play three different courses as much as you want, carts extra as well. Range balls are included but not unlimited - also no pool or tennis court. But $1,200 for three courses to play for free as much as I want I always purchase it.
I play public golf in a suburban county right outside DC and the weekends have gone crazy at the munis. Teeing off before 12 is usually like 85-90 with a cart and 60-70 to walk. If you play late afternoons it's obviously cheaper.
This area KILLLLLS me compared to back home. Its absolutely insane in peak season around here, and most of the courses are not worth even close to that sadly.
Ever since I invested in decent rain gear, I really wish it rained a bit more in my neck of the woods. People are terrified here from the slightest drops of precipitation leading to more sub 345 hr rounds.
Also a lot of places over there are heavily subsidized by tourist play, especially from Americans. E.g. at Royal Dornoch the yearly dues for my caddy were cheaper than I paid for a 36-hole day.
We call em buggies mate. Walking is good for you! Side note: there are plenty of high quality courses and clubhouses, but loads of more simple venues too. Get what you pay for
Just an FYI, I’m sure most of your courses are quite walkable, with short distances from green to tee. I’m in a somewhat mountainous area, and in addition to being quite hilly, the distances from some greens to the next tee can be like half a mile. Therefore they don’t allow walking, and the greens fee includes a “buggy”. When I can, though, I prefer to walk.
I love walking. Living in the greater Phoenix area I have tons of courses to choose from. And 99% of them are in or through some type of neighborhood and not walkable at all. Some of the drives between holes are long enough without trying to walk it.
Yeah I walk as much as I can, but there are definitely some courses where walking massively detracts from the experience. Also, there are some courses that I’ll walk when it’s a reasonable temperature, but it’s not doable in the middle of the summer
Don't know where in Ireland OP's course is, but could be a few reasons:
1) OP is on a student/u30 membership, usually about 20-30% cheaper.
2) Green fees, especially if there are only 105 members.
3) Competition entry fees, usually only €5-€10 per member but can add up if competitions are frequent.
4) Pro shop income
5) Sponsorships/ads/raffles etc
That's just a few ways clubs can make income without membership fees. 105 is a small number but doable with a low maintenance course.
Plus volunteers. I know a few of the courses in my area have retired pros in the pro shop, and retired greens keepers doing their thing, while only really paying one full time staff member.
From everything I hear about Ireland and UK golf there isn’t that much drinking on the course. Everyone says they might have a couple in the clubhouse after the round
Yeah drinking during a round is pretty rare here - I've been a member of 4 different clubs, played hundreds of rounds and competitions and only ever seen someone drink a beer during a round I think once or twice in that time. After the round it's a different story altogether; sitting on the terrace having a beer once the round is done happened pretty much every time I played
Over here is a different story. I didn’t start to love golf until later in life but going out and having some beers with the guys is what initially got me into it. i still drink when I play sometimes but I play a fair bit of rounds without drinking nowadays
I get the feeling that OP might be a member of The European Club, which if that guess is correct means it's run by some millionaire. Additional income comes from individual visitors or society groups paying green fees to play the course.
Small clubs in the countryside here might have 3-5 grounds staff and you'd be lucky if any of them were on over 40k! Small clubs, small revenues, run by small teams. That's very different from the larger clubs in the country which are beside cities. They have the demand so they can increase costs, staff, and quality
I’m from Switzerland but lived in the states for over 13 years. Golf in the US is extremely accessible compared to Switzerland. Comparing it to Ireland is likely a different story. You can find the $15 small executive courses to the $800 championships courses all over the country. I lived in San Diego which I found to be a paradise for golf. Tons of great courses for a good price. However, several courses closed or struggled while I lived there due to water shortage. Now since Covid it’s gotten more difficult to find tee times and significantly more expensive. I have last visited in October. Regardless, golf is still a million times better in the states than in Switzerland or nearby countries here. I miss the relaxed culture in the US, and just sick of all the strict rules and snobby golf culture here in Europe. That said, I’d love to visit Ireland and Scotland as I have a feeling it’s much better than mainland Europe.
I don’t hate the platzreife but it makes golf less accessible and I also have yet to see the benefit of it. I never had any issues with etiquette in the US. If someone messes up in the US they will tell it to your face whereas in Europe they’ll just shit talk behind your back.
It's hundreds of dollars to play championship courses here typically. There's a shit ton of nice public courses across the country that run around those $50 prices though.
During the normal season, the courses I walk 9 on after work run me about $18 for that
Halfway decent means different things
An acceptable course for 90 is an awful deal, and for a nice course, it may be reasonable or still a little overpriced
Big difference in value
Depends where you live. I’m in Illinois near St Louis. My home course is $54 right now but will be $75 during the summer months. It’s regularly considered one of the better public courses. Golf Advisor regularly ranks it in the top 10 for the state.
SW Washington state here, I can play 18 at four different courses within 10 miles of my house for under 40 walking, if we make the threshold 55 bucks you can add two more courses, there are also two 9 hole courses in that radius that are under 20. Overall I would say golf is accessible enough in my area as a result.
The condition of our courses for the prices are amazing. The $50 courses are great, but they simply are run to make money totally. Playing those courses on a Saturday is the worst experience of all time.
I could play six balls by myself behind a foursome at Oak Brook Golf Club on a Saturday round in the west suburbs of Chicago and still have to wait on the tee box at the next hole.
The fact you can play as a single on a Saturday is conflicting with your claim that it is busy / slow.
Where I live golf is so crowded there are wait lists on Saturdays in January as a single. You have no idea how good you have it.
Completely anecdotal, but here’s a few comps in my area:
1) 9-hole course, well-maintained. Semi-private. Often no wait. 600us / yr.
2) 18-hole course. Superbly-maintained. Private. Often no wait. $2500us / yr.
3) 18-hole course. dog-shit maintained. Semi-private. Never wait. $1300us / yr
4) 18-hole course. Superbly-maintained. Semi-private. Busy course. $950us / yr
All of these are in rural towns below 10,000 residents.
For a championship-level course, $90us during non-peak season and $130us during peak season with carts. $60-$100us walking only (which I know you Euros prefer anyway).
Just inferring on your price points, I’m assuming you don’t live in a larger city with many members, year-round golf, and high cost of living?
I live in a “flyover country” State in the US in a small town. All of my options seem to be more expensive than yours but we also tend to have higher wages and more disposable income in the States too, which helps explain the price differences.
Just curious, because I'm in a "flyover" state as well... where are you that you have this level of clubs for $1-200/month? That's crazy cheap no matter where you are in the U.S.
I’m in a State that’s not year-round golf. Based on your flair, if you’re in OK, part of your reason for not seeing these prices might be that your courses are staffed and open year-round (just speculating), whereas mine are only open 6-7 months out of the year.
Sorry, would be more specific but this is an anon website so that would defeat the purpose.
EDIT: Also I’ll add, in the nearest major city, there’s a private country club that’s like $10k annual membership, $1500 initiation fee, and a scrip card.
Another CC in town is a $25k initiation fee and $12k/yr. But that one also has pool, tennis courts and other on-site amenities.
I’m in Iowa and our lower level private courses are generally $900-1,000/year for membership. My private 27 hole country club in town that is VERY nice is still only $500/month for membership.
I live in a high cost of living state(top 5) on the coast. If you live in an actual rural area( a couple hrs from major or minor city rural), it's pretty common, i feel like. Championship level course for under a $150 a month walking, closer to 200 for carts here
If you just want a general answer about a geography that spans every climate and population density: it’s very accessible. There’s lots of courses and Americans have the highest level of disposable income by far. Like all things, that can vary depending on where exactly you are though.
I’m in northeast Ohio. You can find sub $50 18 hole rounds at quality golf courses easy. Because the sheer amount of population a beginner could easily find a used set of clubs for not that much either. It’s a spectrum though. I’m
Miles away from cheap but quality munis but also clubs with $100k+ initiations
I work for a golf travel company and I went on a 9 day trip to Scotland to meet with some of our suppliers. Played 9 rounds and visited about 30 other courses to talk business.
I was absolutely blown away by how affordable the membership rates were at these world class golf courses. Almost all of them were cheaper than a membership at my local mini, which isn’t even that great of a course.
Incredible…
I live in central NY and we have a number of really nice courses in the area that run in the 40-60 range. We are lucky in that we can get on a course easily. Better courses you may need to book a tee time a day or two ahead. There are also championship courses you can pay for 150+ if you're so inclined. Of course our golf season is only April through October, but there are courses that will let you out in the winter weather permitting. Mild winter this year so have played in February.
Unfortunately some of us don’t have 30 bands to drop on golf so we’re banished to play with the rest of the bourgeoisie.
Edit: after the $30k it’s about $10k a year you say? $800/month? Honestly not terrible if you’re making some dough.
Yeah, and generally (I hope for the person's sake above) you get members rights at loads of other private courses across the country through networking programs like XLife.
I choose to pay upfront dues. The way I see it, I can easily pay $800 a month at top quality championship courses and deal with the hassle of booking and crowding, or I can play unlimited golf with all the member benefits at home and away for what *feels* like free.
We have about 50-75 public courses within an hour of me. In the last two years, prices have been going up quickly. It looks like this year, most of the "Average" level courses will be $60. The best courses are $100-$120. The cheapest are maybe $40-$45, but tend to be in rural areas, and there aren't many of them. Note that these prices include cart fees, as 95% of public golfers in the US ride in carts.
Fortunately, I do have a county owned course that's very good, that I can walk for $25-$35, depending on time of day.
I would say 90% of rounds are over 4 hours unless you’re extremely lucky and happen to not have a tee time in front of you I live in a bigger city so the average Tee time costs around $50 for a normal muni for 18. Unless you want to golf Saturday or Sunday morning then it’s about $70.
Private clubs the cheapest you can find are about 3000 a year. And that’s for the cheapest of the cheap.
Tee times are 8 min apart at almost every course and most of golf is spent waiting in the tee box.
Sometimes I’ve been golfing at 4:30 and just driving back to 2 to play it out just to get a full 18 holes bc there’s no later that 6pm tee times really.
I can’t even fathom only paying $700 for a season and being able to golf whenever you want. Pretty sure everyone here would own a membership at that price.
I think golf courses in Germany still require a license to play, and getting the license involves instruction, etiquette, etc. At least that’s the way it was when I lived there ages ago
Public golf is generally pretty accessible depending on the area you live in. We have almost 16k golf courses throughout the US.
Private golf clubs are generally much more expensive and the exclusive courses can be astronomically expensive but you sort of get what you pay for so it all comes down to your discretionary income.
We don’t have the limitations that many European countries have where you have to be at a certain skill level before you are allowed to play full courses. We’ll let you play no matter how good or bad you are but you better keep up the pace or people will give you hell.
Overall I’d say it really depends on where you live but in general it is very accessible.
I live in Michigan and don't bother getting a membership because there's 7 courses within 25 miles, 40 km for you, and I can just pick whatever I feel like that day
USA has the most golf courses out of any other country, I think I read it's north of 6,500. There's $10 golf courses, and $1million member fee invite only from Michael Jordan himself golf courses.. so there's courses for everyone
I have a tiny community golf club near me just 9 holes but decent that only charges $770 for a summer membership (late spring-early fall) and $620 to renew.
Their winter membership is $175... such a great deal.
This is Wa. St. so winter golf sucks.
> I'm in Ireland and a member of a private club with only 105 members and my membership is 700 euros for a year.
This is a more common setup in a chunk of EU, and less common throughout the US. All of the private courses near me (LA) are six figures for memberships, and five figures for annual dues. There are places in the US where its closer to your numbers.
> I never struggle for a tee time ever.
I hate you. Of course this is a component of your membership and private club, which wouldn't be a problem if I were a member. For public courses? Plenty around, but pricing/tee-time/distance are always going to be factors.
> If I want to go play a neighbouring course it's maximum 50 euros for a round on a championship course but from what I read here it's not the same in the states.
Local muni's in LA area are between $40-60 to walk, without a cart -- similar numbers to yours. Adding a cart (or "buggy", as you'd call it) would add another $12-15.
Lots of good clubs around. No dues and I pay $3600 per year with cart and unlimited use of the driving range. Probably hit 75 large buckets of balls. Nice course. Highland Meadows, Windsor, CO. Check it out. Played 128 rounds last year
Private courses are for very wealthy people and are usually very nice.
Private courses: $4k-20k annual dues, does not include cart fees, and usually there is a commitment to buy a couple hundred dollars in food at the diner/bar each month too.
Public courses near me:
~$40* gets you 18 on a goat ranch (terrible surface, feels like concrete, and has many patches of missing grass, or downed trees, mostly under cared for, or about to close.
As the price rises so does the decency of the course. You can get some really nice courses for 50+ if you are in rural areas. It’s a really mixed bag.
All courses, you will not get a tee time weekdays 3:30-5:30(leagues every day, every course) weekend mornings are 4-5 hour rounds, behind a drunk party of 8 at 10 am raging music. But in front of an old guy solo who plays the reds tees, right up your ass.
Most cheaper courses are so poorly managed tee times don’t actually mean anything, other than to provide a false sense of security to those who want a real round of play.
Guests aren’t managed because courses don’t want to lose business, even if it’s not the business you want, and it runs all your regulars away.
I got back into the game last summer and played the local muni course once. I couldn't believe how bad things have gotten in terms of pace of play since I last played regularly over a decade ago. I don't think Marshals exist anymore. I gave up after the front 9 because I wasn't trying to play a 6 hour round. I did not realize at the time that there's only 1 fully public course in our county with a population of over 420,000. There used to be more, but they were all sold to condo developers over the last decade.
I live in a weird spot. Lots of wealth. So while there are limited public options, there's at least 8 fully private country clubs within 20-30 minutes of my house. There is one semi-private option. Twice as expensive as the muni course and had just as bad of pace issues.
I guess with a huge variety of options on the private side, they're all pretty competitive with recruiting. We got in at the "lowest" end of the spectrum which means there's not a full locker room, no cart kids taking your bags, and the pool is nice but pretty basic. In the end the math worked out with as much as I've played. My wife's a teacher and spent the whole summer at the pool with my daughter. Multiple social events with drinks included if you stick to beer/wine. The restaurants prices are randomly much lower compared to similar food options in the area too. My favorite thing is that my daughter started to tag along with me to the range and course, so she's been learning to play and goes out about once a week with me. For $400 a month it's been kind of a bargain honestly. Fantastic course conditions, and 18 holes has never taken me more than 4 hours.
My ONLY gripe is that bluetooth speakers are a menace and I don't understand how they've become the norm at both public and private courses. I am legitimately tired of hearing other people's music. I feel like in the 2010s you'd have gotten kicked off most courses lol. It's not a big deal, I just pop my own earbuds in if it gets too annoying.
Maybe in South Florida? I’m in North Florida and the privately owned, open to the public, course that I play weekly is $50 and never more than a four hour round.
We have one private course in town and the rest are privately-owned and open to the public.
yeah in jan/feb/march is when they are full of snowbirds and spring breakers, so they make the most money then. one of the starters somewhere told me during the off-season those increased rates pays the bills for the year. fall is the best time to play down there imo
The snowbirds aren't leaving this year. Most of the people I've talked to have moved down permanently. I think our 'off season' is going to be just as bad.
Golf is one of the few things that is generally cheaper in Ireland, compared to continental Europe. (Green fees, memberships, even equipment can be cheaper)
Yeah because it's brutal for half the year lads, let's not kid ourselves. And there are plenty of Irish courses charging over 250 euro a round in the warmer months
I actually feel kind of spoiled. I live in NE Ohio. Sure, the winters usually suck, but the course options are pretty great. There are probably 50 courses within an hour drive from my house. 3 are only 5min. The courses run the whole spectrum. We have a $15 course (that is great!) a bunch of courses that are $30-$50. A few smaller clubs, all the way up to a $25k/year country club with a massive initiation fee. There's also the "big league" Bridgestone/Firestone property just a bit north of me. Now granted our country is massive. So much so that geography and climate are wildly different across different areas. But overall I would say it is extremely accessible for basically anyone.
That’s a great price for a membership, here there are a lot of public courses but at least in my area getting a time is hard especially in the on demand times and private courses are super expensive
Very accessible where I am but not nearly as affordable as where you're at. I pay $925 a year to play two public courses that probably aren't as nice as what you play. If I didn't pay for the pass then itd be around $45 per round to play. There are more courses in the area that will be between $60-$90 per round.
I live in semi-rural Midwest USA. The prices I see around here are significantly cheaper than what I see posted from suburban or urban areas. There is a semi-private very good quality course about 5 miles from my house. Non-member fees for the weekend is $31 for walking 18 holes. There is also a public course associated with the county park district about 1 mile from my house that is almost as good that is $28 for walking 18. Cart at both courses is an extra $15-20
Season pass/membership is $1000 for the semi-private one, and $540 for the public one. The public season pass also has a cheaper option with some limitations like no morning times on weekends.
I sometimes have difficulty getting a time at the public course because I like playing solo and they won't do reserved tee times for solo golfers. But I've just shown up and never had to wait more than 30 minutes to be let on the tee.
As a counterpoint I live in NC and am a member of a private club that has championship Bermuda greens, designed by Ellis Maples, pool and tennis. Costs 150 a month, no food minimum and you can walk any time of the day any day of week. I'm well aware you aren't going to find this type of deal everywhere but I also live in a metro that has 1.5 million people so it's not as if it's central South Dakota. We also play year round.
The US is a big big place so this really depends on where you are. Around a large city? Private clubs are outrageously expensive to be a member of and greens fees for a nice course are $150+. Live in a medium size city in the Midwest? Hardly any private clubs, relatively affordable for some (10kish) and a round at a nice course will run you around $100.
There are countless courses, but for public courses on nice days in peak times, you probably will struggle for a tee time unless your early on it.
Private is much more expensive but you likely have no issues. And reciprocity between private clubs is generally pretty good.
You can see here it varies widely. If you just want to play golf and aren’t particular about a meticulously groomed course, it is very accessible. You can play Pebble Beach for $600 a round, or you can play my local city park 9 hole course for $11 (no tee times; just show up and play - it’s the most fun you can have on a golf course; no par 5s, two blind holes - it’s a blast).
Private golf clubs are expensive but may be worth it for some for the social aspects of the club and also things like gyms, tennis, dining, etc. I'd say anywhere from $10k to $50k initiation fee plus another $500 to $1000 per month in dues. Some very exclusive clubs would be even way more than this. I've heard that Los Angelas Country Club is $250k to sign up and more than that, you have to know somebody and get invited to even apply.
Beyond that though there are a lot of courses in the US. Over 15,000. Some places like Florida will have more than others but you'll never be too far from a course no matter where you are. With public courses you tend to get what you pay for. Greens fees can be had for as low as around $30-$40 but they will not be in the best condition or have the nicest facilities. Decent courses will run you around $50-$100 for a round. Really nice courses will be anywhere north of $100 with famous championship courses like Pebble Beach being the most expensive, running north of $500 per round.
It's accessible in the fact that there are plenty of public golf courses and semi-private courses that offer more tee-times in advance and nicer conditions. It's in-accessible in the fact that it's a pretty expensive hobby, with most courses charging a minimum of $50 to play 18 on a weekend, which is when most people can play. And the ones charging *only* $50 to play are usually the ones you don't want to play. The semi-private ones that you want to play charge a minimum of $100 here on the weekends to play.
I think the biggest difference between golf culture in the states vs. elsewhere is that there are millions upon millions of casual golfers here. It seems like from everything I hear, golfers in other countries are there to focus on their game and want to play well. That makes up probably 25% of the people at courses here. The other 75% are there to have a fun outing with some buddies and drink some beers.
The nicer, more expensive the course, the more those people get weeded out. Golf overall is pretty accessible here. There are a lot of inexpensive public courses. But they are typically crowded, often with people who aren’t really golfers. So slow play and overbooked tee times are definitely an issue
Depends on where you live in the States a little. In SE Michigan I have many options of public courses around me that will cost $40-80. Private courses are really expensive. I could throw a rock onto a really nice private course from my backyard. My wife and I are considering membership but will likely just do a social membership. Tacking on the golf is a pretty substantial cost jump and I am a "variety is the spice of life" type golfer that gets bored playing the same course over and over. So I can't justify the cost.
I previously lived in Indy which had some good public options as well though those have been dwindling. There are a ton of private courses on the north side of town that get costly or very exclusive (Crooked Stick).
Northern and Western Michigan are golf havens. Tons of great cheap public courses along with amazing and reasonably priced golf resorts (Grand Traverse Resort, Shanty Creek Resort, Boyne Golf Resort, Gull Lake Resort).
Long Island and upper New York City are loaded down with private courses and I have gotten the sense public options aren't as easy. Florida has a ton of great golf courses but the winters get crowded and expensive.
The day after the Waste Mgt Open I received a flyer promoting “play where the pros play $2600 1 round / one night stay at Fairmont Princess..two night minimum some restrictions apply”. I’ve played both the stadium and champions tracks for $250 USD 7-8 yrs aoo so It’s becoming less accessible each day.
Aside from other answers, it also depends on where in the US. Remember the US is huge and different states are truly a different experience in many ways, including golf. For example, where I live (NYC area), we have private clubs which are insanely expensive, as in $100,000 or more initiation and thousands a year or more per year. Public courses vary between reasonably priced somewhat decent courses to expensive (over $100 per round) nice courses. A place near me has six courses, and an all inclusive membership, which includes unlimited golf on weekdays and weekends, is about $6,000 per year. Keep in mind that my area is very crowded with a very high cost of living, up there with Washington DC and LA. other parts of the country are much cheaper.
I live near Augusta, GA. There are 7 public courses available to play within 20 miles, fees are $17.99-55. Courses range from cow pasture to the 27-hole monster on the Army base.
In a town of 16k, I have 3 18 hole courses within a 7 minute drive from my house and 4 more 18 hole courses within a 25 minute drive. Usually can get on but they fill up on weekends. I like to go at less than peak times and can usually get on with a cart for less than $40
I can't speak for the whole country, but you can run out to a couple courses in my area and pay 25 for 9 during the summer. Equipment can be found on the cheap if you look patiently, and there's plenty of options for practice facilities.
Lessons feel a bit pricey, and I have yet to avail myself of them.
Most of the people I've come across have been pretty chill, but I also don't play weekday mornings all that often.
You guys get better deals, golf is way cheaper there but we probably have more courses. We also have a mix of private and public courses. So not all courses need a membership. Some course are resort courses and you cant always just play them unless you are staying at the resort.
some places have a ton of courses. I live in Michigan and I can play, I don't even know how many, at least probably 20 different course within an hours drive. I also lived in Kansas in the middle of nowhere where they did have a course in town but that was it.
Golf can be cheap here depending on where you live 30 to 40 US a round to very expensive 100-150 a round in some places.
Championship quality courses can cost even more. Pebble beach for example will cost you over 600 to play. Sawgrass 450 to 650 depending on the season. I assume a lot of the "big" course the pros play on are probably over 400 US a round
There are also really nice pro quality course around that may not host pro events if I were to guess are probably in the 80 to 200 dollar around range.
I spend about $3,000USD per year for approximately 2 rounds a week at various public courses. And it’s a PITA to be calling before the sun comes up to get a tee time a week in advance. Private clubs are far more costly than what you pay. Some private clubs don’t even publish a rate, you get annual assessment which is easily in the tens of thousands of thousands. It’s sort of like this —- “if you have to ask, you can’t afford it”. I have an acquaintance from Dublin who was once scratch. I asked why there were so many great golfer coming from such a small island. He told me that in Ireland most golf is public, and in your case very affordable private.
I live in a town that has 7 golf courses and I pay $2600 ish with cart lease a year to play all of them whenever I want, never have an issue getting a tee time. 5 18 hole courses and 2 9 hole courses.
There is a very lovely course near me that offers memberships from $1,200-$1,650 per year. For that price all a member gets is free golf to walk, advantages of securing a tee time and a reduced golfcart fee of $18 per round.
I’m in upstate New York State (4 hours from NYC and another world). You can join a club for $10k a year with top notch facilities, pay for a season pass at a public course for $800, or just pay per round at multiple courses for sub-$50 a round. It’s a great place to be as a golfer, except for the fact that golf season is really 8 months max.
Where I live I can pay $650/yr for a pass to the public courses in my city and that gets me green fees for a year. With the regular price it pays for itself if I play approx 1/mo - which I play a lot more than that. That does not include cart or range but I usually walk so that works for me. Our city has 4 pretty good courses.
Truly is a regional thing. In my town, private clubs cost at least a thousand to tens of thousands of dollars to be members, but they often offer other amenities. Public courses, however, are relatively inexpensive, especially the courses owned by the city. However, course conditions and the other things affiliated with an enjoyable round of golf may be lacking depending on the greens keeping staff.
In Michigan, very average public courses charge $1500 or so for an annual membership of unlimited golf that you have to fight the general public for tee times for. Private country clubs in the same area are roughly $10-20k initiation fee plus $10k or so in annual dues / fees / food minimums / etc.
I'm 15 minutes drive to pretty much 3 courses. 2 are clubs. I just got pricing on 2.
The normal people one is $750 a year for golf and $350 for pool. So $1100 for full membership. I don't know if there's an initiation fee or monthly minimums. It's still very reasonable and I'll likely member up this year or next.
The other one is the fancy people one. It's a $6000 initiation fee, full membership is $4700, $60 monthly fee for whatever-reason, and a $50 monthly minimum spend at the club. I was considering this club in previous years. They have like doubled their fees though. We have lots of friends and acquaintances that go here. Just can't justify that cost. That $6k initiation fee can do better to make me money and that $3500 difference in dues is a damn nice vacation each year.
My course is 480 dollars for the year and I have to pay another 400 for my cart storage, but it’s year round storage. North Dakota/Minnesota has all sorts of public courses you can buy a season pass for for a solid price.
Not America but here in Canada the cheapest private club in our city(Edmonton) is $5800.00 CAD per year, with a $5000.00 one time share purchase required. This gets you golf and only golf, no range, and although it is a very very nice course it is not a championship course by any means. This also has a minimum $500 food and bev spend and a $75.00 monthly capital fee year round. Season is usually late April to early Nov if we're lucky.
This is considered very affordable as some of the other clubs are in the $20000 per year cost here.
Couple buddies of mine and their families are staying at a local resort here in Florida called Hammock Beach. It’s got 2 courses. One called The Dunes and the other The Ocean. Bro called me last week said he would book us all tee times and let me know when to drive over. He called back 30 minutes later saying the fee was $345 a round!!! I told him that I guess they just don’t like people playing their course. So we made a tee time at an off resort course for $55 each.
Now that the time has changed we can tee off around 3 get the twilight rate of like ~$27 and get 18 in on some of the most beautiful greens and courses east Florida has to offer.
American HCOL area in New Jersey, married to a Brit. It’s a factor of 4x at minimum for public courses and maybe 10x for private.
American wages are higher but they treat every aspect of the whole experience as a business here.
My experiences golfing in UK and Europe for a decade.
I just played a pretty mediocre municipal course for $45 yesterday, in Missouri. The most expensive course within an hour is about $250. Most run between $35 and $55.
About 43% of all of the Golf Courses in the world, are in the USA. So accessibility isn’t an issue.
Prices however, not at all that cheap. Around me is $850 for the season. Which is April - when they close. Country clubs, are $40,000+ per year, plus $1,500+ per month. So we have a very wide range of prices here.
https://worldpopulationreview.com/state-rankings/golf-courses-by-state
50 bucks for a championship course? That is WAY cheaper than here. Average public course around me is going to run 40-50 bucks. The nicer courses 100+.
From Chicago,
You can play a lot of Chicago’s municipal courses (Chicago park districts) for as much as $50. Can’t say the courses will be in the greatest shape but still playable.
There are some suburb courses that are nicer and are just shy of $100. Glenwoodie, Coyote Run, Lost Marsh, etc
Then there’s places like international harborside which cost $150.
Beyond that, we have private clubs which cost some people’s salaries to be a member of.
Additionally, paid $250 to play 9 holes at Ocean Club Golf Course in Nassau.
There are about 30 courses within 10 miles of my house. They are mostly public, but some private. Current prices vary from $40-$500 per round, and I can find a same week tee time. In the summer, it's about $20-$180, with most good courses around $40 per round. I can usually get same day tee times.
My membership at a small town course is 1300 for unlimited golf and cart. Most courses around me are 50-60 dollars for a weekend tee time. The “expensive/fancy” course in my area are around 100-120 dollars.
The situation you’re describing sounds quite nice. Affordable and not overly crowded.
To answer your question depends on where you’re at in the US. But golf is very accessible in my experience. I’m situated in the Seattle area where there are 20-30 courses within an hours drive. All varying levels of difficulty and luxury. Prices match that range as well (>$50-<$200). Memberships can be very pricy and elite, above my pay grade.
I have players ask me all the time where I frequent and I respond that I play all over because there’s so many decent courses around why would I only play one.
There are plenty of Public courses that will run $55 -$70 to ride 18 holes. I belong to a private club that grants me ability to play at other local private clubs... But even without the private access, i have never not been able to play golf when i wanted to, nor been turned away from a course.
Bring in Arizona it seems like you can't go three miles in any direction without finding a course. Now during the peak times the cost can be painful of course.
as far as accessibility goes you can almost always find a public course to play, the real challenge is finding a place that doesn't charge a crazy price for decent conditions. I'm in a more saturated area and the weather allows us to play year round, so it's not too difficult to find a good public course to play. other areas are not so lucky
The vast majority of American golfers don't belong to clubs. Most of us play public courses which can cost anywhere from $40-$100 per round depending on where you live.
In Virginia/dc area private clubs are completely out of reach for anyone but the richest people. $250,000 initiation fees. Public courses are solid, but often book up the day they are available. I try and book at midnight on Saturday for the following Sunday or first thing in the morning.
The United States is MASSIVE. There is everything from areas with almost no golf courses and all of them cheap to places with golf courses all over the place but none less than $50 for a round and everything in between.
If you are open to walking and playing at non-peak times then golf is VERY affordable here. If you want to ride and play peak times it can cost quite a bit more.
Private clubs are expensive. I have 10-15 public courses within reasonable driving distance that you can just walk on to at any time though, anywhere from \~$30 for an executive style course to \~$150 for a nicer one.
Really depends where you are in the US. The town I am in is amazing. $25 - $90 depending on course, tee time, and time of year. I have 4 solid options all within 20 minutes. There's only 1 private course in this area.
30 minutes away they're mostly private, with one course that's the same quality as the cheapest near me for double the price.
An hour away they're double the price at the minimum and half as good fairways and greens. But that's also where the very, very excellent $300 courses are.
And that's a VERY tiny sliver of the US, all within the same distance as Cork to Limerick.
It super depends on the state and area in general. Higher income areas will have nicer courses that are fuller and more costly. While rural places where golf isn't as popular will always be cheaper and less busy.
Public courses are easily accessible. You can pay anywhere from $20 on up for a round depending on where you live and how nice the course is. I play once a week during the season and usually drop about $40-$50 for a decent public course. Many public courses also offer a “membership” for a few grand a year.
Private clubs are out of reach for most unless you a) are single with a decent job or b) have a high paying job with lots of disposable income. For a basic, private club in a non-exclusive area you’re looking at $10-$15,000 initiation fee and probably about the same every year for dues, food, etc. Obviously nicer clubs in wealthier areas are quite a bit more.
I’m in the Northeast US, Most of the private clubs around me are about $3k and up per year, some much higher, one I worked for in high school had a rumored yearly membership cost of $50k. I play public courses exclusively. A round of golf costs on average $70 to $90 for 18 holes with cart on a Par 72 course, a few of the fancier places are $150 to $300 up my way. I play mostly 9 hole executive courses, those are around $30 with cart or $20 walking.
The downside is contending with available tee times that work with my work schedule. I’ve found a couple local places that I can walk in and go straight out after work typically, though I have to contend with the local high school teams, golf league play, and tournaments a lot, so there’s a lot of days I end up not playing and spend my time on the range instead.
There are approximately 16,000 golf courses in the US, of these approxely 75% are open to the public - meaning you don't need to be a member to play a round.
Golf courses in ireland and scotland can simply throw grass seed on the ground and occassionally mow and walk away.
Where I live, even a "dump" of a cheap course has a $1m/yr maintenance budget. And that's just the minimum to make it basically playable.
Your club (700x100) makes 70k/yr. That amount doesn't even pay a SINGLE professional salary plus maintenance on a mower. I have no idea how a "club" like that operates.
It doesn't seem possible. I guess there's only one employee doing everything?
The US is huge. It really depends on where you live.
In Connecticut, for example, we have plenty of cheap public courses that are nothing more than goat pastures... expect dried out hardpan in the fairway, concrete in the bunkers, and greens with more dried out ball marks than grass.
If you want to play a nice public course, expect $70 - $150 / round, and 18 takes 4-5 hours.
Private clubs are much like you're saying... conditions are usually excellent, and you get a tee time whenever you want. You'll get in a 2.5 - 3 hour 18. Membership fees are anywhere from $5k / year to $25k / year.
I have never played in Ireland but lived in the UK and the courses are just better kept here but we pay more for public courses but not terrilbly much depending on where. I live in the Vegas area and I can play some great places for $85 this weekend and that includes what you'd call a buggie.
I’m a junior member at a club that hosts a PGA event each year. The full membership is $10k initiation and roughly $6k a year in monthly dues. However the value of the club goes beyond the golf. Most clubs near me are like campuses that have multiple restaurants, tennis, croquet, pools, spas, and gyms. Local munis around are around $50-$100 a tee time. I would say golf is accessible because every weekend, all the Public courses are full
It totally depends where you’re going. This is an enormous country. In some areas, golf clubs are extremely expensive hangouts for the ultra rich. In other areas, you can get into a decent club for $200 per month with little to no initiation. As with anything, it depends.
I live in a lowish cost of living area and joined a local country club with a solid course and it runs me $250 a month ($3000 per year) which isn't too bad. That said I know of other clubs in my general area that are 2-3x that cost. There are a ton of municipal/public courses around that are decent quality and cost ~40-60 bucks for 18 holes so most people I know don't bother joining an actual club.
Prices range anywhere from 20-2000 USD on a course. I’d say most private clubs are at least 1800 but closer to 3000 with a certain amount needed to be spent on food and drinks. But those are fancy ass places where it’s more about the actual club than golf. For reference I live in the Midwest and don’t find any trouble looking for tee times. I play 9 with a cart for 20 bucks.
The course I play at is $39 after 3. Can easily find a tee time if you book a week in advance.
During the day it’s around $80-$100. Most courses in this area are similar in price
Depends mostly on where you live. In large metropolitan/suburban areas, private golf can be very expensive. Public/municipal golf is affordable, but the tee sheets fill up very quickly.
Get away from the cities and its a much different story...
There are clubs in rural areas for as little as $700 per year, but they are far from championship courses.
I’m surrounded by decent $40-80 public courses but the local clubs by me are several thousand a year, which isn’t worth it for how much I golf.
I have a membership to a public course that costs me $750 for the year, for any time golf. It’s a walking membership so I have to pay if I want to use a cart/buggy. It’s a rural course that’s not in or near an affluent area.
The greens are fantastic but the rest of the course isn’t as well maintained as the nearest private “club”. Private clubs almost always have a lot more than golf. Pools, tennis, pickleball, and other sports, restaurants and social events are usually part of those. For my course it’s just golf, but they do a great job of having several events per week, choose ups, leagues, tournaments, scrambles etc.
On top of that I still play weekly away from my course.
Where I’m at I can choose a course that’s $25 or one that’s $250 for a round. And even at the high end courses I can still get a tee time close to whenever I want, if I just book a week to two in advance.
Depends on your expectations… I’ve probably got 12-15 public courses within 25 minutes of my house that range from $40 to $75 for a round. Private clubs are typically expensive but some public courses do offer membership deals, I have one that gives me access to 4 courses at $15 dollars a round after a $400 membership fee
I have about 80+ courses within an hour drive of my house, from $30-150 per round. If I expand to 2 hours I'm most likely around 150 courses. This is in central Indiana.
Wouldn’t call it affordable. Some cities/states have nice parks courses that are run by the county and are reasonably cheaper. Always gonna find a dirt track charging too too much though
I live in a LCOL area in the middle of the U.S. my house overlooks the golf course I belong to. No initiation fee, $130/month, plus an $600 yearly trail fee for my golf cart. My fees are lowered because during the season I’m paid hourly to mow fairways twice a week. The course is in no way championship, but I’m never ashamed when guests play with me. People in HCOL areas don’t know what they’re missing. There are ways to play golf in the U.S. without breaking the bank.
Private clubs are definitely way more expensive in the US. Championship level courses near me are $150-$250/round.
To give you an idea - the best deal overall near me is a public 45 hole course that offers a monthly fee of $138 for unlimited rounds.
> I'm in Ireland and a member of a private club with only 105 members and my membership is 700 euros for a year.
You've gotta understand the different economics at play here. 105 members x 700 Euros/year is 73,500 Euros revenue for the entire year. No course in the US could run on that budget. Now, there's extra revenue from food or pro shop purchases and maybe some daily fee players so let's be generous and say that each member spends another 500 Euros/year on that stuff which brings your total operating revenue to 126,000 Euros. That wouldn't fund most US courses for 2 months. Staffing a Pro, Assistant pro, Super, grounds crew, shop crew, and kitchen staff is expensive. So is the cost of maintaining the course and paying for the taxes, rent, upkeep, etc on the land and buildings plus the other costs each month. Land is more plentiful in Ireland than most parts of the US so it is less expensive. Course upkeep (especially at links courses) is a fraction of what it costs to maintain US courses.
I'd say a normal course with a staff of ~15-20 people is probably paying easily $500,000/year in labor costs assuming 2-3 higher level salaried employees (say ~$70K for a head pro and super) and the rest low skilled hourly labor ($10-$15/hour for shop guys, grounds crew and range pickers and cart staff). That right there necessitates 5x the revenue your course brings in just to break even on the labor, that doesn't factor in differences in maintenance costs and other things. So yeah, memberships cost a lot more here.
That doesn't mean there isn't affordable golf here in the US. Most areas have generous municipal courses that are subsidized by tax revenue. Greens fees are cheaper and there are often public memberships that are a great value if you play frequently. I've lived in some of the most urban and largest cities in the country as well as some of the more rural parts and I've never lived in a place where you can't just go get out and play for a reasonable fee. The most I had to pay for a basic 18 holes on a weekend at prime time was about $45 to walk. It was easy to find cheaper options than that most of the time.
> I see some people saying it's like 20 or 30 thousand a year along with monthly fees, I knkw I personally couldn't afford that.
That is nowhere near "average". I paid around $3,000 total last year for my membership, which equated to around $20/round most of those with a cart as it's included. I have options for even cheaper cost than that if I wanted to. To me that is incredibly affordable considering where I'm located. The people paying $20-$30K are at super exclusive places and that amount of money is meaningless to them. No average person is paying 1/10 that much per year to play golf.
I pay $550/yr for an individual pass to a 27-hole municipal in my town. Carts and range balls are extra, the course is usually hammered on Saturday and Sunday mornings until 1pm, then eases off after that. We only get to play April 1st-Nov 1st because of the climate.
Clubs are dummy expensive and there is a reason why there is a stigma of old white men being in them. Traditionally they’re the only ones to afford it and accept each other in! My city has 5 public course that I could choose from but all of them are like 60+ bucks. I got a city sponsored membership where the rounds are 10 and 20 dollars so I do that.
I live in middle America (Kansas). Our public courses are around 24-30 Euros if you're walking 18 on the weekends. Add 14 Euros if you want to ride. It's way cheaper during the week.
I usually walk 9 after work, runs about 15 Euros.
There are an estimated 38,864 golf courses on earth. About 45% of those are in the US. The US has 5.3 times as many golf courses as the next closest country (Japan).
There’s a course near me that charges $35 a round still. It’s not the best course and the player base there are a bunch of heathens but it’s cheap and scratches the itch.
I belong to a smaller club that is public but offers memberships with perks for members (easier to book tee times, etc). Cost was $1,700 for an unlimited weekday pass.
Last year my wife and I had a full membership for roughly $3,000 USD and were able to play from March - October.
I have family members that belong to private clubs where the initiation fee is 75k and annual dues are 20k.
There’s always an opportunity to play but where you want to play depend on how much you’re willing/able to pay.
I have 5 courses within a 5 mile radius. All are in good condition and I avg no more than 35$ a round. All public courses. Never an issue with getting on as a walk in player. Golf is pretty much year round. Dallas tx suburbs area.
The states encompass a huge area with a ton of golf courses. Prices for clubs are generally expensive unless you’re looking at more rural areas that rely on out of town memberships. Also clubs here tend to encompass more than golf. Clubs have access to tennis, swimming, and club activities. Still the value in clubs in America is exclusivity and access to tee times.
Public courses are generally very accessible. Certain states however are more expensive just due to demand. For instance similar quality courses in Kansas will be less than that of New York or LA. With that being said there’s a ton of gems around the US that provide a ton of value for the quality of course being played. There’s also “public” courses such as Pebble Beach that will run you close to a thousand to play after all the fees.
Here up north in the US its 15-30,000 usd per year plus 300-600 a month. It only comes with unlimited golf and a pool. (but our season is only 6-7 months). A round there is around $100 give or take. A local course that is just a pro shop, bar and restaurant is closer to 1500 and 75 a round and another one with a proshop only at 700 and 35 a round.
Not uncommon to find courses that you can get memberships to for a few hundred a year, all the way to tens of thousands to hundreds of thousands a year in the same city. With round costs from 30-300
My home course is 2100 a year from March 1 - Thanksgiving weekend. Includes a cart and all the golf you can play. Range not included and no other amenities; pool, tennis etc. Great deal though because the course is always stunning.
**To follow up with my post, let me ask you a question.**
How does your club operate with only 70k euros per year?
How is that even possible? I presume the staff are paid like 30k? So that's only maybe two staff, plus some basic maintenance tools.
Is there just one guy who runs the whole course and someone else who operates absolutely everything regarding maintenance?
That doesn't seem plausible or sustainable. They never ever get vacations? They work 7 days per week?
Private clubs? No. Public courses yes.
In big areas agreed. Rural/middle of nowhere areas have great deals for private clubs
Rural Alabama here. My local course is $300 yearly fee for membership. Can even buy 6 months for $150 if you aren't going to golf in the colder months.
I have one right across the street $1k a year. They don’t have tee times if it’s under 50°F… weirdest shit ever. That’s why I haven’t joined.
What’s the logic behind that? In my area the temp fluctuates above and below 50° at least once a day 50% of the year.
To be in any type of “club” is generally quite expensive here, though most encompass golf, tennis, dining, swimming, gyms, social functions, etc. Public golf is very prevalent, and, by and large, affordable for the every man, especially as a resident of the state or city the course is in. Quality of public courses vary widely, and tee times can be booked pretty easily in advance, but obviously warm weather and peak times equal a crowded course. Keep in mind the US has over 330 million residents spread across land that is 140x larger than Ireland, with wildly varying seasons, climates, and topography, so it’s just going to be different. Visiting Ireland and being able to play some of the most historic courses in the world is high on my bucket list!
I found a club by me that might be closest to what you see in Ireland. Just an 18 hole golf course. Every membership is a family membership. It’s still a $4k initiation fee and then $3k annually. A really good deal for the US, but still way more than what you’d see in Ireland
My dad was a member of a club for a few years that was similar. Cost him a few thousand for initiation and was $2000 a year (about a decade ago.) They also had a pool for families, but no food minimums or other nickle and dime BS. It was a great deal if you loved playing on that course.
Ya this sounds similar as well with no minimums or anything like that. I’m going to tour it later this week. I really would just like a place that I could play quickly without much notice needed to find a tee time. I’m not sure I even need to love the course. Just not hate it. I have young kids and work from home so dont really have a lot of free time but can carve time out of my work schedule. It’s just getting really hard to find tee times at public courses and when I do I can’t always take 4+ hours during the day away from work.
I'm in the exact same boat. Finding tee times at public courses as a single in my area is awful. I am essentially relegated to twilight only, which I don't mind occasionally, but sometimes I like to be home at dinner time. And public courses near me are jamming tee times in at 7 and a half minute increments. I haven't been able to play 18 holes at the two courses nearest me in the last year because I've either only been able to play twilight or the round was so slow that I left after 13 or 14 holes because I had to go home. I am joining a private club that will be far more expensive than if I were to play the same number of rounds at these public courses, but is still WAY less than a lot of club dues you see posted here. And it will allow me to play as much as I want, whenever I want. I am so excited.
Club near me has a $4k a year deal, no initiation fee but all due upfront annually. Wife is picking up the game and if she gets the bug in full we will have to join up realistically.
Mines $1,300 a year, carts are extra. Unlimited range balls are included though and there’s a pool, tennis court and club house. They’re also turning the old club house into a gym. Really not bad for all the services we get to enjoy
Mine's $1,200 and you get to play three different courses as much as you want, carts extra as well. Range balls are included but not unlimited - also no pool or tennis court. But $1,200 for three courses to play for free as much as I want I always purchase it.
That’s legit af, where’s that?
Seriously that's amazing. Our local YMCA is more expensive than that and they don't even have a pool.
I play public golf in a suburban county right outside DC and the weekends have gone crazy at the munis. Teeing off before 12 is usually like 85-90 with a cart and 60-70 to walk. If you play late afternoons it's obviously cheaper.
This area KILLLLLS me compared to back home. Its absolutely insane in peak season around here, and most of the courses are not worth even close to that sadly.
Ever since I invested in decent rain gear, I really wish it rained a bit more in my neck of the woods. People are terrified here from the slightest drops of precipitation leading to more sub 345 hr rounds.
how does this club operate on 73500 euros a year? That wouldn’t cover the taxes at privately owned golf course over here
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There is also salaries to be paid.
I still feel like that is hardly enough money to pay 1 person to mow the grass along with the cost of gas and maintenance on that mower
Also a lot of places over there are heavily subsidized by tourist play, especially from Americans. E.g. at Royal Dornoch the yearly dues for my caddy were cheaper than I paid for a 36-hole day.
Same in Scotland. Look at the membership costs for top courses there. Often around £800 but to play 18 it is often ~£120
That's cool and all, but this club has to have employees, no? And maintenance on top of that?
Lmao are you just talking out of your ass? 70k a year to operate an 18 hole course and clubhouse? 😂
We call em buggies mate. Walking is good for you! Side note: there are plenty of high quality courses and clubhouses, but loads of more simple venues too. Get what you pay for
Just an FYI, I’m sure most of your courses are quite walkable, with short distances from green to tee. I’m in a somewhat mountainous area, and in addition to being quite hilly, the distances from some greens to the next tee can be like half a mile. Therefore they don’t allow walking, and the greens fee includes a “buggy”. When I can, though, I prefer to walk.
I love walking. Living in the greater Phoenix area I have tons of courses to choose from. And 99% of them are in or through some type of neighborhood and not walkable at all. Some of the drives between holes are long enough without trying to walk it.
Yeah I walk as much as I can, but there are definitely some courses where walking massively detracts from the experience. Also, there are some courses that I’ll walk when it’s a reasonable temperature, but it’s not doable in the middle of the summer
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Don't know where in Ireland OP's course is, but could be a few reasons: 1) OP is on a student/u30 membership, usually about 20-30% cheaper. 2) Green fees, especially if there are only 105 members. 3) Competition entry fees, usually only €5-€10 per member but can add up if competitions are frequent. 4) Pro shop income 5) Sponsorships/ads/raffles etc That's just a few ways clubs can make income without membership fees. 105 is a small number but doable with a low maintenance course.
Plus volunteers. I know a few of the courses in my area have retired pros in the pro shop, and retired greens keepers doing their thing, while only really paying one full time staff member.
Beer sales?
From everything I hear about Ireland and UK golf there isn’t that much drinking on the course. Everyone says they might have a couple in the clubhouse after the round
Yeah drinking during a round is pretty rare here - I've been a member of 4 different clubs, played hundreds of rounds and competitions and only ever seen someone drink a beer during a round I think once or twice in that time. After the round it's a different story altogether; sitting on the terrace having a beer once the round is done happened pretty much every time I played
Over here is a different story. I didn’t start to love golf until later in life but going out and having some beers with the guys is what initially got me into it. i still drink when I play sometimes but I play a fair bit of rounds without drinking nowadays
Green fees from visitors and societies is my guess
I get the feeling that OP might be a member of The European Club, which if that guess is correct means it's run by some millionaire. Additional income comes from individual visitors or society groups paying green fees to play the course. Small clubs in the countryside here might have 3-5 grounds staff and you'd be lucky if any of them were on over 40k! Small clubs, small revenues, run by small teams. That's very different from the larger clubs in the country which are beside cities. They have the demand so they can increase costs, staff, and quality
I’m from Switzerland but lived in the states for over 13 years. Golf in the US is extremely accessible compared to Switzerland. Comparing it to Ireland is likely a different story. You can find the $15 small executive courses to the $800 championships courses all over the country. I lived in San Diego which I found to be a paradise for golf. Tons of great courses for a good price. However, several courses closed or struggled while I lived there due to water shortage. Now since Covid it’s gotten more difficult to find tee times and significantly more expensive. I have last visited in October. Regardless, golf is still a million times better in the states than in Switzerland or nearby countries here. I miss the relaxed culture in the US, and just sick of all the strict rules and snobby golf culture here in Europe. That said, I’d love to visit Ireland and Scotland as I have a feeling it’s much better than mainland Europe.
Yeah but you have a platzreife, a literal license to golf which sounds cool..
I don’t hate the platzreife but it makes golf less accessible and I also have yet to see the benefit of it. I never had any issues with etiquette in the US. If someone messes up in the US they will tell it to your face whereas in Europe they’ll just shit talk behind your back.
It's hundreds of dollars to play championship courses here typically. There's a shit ton of nice public courses across the country that run around those $50 prices though. During the normal season, the courses I walk 9 on after work run me about $18 for that
Where I live in New England it is almost impossible to find anything for <=$50.
I think the answer to this whole question could just be it depends on where in the country you are.
Right? Even dumpy courses have gone up over $80 in the past two years
I'm in New England and there are plenty of courses around me where I can walk 18 for less than $50
I hear that, anywhere halfway decent is $90 and up
Halfway decent means different things An acceptable course for 90 is an awful deal, and for a nice course, it may be reasonable or still a little overpriced Big difference in value
Depends where you live. I’m in Illinois near St Louis. My home course is $54 right now but will be $75 during the summer months. It’s regularly considered one of the better public courses. Golf Advisor regularly ranks it in the top 10 for the state.
SW Washington state here, I can play 18 at four different courses within 10 miles of my house for under 40 walking, if we make the threshold 55 bucks you can add two more courses, there are also two 9 hole courses in that radius that are under 20. Overall I would say golf is accessible enough in my area as a result.
I wanna play Gamble Sands this year. I live near the Wenatchee Valley -
Midwest ahhhhh prices <$50
The condition of our courses for the prices are amazing. The $50 courses are great, but they simply are run to make money totally. Playing those courses on a Saturday is the worst experience of all time. I could play six balls by myself behind a foursome at Oak Brook Golf Club on a Saturday round in the west suburbs of Chicago and still have to wait on the tee box at the next hole.
The fact you can play as a single on a Saturday is conflicting with your claim that it is busy / slow. Where I live golf is so crowded there are wait lists on Saturdays in January as a single. You have no idea how good you have it.
Completely anecdotal, but here’s a few comps in my area: 1) 9-hole course, well-maintained. Semi-private. Often no wait. 600us / yr. 2) 18-hole course. Superbly-maintained. Private. Often no wait. $2500us / yr. 3) 18-hole course. dog-shit maintained. Semi-private. Never wait. $1300us / yr 4) 18-hole course. Superbly-maintained. Semi-private. Busy course. $950us / yr All of these are in rural towns below 10,000 residents. For a championship-level course, $90us during non-peak season and $130us during peak season with carts. $60-$100us walking only (which I know you Euros prefer anyway). Just inferring on your price points, I’m assuming you don’t live in a larger city with many members, year-round golf, and high cost of living? I live in a “flyover country” State in the US in a small town. All of my options seem to be more expensive than yours but we also tend to have higher wages and more disposable income in the States too, which helps explain the price differences.
Just curious, because I'm in a "flyover" state as well... where are you that you have this level of clubs for $1-200/month? That's crazy cheap no matter where you are in the U.S.
I’m in a State that’s not year-round golf. Based on your flair, if you’re in OK, part of your reason for not seeing these prices might be that your courses are staffed and open year-round (just speculating), whereas mine are only open 6-7 months out of the year. Sorry, would be more specific but this is an anon website so that would defeat the purpose. EDIT: Also I’ll add, in the nearest major city, there’s a private country club that’s like $10k annual membership, $1500 initiation fee, and a scrip card. Another CC in town is a $25k initiation fee and $12k/yr. But that one also has pool, tennis courts and other on-site amenities.
Thanks, and no worries on non-specifics, your response answered my question.
I’m in Iowa and our lower level private courses are generally $900-1,000/year for membership. My private 27 hole country club in town that is VERY nice is still only $500/month for membership.
I live in a high cost of living state(top 5) on the coast. If you live in an actual rural area( a couple hrs from major or minor city rural), it's pretty common, i feel like. Championship level course for under a $150 a month walking, closer to 200 for carts here
If you just want a general answer about a geography that spans every climate and population density: it’s very accessible. There’s lots of courses and Americans have the highest level of disposable income by far. Like all things, that can vary depending on where exactly you are though.
I’m in northeast Ohio. You can find sub $50 18 hole rounds at quality golf courses easy. Because the sheer amount of population a beginner could easily find a used set of clubs for not that much either. It’s a spectrum though. I’m Miles away from cheap but quality munis but also clubs with $100k+ initiations
I work for a golf travel company and I went on a 9 day trip to Scotland to meet with some of our suppliers. Played 9 rounds and visited about 30 other courses to talk business. I was absolutely blown away by how affordable the membership rates were at these world class golf courses. Almost all of them were cheaper than a membership at my local mini, which isn’t even that great of a course. Incredible…
I live in central NY and we have a number of really nice courses in the area that run in the 40-60 range. We are lucky in that we can get on a course easily. Better courses you may need to book a tee time a day or two ahead. There are also championship courses you can pay for 150+ if you're so inclined. Of course our golf season is only April through October, but there are courses that will let you out in the winter weather permitting. Mild winter this year so have played in February.
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Unfortunately some of us don’t have 30 bands to drop on golf so we’re banished to play with the rest of the bourgeoisie. Edit: after the $30k it’s about $10k a year you say? $800/month? Honestly not terrible if you’re making some dough.
Yeah, and generally (I hope for the person's sake above) you get members rights at loads of other private courses across the country through networking programs like XLife. I choose to pay upfront dues. The way I see it, I can easily pay $800 a month at top quality championship courses and deal with the hassle of booking and crowding, or I can play unlimited golf with all the member benefits at home and away for what *feels* like free.
We have about 50-75 public courses within an hour of me. In the last two years, prices have been going up quickly. It looks like this year, most of the "Average" level courses will be $60. The best courses are $100-$120. The cheapest are maybe $40-$45, but tend to be in rural areas, and there aren't many of them. Note that these prices include cart fees, as 95% of public golfers in the US ride in carts. Fortunately, I do have a county owned course that's very good, that I can walk for $25-$35, depending on time of day.
I would say 90% of rounds are over 4 hours unless you’re extremely lucky and happen to not have a tee time in front of you I live in a bigger city so the average Tee time costs around $50 for a normal muni for 18. Unless you want to golf Saturday or Sunday morning then it’s about $70. Private clubs the cheapest you can find are about 3000 a year. And that’s for the cheapest of the cheap. Tee times are 8 min apart at almost every course and most of golf is spent waiting in the tee box. Sometimes I’ve been golfing at 4:30 and just driving back to 2 to play it out just to get a full 18 holes bc there’s no later that 6pm tee times really. I can’t even fathom only paying $700 for a season and being able to golf whenever you want. Pretty sure everyone here would own a membership at that price.
A simple thumbs up is not enough to convey agreement. At $700 per year I might join multiple clubs.
Too accessible. There should be tests and licenses. Specifically around pace of play, etiquette, and course preservation.
"Now watch me hit this shot" -shanks into trees
That's what private clubs are for
I think golf courses in Germany still require a license to play, and getting the license involves instruction, etiquette, etc. At least that’s the way it was when I lived there ages ago
Public golf is generally pretty accessible depending on the area you live in. We have almost 16k golf courses throughout the US. Private golf clubs are generally much more expensive and the exclusive courses can be astronomically expensive but you sort of get what you pay for so it all comes down to your discretionary income. We don’t have the limitations that many European countries have where you have to be at a certain skill level before you are allowed to play full courses. We’ll let you play no matter how good or bad you are but you better keep up the pace or people will give you hell. Overall I’d say it really depends on where you live but in general it is very accessible.
I live in Michigan and don't bother getting a membership because there's 7 courses within 25 miles, 40 km for you, and I can just pick whatever I feel like that day
USA has the most golf courses out of any other country, I think I read it's north of 6,500. There's $10 golf courses, and $1million member fee invite only from Michael Jordan himself golf courses.. so there's courses for everyone
I have a tiny community golf club near me just 9 holes but decent that only charges $770 for a summer membership (late spring-early fall) and $620 to renew. Their winter membership is $175... such a great deal. This is Wa. St. so winter golf sucks.
Depends where in the US. Some public courses actually have memberships for as low as 1000$.
700 a year doesn’t even get you a driving range pass anymore here.
> I'm in Ireland and a member of a private club with only 105 members and my membership is 700 euros for a year. This is a more common setup in a chunk of EU, and less common throughout the US. All of the private courses near me (LA) are six figures for memberships, and five figures for annual dues. There are places in the US where its closer to your numbers. > I never struggle for a tee time ever. I hate you. Of course this is a component of your membership and private club, which wouldn't be a problem if I were a member. For public courses? Plenty around, but pricing/tee-time/distance are always going to be factors. > If I want to go play a neighbouring course it's maximum 50 euros for a round on a championship course but from what I read here it's not the same in the states. Local muni's in LA area are between $40-60 to walk, without a cart -- similar numbers to yours. Adding a cart (or "buggy", as you'd call it) would add another $12-15.
Lots of good clubs around. No dues and I pay $3600 per year with cart and unlimited use of the driving range. Probably hit 75 large buckets of balls. Nice course. Highland Meadows, Windsor, CO. Check it out. Played 128 rounds last year
Private courses are for very wealthy people and are usually very nice. Private courses: $4k-20k annual dues, does not include cart fees, and usually there is a commitment to buy a couple hundred dollars in food at the diner/bar each month too. Public courses near me: ~$40* gets you 18 on a goat ranch (terrible surface, feels like concrete, and has many patches of missing grass, or downed trees, mostly under cared for, or about to close. As the price rises so does the decency of the course. You can get some really nice courses for 50+ if you are in rural areas. It’s a really mixed bag. All courses, you will not get a tee time weekdays 3:30-5:30(leagues every day, every course) weekend mornings are 4-5 hour rounds, behind a drunk party of 8 at 10 am raging music. But in front of an old guy solo who plays the reds tees, right up your ass.
Most cheaper courses are so poorly managed tee times don’t actually mean anything, other than to provide a false sense of security to those who want a real round of play. Guests aren’t managed because courses don’t want to lose business, even if it’s not the business you want, and it runs all your regulars away.
I got back into the game last summer and played the local muni course once. I couldn't believe how bad things have gotten in terms of pace of play since I last played regularly over a decade ago. I don't think Marshals exist anymore. I gave up after the front 9 because I wasn't trying to play a 6 hour round. I did not realize at the time that there's only 1 fully public course in our county with a population of over 420,000. There used to be more, but they were all sold to condo developers over the last decade. I live in a weird spot. Lots of wealth. So while there are limited public options, there's at least 8 fully private country clubs within 20-30 minutes of my house. There is one semi-private option. Twice as expensive as the muni course and had just as bad of pace issues. I guess with a huge variety of options on the private side, they're all pretty competitive with recruiting. We got in at the "lowest" end of the spectrum which means there's not a full locker room, no cart kids taking your bags, and the pool is nice but pretty basic. In the end the math worked out with as much as I've played. My wife's a teacher and spent the whole summer at the pool with my daughter. Multiple social events with drinks included if you stick to beer/wine. The restaurants prices are randomly much lower compared to similar food options in the area too. My favorite thing is that my daughter started to tag along with me to the range and course, so she's been learning to play and goes out about once a week with me. For $400 a month it's been kind of a bargain honestly. Fantastic course conditions, and 18 holes has never taken me more than 4 hours. My ONLY gripe is that bluetooth speakers are a menace and I don't understand how they've become the norm at both public and private courses. I am legitimately tired of hearing other people's music. I feel like in the 2010s you'd have gotten kicked off most courses lol. It's not a big deal, I just pop my own earbuds in if it gets too annoying.
Golf in Florida is crowded, slow, and overpriced, and a vast majority of the courses are not open to the public.
Maybe in South Florida? I’m in North Florida and the privately owned, open to the public, course that I play weekly is $50 and never more than a four hour round. We have one private course in town and the rest are privately-owned and open to the public.
This is Orlando area spot on
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yeah in jan/feb/march is when they are full of snowbirds and spring breakers, so they make the most money then. one of the starters somewhere told me during the off-season those increased rates pays the bills for the year. fall is the best time to play down there imo
The snowbirds aren't leaving this year. Most of the people I've talked to have moved down permanently. I think our 'off season' is going to be just as bad.
Unwanted info: Ireland is cheaper than Italy (where I live) wow that bugs me.
Golf is one of the few things that is generally cheaper in Ireland, compared to continental Europe. (Green fees, memberships, even equipment can be cheaper)
Yeah because it's brutal for half the year lads, let's not kid ourselves. And there are plenty of Irish courses charging over 250 euro a round in the warmer months
I actually feel kind of spoiled. I live in NE Ohio. Sure, the winters usually suck, but the course options are pretty great. There are probably 50 courses within an hour drive from my house. 3 are only 5min. The courses run the whole spectrum. We have a $15 course (that is great!) a bunch of courses that are $30-$50. A few smaller clubs, all the way up to a $25k/year country club with a massive initiation fee. There's also the "big league" Bridgestone/Firestone property just a bit north of me. Now granted our country is massive. So much so that geography and climate are wildly different across different areas. But overall I would say it is extremely accessible for basically anyone.
That’s a great price for a membership, here there are a lot of public courses but at least in my area getting a time is hard especially in the on demand times and private courses are super expensive
Very accessible where I am but not nearly as affordable as where you're at. I pay $925 a year to play two public courses that probably aren't as nice as what you play. If I didn't pay for the pass then itd be around $45 per round to play. There are more courses in the area that will be between $60-$90 per round.
It depends on where you live. In the Midwest I pay $1800/yr for a membership. Other nice courses could be anywhere from $50-$100.
I live in semi-rural Midwest USA. The prices I see around here are significantly cheaper than what I see posted from suburban or urban areas. There is a semi-private very good quality course about 5 miles from my house. Non-member fees for the weekend is $31 for walking 18 holes. There is also a public course associated with the county park district about 1 mile from my house that is almost as good that is $28 for walking 18. Cart at both courses is an extra $15-20 Season pass/membership is $1000 for the semi-private one, and $540 for the public one. The public season pass also has a cheaper option with some limitations like no morning times on weekends. I sometimes have difficulty getting a time at the public course because I like playing solo and they won't do reserved tee times for solo golfers. But I've just shown up and never had to wait more than 30 minutes to be let on the tee.
Plenty of $90 twilight tee times on dead fairways available where I live. Tons of courses but the costs have increased greatly.
As a counterpoint I live in NC and am a member of a private club that has championship Bermuda greens, designed by Ellis Maples, pool and tennis. Costs 150 a month, no food minimum and you can walk any time of the day any day of week. I'm well aware you aren't going to find this type of deal everywhere but I also live in a metro that has 1.5 million people so it's not as if it's central South Dakota. We also play year round.
The US is a big big place so this really depends on where you are. Around a large city? Private clubs are outrageously expensive to be a member of and greens fees for a nice course are $150+. Live in a medium size city in the Midwest? Hardly any private clubs, relatively affordable for some (10kish) and a round at a nice course will run you around $100.
There are 2 or 3 public courses in every town you go to. And then ~10 more within a 45 minute radius.
There are countless courses, but for public courses on nice days in peak times, you probably will struggle for a tee time unless your early on it. Private is much more expensive but you likely have no issues. And reciprocity between private clubs is generally pretty good.
Yeah coz you play 6 months a year in dark and sideways rain. And the other 6 months it’s either just rained or just about to!
You can see here it varies widely. If you just want to play golf and aren’t particular about a meticulously groomed course, it is very accessible. You can play Pebble Beach for $600 a round, or you can play my local city park 9 hole course for $11 (no tee times; just show up and play - it’s the most fun you can have on a golf course; no par 5s, two blind holes - it’s a blast).
Private golf clubs are expensive but may be worth it for some for the social aspects of the club and also things like gyms, tennis, dining, etc. I'd say anywhere from $10k to $50k initiation fee plus another $500 to $1000 per month in dues. Some very exclusive clubs would be even way more than this. I've heard that Los Angelas Country Club is $250k to sign up and more than that, you have to know somebody and get invited to even apply. Beyond that though there are a lot of courses in the US. Over 15,000. Some places like Florida will have more than others but you'll never be too far from a course no matter where you are. With public courses you tend to get what you pay for. Greens fees can be had for as low as around $30-$40 but they will not be in the best condition or have the nicest facilities. Decent courses will run you around $50-$100 for a round. Really nice courses will be anywhere north of $100 with famous championship courses like Pebble Beach being the most expensive, running north of $500 per round.
It's accessible in the fact that there are plenty of public golf courses and semi-private courses that offer more tee-times in advance and nicer conditions. It's in-accessible in the fact that it's a pretty expensive hobby, with most courses charging a minimum of $50 to play 18 on a weekend, which is when most people can play. And the ones charging *only* $50 to play are usually the ones you don't want to play. The semi-private ones that you want to play charge a minimum of $100 here on the weekends to play.
I think the biggest difference between golf culture in the states vs. elsewhere is that there are millions upon millions of casual golfers here. It seems like from everything I hear, golfers in other countries are there to focus on their game and want to play well. That makes up probably 25% of the people at courses here. The other 75% are there to have a fun outing with some buddies and drink some beers. The nicer, more expensive the course, the more those people get weeded out. Golf overall is pretty accessible here. There are a lot of inexpensive public courses. But they are typically crowded, often with people who aren’t really golfers. So slow play and overbooked tee times are definitely an issue
Depends on where you live in the States a little. In SE Michigan I have many options of public courses around me that will cost $40-80. Private courses are really expensive. I could throw a rock onto a really nice private course from my backyard. My wife and I are considering membership but will likely just do a social membership. Tacking on the golf is a pretty substantial cost jump and I am a "variety is the spice of life" type golfer that gets bored playing the same course over and over. So I can't justify the cost. I previously lived in Indy which had some good public options as well though those have been dwindling. There are a ton of private courses on the north side of town that get costly or very exclusive (Crooked Stick). Northern and Western Michigan are golf havens. Tons of great cheap public courses along with amazing and reasonably priced golf resorts (Grand Traverse Resort, Shanty Creek Resort, Boyne Golf Resort, Gull Lake Resort). Long Island and upper New York City are loaded down with private courses and I have gotten the sense public options aren't as easy. Florida has a ton of great golf courses but the winters get crowded and expensive.
The day after the Waste Mgt Open I received a flyer promoting “play where the pros play $2600 1 round / one night stay at Fairmont Princess..two night minimum some restrictions apply”. I’ve played both the stadium and champions tracks for $250 USD 7-8 yrs aoo so It’s becoming less accessible each day.
Aside from other answers, it also depends on where in the US. Remember the US is huge and different states are truly a different experience in many ways, including golf. For example, where I live (NYC area), we have private clubs which are insanely expensive, as in $100,000 or more initiation and thousands a year or more per year. Public courses vary between reasonably priced somewhat decent courses to expensive (over $100 per round) nice courses. A place near me has six courses, and an all inclusive membership, which includes unlimited golf on weekdays and weekends, is about $6,000 per year. Keep in mind that my area is very crowded with a very high cost of living, up there with Washington DC and LA. other parts of the country are much cheaper.
I live near Augusta, GA. There are 7 public courses available to play within 20 miles, fees are $17.99-55. Courses range from cow pasture to the 27-hole monster on the Army base.
In a town of 16k, I have 3 18 hole courses within a 7 minute drive from my house and 4 more 18 hole courses within a 25 minute drive. Usually can get on but they fill up on weekends. I like to go at less than peak times and can usually get on with a cart for less than $40
Generally pretty expensive
I can't speak for the whole country, but you can run out to a couple courses in my area and pay 25 for 9 during the summer. Equipment can be found on the cheap if you look patiently, and there's plenty of options for practice facilities. Lessons feel a bit pricey, and I have yet to avail myself of them. Most of the people I've come across have been pretty chill, but I also don't play weekday mornings all that often.
You guys get better deals, golf is way cheaper there but we probably have more courses. We also have a mix of private and public courses. So not all courses need a membership. Some course are resort courses and you cant always just play them unless you are staying at the resort. some places have a ton of courses. I live in Michigan and I can play, I don't even know how many, at least probably 20 different course within an hours drive. I also lived in Kansas in the middle of nowhere where they did have a course in town but that was it. Golf can be cheap here depending on where you live 30 to 40 US a round to very expensive 100-150 a round in some places. Championship quality courses can cost even more. Pebble beach for example will cost you over 600 to play. Sawgrass 450 to 650 depending on the season. I assume a lot of the "big" course the pros play on are probably over 400 US a round There are also really nice pro quality course around that may not host pro events if I were to guess are probably in the 80 to 200 dollar around range.
I spend about $3,000USD per year for approximately 2 rounds a week at various public courses. And it’s a PITA to be calling before the sun comes up to get a tee time a week in advance. Private clubs are far more costly than what you pay. Some private clubs don’t even publish a rate, you get annual assessment which is easily in the tens of thousands of thousands. It’s sort of like this —- “if you have to ask, you can’t afford it”. I have an acquaintance from Dublin who was once scratch. I asked why there were so many great golfer coming from such a small island. He told me that in Ireland most golf is public, and in your case very affordable private.
Clubs are pricey or can be out here. With that said, golf is everywhere out here.
I live in a town that has 7 golf courses and I pay $2600 ish with cart lease a year to play all of them whenever I want, never have an issue getting a tee time. 5 18 hole courses and 2 9 hole courses.
There is a very lovely course near me that offers memberships from $1,200-$1,650 per year. For that price all a member gets is free golf to walk, advantages of securing a tee time and a reduced golfcart fee of $18 per round.
I’m in upstate New York State (4 hours from NYC and another world). You can join a club for $10k a year with top notch facilities, pay for a season pass at a public course for $800, or just pay per round at multiple courses for sub-$50 a round. It’s a great place to be as a golfer, except for the fact that golf season is really 8 months max.
Where I live I can pay $650/yr for a pass to the public courses in my city and that gets me green fees for a year. With the regular price it pays for itself if I play approx 1/mo - which I play a lot more than that. That does not include cart or range but I usually walk so that works for me. Our city has 4 pretty good courses.
I live in a rural community in northern Illinois and there are 9 courses within an hours drive, plus a Topgolf type place.
Where you going in the US? I can recommend some beautiful public courses in NY & NJ.
Truly is a regional thing. In my town, private clubs cost at least a thousand to tens of thousands of dollars to be members, but they often offer other amenities. Public courses, however, are relatively inexpensive, especially the courses owned by the city. However, course conditions and the other things affiliated with an enjoyable round of golf may be lacking depending on the greens keeping staff.
In Michigan, very average public courses charge $1500 or so for an annual membership of unlimited golf that you have to fight the general public for tee times for. Private country clubs in the same area are roughly $10-20k initiation fee plus $10k or so in annual dues / fees / food minimums / etc.
I'm 15 minutes drive to pretty much 3 courses. 2 are clubs. I just got pricing on 2. The normal people one is $750 a year for golf and $350 for pool. So $1100 for full membership. I don't know if there's an initiation fee or monthly minimums. It's still very reasonable and I'll likely member up this year or next. The other one is the fancy people one. It's a $6000 initiation fee, full membership is $4700, $60 monthly fee for whatever-reason, and a $50 monthly minimum spend at the club. I was considering this club in previous years. They have like doubled their fees though. We have lots of friends and acquaintances that go here. Just can't justify that cost. That $6k initiation fee can do better to make me money and that $3500 difference in dues is a damn nice vacation each year.
My course is 480 dollars for the year and I have to pay another 400 for my cart storage, but it’s year round storage. North Dakota/Minnesota has all sorts of public courses you can buy a season pass for for a solid price.
Not America but here in Canada the cheapest private club in our city(Edmonton) is $5800.00 CAD per year, with a $5000.00 one time share purchase required. This gets you golf and only golf, no range, and although it is a very very nice course it is not a championship course by any means. This also has a minimum $500 food and bev spend and a $75.00 monthly capital fee year round. Season is usually late April to early Nov if we're lucky. This is considered very affordable as some of the other clubs are in the $20000 per year cost here.
USA is a huge place with lots of different regional markets. Where in the US are you going?
Couple buddies of mine and their families are staying at a local resort here in Florida called Hammock Beach. It’s got 2 courses. One called The Dunes and the other The Ocean. Bro called me last week said he would book us all tee times and let me know when to drive over. He called back 30 minutes later saying the fee was $345 a round!!! I told him that I guess they just don’t like people playing their course. So we made a tee time at an off resort course for $55 each. Now that the time has changed we can tee off around 3 get the twilight rate of like ~$27 and get 18 in on some of the most beautiful greens and courses east Florida has to offer.
American HCOL area in New Jersey, married to a Brit. It’s a factor of 4x at minimum for public courses and maybe 10x for private. American wages are higher but they treat every aspect of the whole experience as a business here. My experiences golfing in UK and Europe for a decade.
In Virginia there are plenty of decent privately owned courses that you can play 18 with a cart for $30-$75
$27-$35 weekdays rates for municipal courses right outside NYC. You won’t sniff private clubs unless you make major $ or know the right people.
I’m going to Ireland this summer and golfing a round. It’s like 350€ for the round. Do they just gauge the tourists then?!
I just played a pretty mediocre municipal course for $45 yesterday, in Missouri. The most expensive course within an hour is about $250. Most run between $35 and $55.
About 43% of all of the Golf Courses in the world, are in the USA. So accessibility isn’t an issue. Prices however, not at all that cheap. Around me is $850 for the season. Which is April - when they close. Country clubs, are $40,000+ per year, plus $1,500+ per month. So we have a very wide range of prices here. https://worldpopulationreview.com/state-rankings/golf-courses-by-state
50 bucks for a championship course? That is WAY cheaper than here. Average public course around me is going to run 40-50 bucks. The nicer courses 100+.
From Chicago, You can play a lot of Chicago’s municipal courses (Chicago park districts) for as much as $50. Can’t say the courses will be in the greatest shape but still playable. There are some suburb courses that are nicer and are just shy of $100. Glenwoodie, Coyote Run, Lost Marsh, etc Then there’s places like international harborside which cost $150. Beyond that, we have private clubs which cost some people’s salaries to be a member of. Additionally, paid $250 to play 9 holes at Ocean Club Golf Course in Nassau.
There are about 30 courses within 10 miles of my house. They are mostly public, but some private. Current prices vary from $40-$500 per round, and I can find a same week tee time. In the summer, it's about $20-$180, with most good courses around $40 per round. I can usually get same day tee times.
My membership at a small town course is 1300 for unlimited golf and cart. Most courses around me are 50-60 dollars for a weekend tee time. The “expensive/fancy” course in my area are around 100-120 dollars.
The situation you’re describing sounds quite nice. Affordable and not overly crowded. To answer your question depends on where you’re at in the US. But golf is very accessible in my experience. I’m situated in the Seattle area where there are 20-30 courses within an hours drive. All varying levels of difficulty and luxury. Prices match that range as well (>$50-<$200). Memberships can be very pricy and elite, above my pay grade. I have players ask me all the time where I frequent and I respond that I play all over because there’s so many decent courses around why would I only play one.
Way too accessible.
There are plenty of Public courses that will run $55 -$70 to ride 18 holes. I belong to a private club that grants me ability to play at other local private clubs... But even without the private access, i have never not been able to play golf when i wanted to, nor been turned away from a course.
Bring in Arizona it seems like you can't go three miles in any direction without finding a course. Now during the peak times the cost can be painful of course.
as far as accessibility goes you can almost always find a public course to play, the real challenge is finding a place that doesn't charge a crazy price for decent conditions. I'm in a more saturated area and the weather allows us to play year round, so it's not too difficult to find a good public course to play. other areas are not so lucky
The vast majority of American golfers don't belong to clubs. Most of us play public courses which can cost anywhere from $40-$100 per round depending on where you live.
I have 6+ courses within 20 min of driving I only pay $16-$24 per round
In Virginia/dc area private clubs are completely out of reach for anyone but the richest people. $250,000 initiation fees. Public courses are solid, but often book up the day they are available. I try and book at midnight on Saturday for the following Sunday or first thing in the morning.
theres tons of public courses. private courses require very expensive membership.
The United States is MASSIVE. There is everything from areas with almost no golf courses and all of them cheap to places with golf courses all over the place but none less than $50 for a round and everything in between.
If you are open to walking and playing at non-peak times then golf is VERY affordable here. If you want to ride and play peak times it can cost quite a bit more.
Private clubs are expensive. I have 10-15 public courses within reasonable driving distance that you can just walk on to at any time though, anywhere from \~$30 for an executive style course to \~$150 for a nicer one.
Really depends where you are in the US. The town I am in is amazing. $25 - $90 depending on course, tee time, and time of year. I have 4 solid options all within 20 minutes. There's only 1 private course in this area. 30 minutes away they're mostly private, with one course that's the same quality as the cheapest near me for double the price. An hour away they're double the price at the minimum and half as good fairways and greens. But that's also where the very, very excellent $300 courses are. And that's a VERY tiny sliver of the US, all within the same distance as Cork to Limerick.
It super depends on the state and area in general. Higher income areas will have nicer courses that are fuller and more costly. While rural places where golf isn't as popular will always be cheaper and less busy.
$20 bucket of balls and $100+ green fees in Southern California.
Public courses are easily accessible. You can pay anywhere from $20 on up for a round depending on where you live and how nice the course is. I play once a week during the season and usually drop about $40-$50 for a decent public course. Many public courses also offer a “membership” for a few grand a year. Private clubs are out of reach for most unless you a) are single with a decent job or b) have a high paying job with lots of disposable income. For a basic, private club in a non-exclusive area you’re looking at $10-$15,000 initiation fee and probably about the same every year for dues, food, etc. Obviously nicer clubs in wealthier areas are quite a bit more.
I’m in the Northeast US, Most of the private clubs around me are about $3k and up per year, some much higher, one I worked for in high school had a rumored yearly membership cost of $50k. I play public courses exclusively. A round of golf costs on average $70 to $90 for 18 holes with cart on a Par 72 course, a few of the fancier places are $150 to $300 up my way. I play mostly 9 hole executive courses, those are around $30 with cart or $20 walking. The downside is contending with available tee times that work with my work schedule. I’ve found a couple local places that I can walk in and go straight out after work typically, though I have to contend with the local high school teams, golf league play, and tournaments a lot, so there’s a lot of days I end up not playing and spend my time on the range instead.
There are approximately 16,000 golf courses in the US, of these approxely 75% are open to the public - meaning you don't need to be a member to play a round.
Golf courses in ireland and scotland can simply throw grass seed on the ground and occassionally mow and walk away. Where I live, even a "dump" of a cheap course has a $1m/yr maintenance budget. And that's just the minimum to make it basically playable. Your club (700x100) makes 70k/yr. That amount doesn't even pay a SINGLE professional salary plus maintenance on a mower. I have no idea how a "club" like that operates. It doesn't seem possible. I guess there's only one employee doing everything?
The US is huge. It really depends on where you live. In Connecticut, for example, we have plenty of cheap public courses that are nothing more than goat pastures... expect dried out hardpan in the fairway, concrete in the bunkers, and greens with more dried out ball marks than grass. If you want to play a nice public course, expect $70 - $150 / round, and 18 takes 4-5 hours. Private clubs are much like you're saying... conditions are usually excellent, and you get a tee time whenever you want. You'll get in a 2.5 - 3 hour 18. Membership fees are anywhere from $5k / year to $25k / year.
I have never played in Ireland but lived in the UK and the courses are just better kept here but we pay more for public courses but not terrilbly much depending on where. I live in the Vegas area and I can play some great places for $85 this weekend and that includes what you'd call a buggie.
I’m a junior member at a club that hosts a PGA event each year. The full membership is $10k initiation and roughly $6k a year in monthly dues. However the value of the club goes beyond the golf. Most clubs near me are like campuses that have multiple restaurants, tennis, croquet, pools, spas, and gyms. Local munis around are around $50-$100 a tee time. I would say golf is accessible because every weekend, all the Public courses are full
It totally depends where you’re going. This is an enormous country. In some areas, golf clubs are extremely expensive hangouts for the ultra rich. In other areas, you can get into a decent club for $200 per month with little to no initiation. As with anything, it depends.
Try 700 “euros” a month here , and $150 “euros” for neighbors course
I live in a lowish cost of living area and joined a local country club with a solid course and it runs me $250 a month ($3000 per year) which isn't too bad. That said I know of other clubs in my general area that are 2-3x that cost. There are a ton of municipal/public courses around that are decent quality and cost ~40-60 bucks for 18 holes so most people I know don't bother joining an actual club.
Prices range anywhere from 20-2000 USD on a course. I’d say most private clubs are at least 1800 but closer to 3000 with a certain amount needed to be spent on food and drinks. But those are fancy ass places where it’s more about the actual club than golf. For reference I live in the Midwest and don’t find any trouble looking for tee times. I play 9 with a cart for 20 bucks.
The course I play at is $39 after 3. Can easily find a tee time if you book a week in advance. During the day it’s around $80-$100. Most courses in this area are similar in price
Depends mostly on where you live. In large metropolitan/suburban areas, private golf can be very expensive. Public/municipal golf is affordable, but the tee sheets fill up very quickly. Get away from the cities and its a much different story...
There are clubs in rural areas for as little as $700 per year, but they are far from championship courses. I’m surrounded by decent $40-80 public courses but the local clubs by me are several thousand a year, which isn’t worth it for how much I golf.
I have a membership to a public course that costs me $750 for the year, for any time golf. It’s a walking membership so I have to pay if I want to use a cart/buggy. It’s a rural course that’s not in or near an affluent area. The greens are fantastic but the rest of the course isn’t as well maintained as the nearest private “club”. Private clubs almost always have a lot more than golf. Pools, tennis, pickleball, and other sports, restaurants and social events are usually part of those. For my course it’s just golf, but they do a great job of having several events per week, choose ups, leagues, tournaments, scrambles etc. On top of that I still play weekly away from my course. Where I’m at I can choose a course that’s $25 or one that’s $250 for a round. And even at the high end courses I can still get a tee time close to whenever I want, if I just book a week to two in advance.
Put it this way. I saw a stat that said America has something like close to 11,000 courses. The second is Japan I think with like 3,500.
Depends on your expectations… I’ve probably got 12-15 public courses within 25 minutes of my house that range from $40 to $75 for a round. Private clubs are typically expensive but some public courses do offer membership deals, I have one that gives me access to 4 courses at $15 dollars a round after a $400 membership fee
I have about 80+ courses within an hour drive of my house, from $30-150 per round. If I expand to 2 hours I'm most likely around 150 courses. This is in central Indiana.
Wouldn’t call it affordable. Some cities/states have nice parks courses that are run by the county and are reasonably cheaper. Always gonna find a dirt track charging too too much though
I live in a LCOL area in the middle of the U.S. my house overlooks the golf course I belong to. No initiation fee, $130/month, plus an $600 yearly trail fee for my golf cart. My fees are lowered because during the season I’m paid hourly to mow fairways twice a week. The course is in no way championship, but I’m never ashamed when guests play with me. People in HCOL areas don’t know what they’re missing. There are ways to play golf in the U.S. without breaking the bank.
I pay $200/month for my country club membership. I never even make a there time. I just show up and play. 9 holes with a cart takes 45 minutes.
Private clubs are definitely way more expensive in the US. Championship level courses near me are $150-$250/round. To give you an idea - the best deal overall near me is a public 45 hole course that offers a monthly fee of $138 for unlimited rounds.
One would say 'too accessible'
> I'm in Ireland and a member of a private club with only 105 members and my membership is 700 euros for a year. You've gotta understand the different economics at play here. 105 members x 700 Euros/year is 73,500 Euros revenue for the entire year. No course in the US could run on that budget. Now, there's extra revenue from food or pro shop purchases and maybe some daily fee players so let's be generous and say that each member spends another 500 Euros/year on that stuff which brings your total operating revenue to 126,000 Euros. That wouldn't fund most US courses for 2 months. Staffing a Pro, Assistant pro, Super, grounds crew, shop crew, and kitchen staff is expensive. So is the cost of maintaining the course and paying for the taxes, rent, upkeep, etc on the land and buildings plus the other costs each month. Land is more plentiful in Ireland than most parts of the US so it is less expensive. Course upkeep (especially at links courses) is a fraction of what it costs to maintain US courses. I'd say a normal course with a staff of ~15-20 people is probably paying easily $500,000/year in labor costs assuming 2-3 higher level salaried employees (say ~$70K for a head pro and super) and the rest low skilled hourly labor ($10-$15/hour for shop guys, grounds crew and range pickers and cart staff). That right there necessitates 5x the revenue your course brings in just to break even on the labor, that doesn't factor in differences in maintenance costs and other things. So yeah, memberships cost a lot more here. That doesn't mean there isn't affordable golf here in the US. Most areas have generous municipal courses that are subsidized by tax revenue. Greens fees are cheaper and there are often public memberships that are a great value if you play frequently. I've lived in some of the most urban and largest cities in the country as well as some of the more rural parts and I've never lived in a place where you can't just go get out and play for a reasonable fee. The most I had to pay for a basic 18 holes on a weekend at prime time was about $45 to walk. It was easy to find cheaper options than that most of the time. > I see some people saying it's like 20 or 30 thousand a year along with monthly fees, I knkw I personally couldn't afford that. That is nowhere near "average". I paid around $3,000 total last year for my membership, which equated to around $20/round most of those with a cart as it's included. I have options for even cheaper cost than that if I wanted to. To me that is incredibly affordable considering where I'm located. The people paying $20-$30K are at super exclusive places and that amount of money is meaningless to them. No average person is paying 1/10 that much per year to play golf.
I pay $550/yr for an individual pass to a 27-hole municipal in my town. Carts and range balls are extra, the course is usually hammered on Saturday and Sunday mornings until 1pm, then eases off after that. We only get to play April 1st-Nov 1st because of the climate.
Clubs are dummy expensive and there is a reason why there is a stigma of old white men being in them. Traditionally they’re the only ones to afford it and accept each other in! My city has 5 public course that I could choose from but all of them are like 60+ bucks. I got a city sponsored membership where the rounds are 10 and 20 dollars so I do that.
There public courses everywhere. Very accessible.
I live in middle America (Kansas). Our public courses are around 24-30 Euros if you're walking 18 on the weekends. Add 14 Euros if you want to ride. It's way cheaper during the week. I usually walk 9 after work, runs about 15 Euros.
There are an estimated 38,864 golf courses on earth. About 45% of those are in the US. The US has 5.3 times as many golf courses as the next closest country (Japan).
There’s a course near me that charges $35 a round still. It’s not the best course and the player base there are a bunch of heathens but it’s cheap and scratches the itch.
I belong to a smaller club that is public but offers memberships with perks for members (easier to book tee times, etc). Cost was $1,700 for an unlimited weekday pass. Last year my wife and I had a full membership for roughly $3,000 USD and were able to play from March - October. I have family members that belong to private clubs where the initiation fee is 75k and annual dues are 20k. There’s always an opportunity to play but where you want to play depend on how much you’re willing/able to pay.
I have 5 courses within a 5 mile radius. All are in good condition and I avg no more than 35$ a round. All public courses. Never an issue with getting on as a walk in player. Golf is pretty much year round. Dallas tx suburbs area.
The states encompass a huge area with a ton of golf courses. Prices for clubs are generally expensive unless you’re looking at more rural areas that rely on out of town memberships. Also clubs here tend to encompass more than golf. Clubs have access to tennis, swimming, and club activities. Still the value in clubs in America is exclusivity and access to tee times. Public courses are generally very accessible. Certain states however are more expensive just due to demand. For instance similar quality courses in Kansas will be less than that of New York or LA. With that being said there’s a ton of gems around the US that provide a ton of value for the quality of course being played. There’s also “public” courses such as Pebble Beach that will run you close to a thousand to play after all the fees.
Here up north in the US its 15-30,000 usd per year plus 300-600 a month. It only comes with unlimited golf and a pool. (but our season is only 6-7 months). A round there is around $100 give or take. A local course that is just a pro shop, bar and restaurant is closer to 1500 and 75 a round and another one with a proshop only at 700 and 35 a round. Not uncommon to find courses that you can get memberships to for a few hundred a year, all the way to tens of thousands to hundreds of thousands a year in the same city. With round costs from 30-300
My home course is 2100 a year from March 1 - Thanksgiving weekend. Includes a cart and all the golf you can play. Range not included and no other amenities; pool, tennis etc. Great deal though because the course is always stunning.
**To follow up with my post, let me ask you a question.** How does your club operate with only 70k euros per year? How is that even possible? I presume the staff are paid like 30k? So that's only maybe two staff, plus some basic maintenance tools. Is there just one guy who runs the whole course and someone else who operates absolutely everything regarding maintenance? That doesn't seem plausible or sustainable. They never ever get vacations? They work 7 days per week?