golfrewind.com

Pretty soon we're going to be moving back to Riverside, Ca. We lived there for 6 years in the past and really liked it. Anyway, there's a private club there with a pretty good course that I can join for a little more than 5K with $80 per month dues. My wife is actually encouraging me to join the thing and because of the amount of money I've made on houses in the last few years I can definately afford it. Besides, I think I can talk my boss into coughing up the dues every month.

However, I'm hesitant because within a 15 mile radius from where our new home will be are three truly outstanding courses that I would recommend to anyone who came out here (quick tip: The Inland Empire is far superior in golf courses to L.A. county). And if I want to drive about 20 miles then there's at least six courses I'd be happy to play any day of the week. Plus there's a solid muni about 2 minutes from our house that has an actual grass driving range-a rare thing indeed here in SoCal.

One of the things about golf that I really enjoy is the variety of courses. I appreciate a course where each hole has its own unique personality, (so to speak) and I like playing new places as well. Living in Riverside, California affords me the opportunity to be an hour from Palm Springs-although I never managed to make it out there before... I could play a new and very nice course at least 15 weeks in a row without playing the same one twice and never have to drive more than an hour from home. And most of those courses are within half an hour.

The course at the prospective country club is a good and solid old style type of course that was built sometime in the mid-sixties or so. I've played there 3 or 4 times and enjoyed each occassion. I have several friends who belong there as well several business associates. And while I've never met the man, I understand the head pro is a pretty patient teacher.
There's tennis and a swimming pool as well, but frankly I care far more about how many different beers are on tap in the clubhouse-which is a nice clubhouse by the way. It's five minutes from my house, the greens fees are cheap, and I won't lie and say that I wouldn't get a kick out of saying over my electronic leash, errr, cell phone, "Yeah, I'm at the club".

So for those who belong to a private club, is it worth it? What are the real adavantages and are there any disadavantages besides the initial cost? Any input is greatly appreciated.

Funny you post this now. There is a possibility I may be moving to the Inland Empire (Corona CA), and I joined a private club last year. Here is my post on Private clubs:

These are some of the items I look for when looking for a private golf club:

* Course - Obviously, you must like the course! I prefer courses which aren't as populated by houses and development. It must also be walking-friendly, with not too many long transitions between greens to teeboxes.
* Location - I want a club to me convenient to both home and work.
* Driving range - Full facilities with balls, short game area, putting green, etc. etc. are 100% required, IMO. Inquire of any time restrictions, as some ranges close early. Check if the range is lighted.
* Clubhouse - I want a clean, presentable clubhouse, but it doesn't have to be extravagant. A pool and jacuzzi are a plus, but not required. Shower/locker facilities should be present.
* Variables - I try to investigate the "tempo" of the club - is it families, serious golfers, league players, etc. etc.
* Tee Times - As a single player, getting on the course is very important to me. The ability to play often and walk-on easily is critical.
* Costs - Be careful of fees like cart fees, food & drink minimums, and other nuisance fees that can add up the costs. Also - ask for any specials or promotions for the membership initiation fee. Like car dealers, this is (somewhat) negotiable, depending on the club.
* Invitation Only - Are you required to be invited by a member? IF you don't know a member, sometimes they will assign a "sponsor" for you.
* Equity Clubs - Some clubs are "member owned", which means the members pay up for any improvements or repairs to the club. Other clubs are owned by corporations, where the members don't pay for upgrades.

Here's a post on my Decision to go Private

This is the point where I decided to join a private golf club. Fundamentally, I was growing very tired of the waiting times and crowds at public courses. This is a recurring problem at many public courses in my area - they will not make tee times for singles, and it's very common to wait 1-2 hours for an available slot as a "walk-on". Even If you call ahead of time, the proshop insists on telling you on the phone the course is open, no tournaments, and it's easy to walk-on. LIES!!

I went to a local course called "Westridge GC" to walk-on as a single. I was told to standby on the practice green, and they should have an opening in 30-45 minutes. TWO HOURS later, I still never got the call. The Proshop apologized, then immediately sent me to the #10 teebox (the course was starting on #10 that day, which is a long cart ride away from the clubhouse). To add to the confusion, there were no carts available, and I had to wait another 2-3 minutes for a cart. Once I (finally) got to the teebox, the Starter, and all the other golfers waiting to tee off were FUMING at me for my tardiness. There must have been 7-8 golfers all standing around the teebox waiting for me.

I had to explain that the Proshop directed me out there, to pair up with a 3-some on the teebox! Without a warmup, I immediately came under the ball, and put a huge Skymark on my BRAND NEW Titleist 980F 3Wood. The ball popped up high, and only about 50 yards away from the teebox! As you would imagine, the starter, and all the golfers waiting looked at me as if I was a prize idiot.

PRECISELY at that moment, I made the decision to join a Private Golf club. I've never looked back since. Having the ability to make a tee time as a single golfer has changed my golfing life for the better. I'll never go back to Public golf again, if I can help it.

Since GRW has a limit on posting size, here's the followup to my post, on my observations AFTER being a member for a year:

Private club observations:

I just joined "Great Southwest" in GrandPrairie (Dallas suburb) TX. Here are my pros and cons about this club, and being a member of a private club (in general):

PRO:
* It's very secluded, quiet, and a wonderful course that's very free of housing, and development. It's like a little oasis in the city, to get away from the busy world.
* Even though the course is fairly short, there are many interesting holes, and many of the holes require very creative shotmaking, forcing you to work the ball left/right for the best results.
* Course availability is much better than public courses, which is a big relief to me, as I play/practice a lot. It's wonderful to get at least 9-14 holes in the evening after work, in complete solitude.
* It's Inexpensive ($0 initiation), roughly ~$300/month (not including food&cart fees)
* Course Conditioning is wonderful, the greens (Champions Bermuda) are in fantastic shape, and are very fast. The fairways/rough always seem to be in good shape, with very few bad areas.
* The Course amenities (water, restrooms, towels, sand filler, etc.) are always well stocked and easily available.
* Course workers are very nice, polite young men that are always willing to help with a smile.

CON:
* Weekends are busy. The course is very full on Sat/Sun mornings, and it can be busy in the afternoons on weekends. Their staggered tee times on the weekend (sending players off #1 and #10 simultaneously) can yield to a very full course on the weekends.
* Very high "Bubba" factor, with Texas "good ol' boys" drinking and gambling it up all over the course.
* Very high "Young Aggressive Male" factor, the guys who are 25-35 years old, with a very self confident (egotistical?) attitude. This club gives discounts for anyone under 30, so they attract a lot of these guys.
* Driving range closes 1 hour before sundown. I really dislike this feature, as I practice a lot.
* Driving range is only ~270 yards long, they discourage hitting drivers (they lose balls to the creek behind the range), so I find myself hitting 3/4 or 1/2 swing drives.
* Grass in the driving range (both full swing and short game areas) is subpar, with quite a bit of a sand base. On the plus side - this forces you to become a better ballstriker.
* Short game area is only minimally acceptable. Since not too many players seem to practice their short game, this works out well for me, as it always seems empty.
* The Greens are diabolical - very fast, and incredibly difficult slopes, and plenty of grain near the hole. Putting can be very, very difficult here, it makes other courses appear like flat carpet.
* ProShop employees seem bossy at times. I've been shooed off the range since they like to close it early. They also seem very annoyed whenever I struggle to get a tee time (as a single).
* Very cliquish membership. Impossible to break into their groups. Polite, but not the most friendly bunch of guys.

Summary - I love being a club member, it's raised my game significantly, as my handicap has dropped 2.5 points just by joining, and playing/practicing more. It's secluded, and gives me a lot of relaxed feelings while walking the course in solitude and quiet. I have some gripes about this club, but I don't anticipate going back to public golf anytime soon.

And Finally........My recommendation is: DO IT. I cannot stand the constant crowds, and fighting for tee times at public courses. There are many, many evenings that I'm the ONLY one on my course, and can enjoy rounds or practice holes in peace, without being rushed.

I would imagine that California would be pretty ripe with lots of golfers, and the public courses I've played in CA are very crowded. If you have the means and opportunity, I can't imagine playing public golf EVER again.

PS: Some clubs offer the ability to play at other public or private facilities for a marginal fee every month. Investigate if yours may have this opportunity, to allow you to play various courses from time to time.

PPS: I'd be interested to hear from you about the Inland Empire. Since I may have a potential opportunity there, I'm scared to death of housing costs. I don't know how I can possibly afford to live there, and deal with all that traffic and congestion. Any thoughts you have on the area would be welcome. Feel free to PM or email me anytime, as I'm curious to HOW it's possible to move TO California.

Hope that helps!

Thanks for all the tips Sam. I already printed out all your responses and advice. I'm going to write down and summarize them on paper so I can take them with me when I go to join (if I do join). I appreciate your help greatly.

I'll go ahead and PM about the California stuff.

And be sure to look up us other "southern Cali" people when you're around and want to play a round!
Lamma.... maybe you can let me know of the courses up north from me. I'm usually in Riverside on the weekends once a month, but have never played and always have wanted to go over to Palm Springs.

As far as living in S.Cali area? Easy. Commute from Mexico everyday like I do.
Nah, you mentioned traffic. That will do you in for sure.

But I've found with so many golf courses here, I haven't wanted to limit myself to a Private Club yet, so it would be interesting to hear some other opinions.

The Golf in the Inland Empire is awesome. As I told SamT in a PM, there's two MUST PLAY courses near Riverside. The first is actually in southern Corona and that's Eagle Glenn. A bit pricey, but well worth it once or twice a year. It's just off the 15 Freeway. If you're coming north on the 15 get off on Cajalco and go left. Then just follow the street all the way up and you'll run into the clubhouse. Even if you don't have time to play, just park and check out the scenery from the clubhouse. I can almost guarantee you'll find a way to play there soon.

The other is Oak Quarry which I think runs a close second to Eagle Glenn. It's off the 60 freeway a few miles east of the 15. I'm drawing a blank on the name of the street that you would get off on and go north, but if you call Information and ask for Oak Quarry in Riverside you can call and get directions. But unlike Eagle Glenn you can't get a feel for great the course is until you're out playing on it. But trust me, the par 3 14th hole is almost worth the greens fee by itself.

I'd also highly recommend Hidden Valley in Norco. It's north off the 91. Again I'm drawing a blank on the name of the offramp, but it too is one ******* course. Their signature hole is the par 5 fifteenth which has a drop from the teebox of some 200 feet. It's a great course with very reasonable fees.

There's also Trilogy which a lot of people love that's reasonably priced. A friend of mine who routinely shoots below par can't say enough good things about it, but I'm not a big fan. Trilogy is also off the 15 just south of Eagle Glenn.

At any rate, you can't go wrong with any of those courses. I'd recommend any of them but in order I'd go 1) Eagle Glenn 2) Oak Quarry and 3) Hidden Valley.

PM me if you want to know about any other good courses in the Inland Empire.

Funny this should come up because I just took a leave from my club.
3 main reasons-
One: there are so many new courses opening up around here that are just as nice and public. Since the 3 main guys I play with don't belong it can be a hassle.

two: they had a membership drive last winter and now the place has too many members.

three: assessments. It gets more expensive every year to play. Some places assess members for every improvement they make and it can add up.

I did enjoy playing there and it is close to home and has a beautiful layout. I have to make a decision by the end of summer if I am coming back.

That said,

Great info, as always, SamT. Maybe GR should consider a SamT forum for when a question calls for a bit more detail than is usually required.

Lamma,
If I were you I would join the private club. The other places will still be there for you to enjoy when you want a change. The private club will probably offer you a number of benefits that the other places won't. Best to you and have a great weekend. Stay safe.
Jerry

I quit the club I was in because I could never get a game in. I'd show up and expect to play the front 9, but couldn't beause there was a low ball tounament going on. After that a ladies tournament.

Well I'll just hit some range balls Then. But they're always in the field, so I have to lug them from the shed to the range.

On weekends there were tournaments on all the time. I guess touneys are fun, but I'd rather play by myself. I didn't get to do this until Winter.

Come spring I got a letter from them that had ALL of the touneys for next year on it. Picked up my phone and quit on the spot.

Yeah, public courses get packed, but playing them say, on a Tuesday morning is way way better. They are hardley any golfers on the course.

I guess everyone esle is waiting for Sat and Sun for the XXX Tounament of that week.

LOL! Actually - I'm considered the "Carnac" here at the office, also! Yes, I love writing, I wish I could make a living at it, but can't - sadly.

I'm green with envy... but happy for you guys, enjoy your private golf settings, I fight the crowds and many of the other problems of public golf...

Its an interesting situation where I live as there is a course I can go & play for £32 a round (work that out into $$$ ) which isn't really two bad for a top flight course, some courses like the Belfry you need £100+ & that's not even to get on to the championship one aparently.

If I wanted to join my local £32 a round course & not need to bother with green fees during the year I'd need to first find £800+, then another £900 for the year. The irony is It has a course laying directly next to it, which you can pay & play or take out membership of for £250 quid, & it actualy gets me into the toffee nosed one next door for half price green fees, which in my book means I've effectively got a course & a half to play for my £250 quid, whereas those members next door have been gulible enough to pay out nearly £1,800 in their first year. On top of that my £250 quid gets me access to their club house & restaurant.... great value

& with what I've saved I can also therefore now afford to play other courses around the UK when I feel the need to wander