As golfers, we’re familiar with both. While not so heavy anymore the clubs we play WITH are quite familiar, and even with the advent of technology and fitting, somewhat similar. On the other hand, the clubs (courses) we play AT can be very different than each other and are often confused with their facilities and the properties they occupy, when by definition, a club is really a group of people with a common interest. Unfortunately, that common interest can become distorted and the purpose of the club lost in culture wars just like we experience in our greater society. A simple Google search of “golf clubs“ yields only advertisements for golf equipment from Titleist, TaylorMade, Callaway, Mizuno and Ping, among others. Nothing appears on the clubs we play AT.

According to Dictionary.Com, a club can be defined in two ways:

  • a heavy stick, usually thicker at one end than at the other, suitable for use as a weapon; a cudgel
  • a group of persons organized for a social, literary, athletic, political, or other purpose

We know that the first organized golf club in the United States was Savannah Golf Club (SC, now GA) in 1794. The USGA was organized in 1894 by five (now) venerable and prestigious clubs:

  • St. Andrews GC (NY)
  • The Country Club (MA)
  • Chicago GC (IL)
  • Newport GC (RI)
  • Shinnecock Hills GC (NY)

For many years, golf was viewed as an elitist activity and the vast majority of golf was played at private clubs. Only in the 1960’s spurred mainly by the popularity of Arnold Palmer did golf among the masses begin to grow. In fact, in 1960 about 50%+/- of all golf courses in the United States were private. By 2020, that percentage had dropped to about 25%+/-. In that same period, the number of golf courses in the US doubled.

To many, golf is still seen as an elitist pursuit and unlike in the UK, golf is still seen by many, especially at some private clubs, as a status symbol. At many golf clubs in the UK, including some very highly ranked ones, employees are given memberships and when off-duty permitted (if not encouraged) to play golf and socialize with other members. That is most unlikely at the upscale clubs in the US, where members are addressed as “Mr. & Mrs.” and often answered in “ yes sir” or “no mam”. Not only are guests of members welcome but visitors are encouraged and at many some tee times are reserved for visitors.

Being invited to, accepted and joining many clubs in the US is as much or more a matter of social status in many cases as it is economic ability or simply enjoying golf and wanting to play. A friend recently shared a podcast where a member at one club having endured limited (waiting list) privileges for an extended period of time was bypassed for full privileges by a well-known billionaire and a famous professional athlete who decided to join. I also recently heard a story where a member at one club was suspended for 6 months for the (never done before?) crime of driving a golf cart with a glass of wine in hand. These and numerous other stories we’ve all heard would seem to conflict with the (usually stated) goals of a club for members to pursue the recreational activities that promulgated their membership and hopefully that all members would be treated fairly.

Most definitely, golf is and should be a gentlemen’s (or gentleladies) game promoting decorum and respectful behavior. However, as the GM of one prominent Scottish club once shared with me, golf in America is a status symbol, whereas in the UK (and many other places) it’s a game for everyone.

A big part of the problem in the US is that many of the most notable clubs have leadership that is either acting in self-interest, stays in place too long or doesn’t seek or listen to advice from professionals. Clubs are (often) big businesses, some generating tens of millions of dollars in revenues each year. Like anything else of such substance, the amateurs shouldn’t be telling the professionals what to do. The CFO of the airline doesn’t tell the pilots how to fly the plane. The emotion that’s often part of club politics often results in clubs losing focus on their primary purpose of a group of people gathering for the purpose of the club’s recreational activities. Those politics also often result in the reluctance of management and staff to speak truth to power. When’s the last time the club pro interfered with an overzealous club leader’s agenda? In a variety of ways, it costs clubs money, creates an atmosphere of tension and discomfort and fractures personal relationships.

When we visit a club professionally, I always seek to learn about the club’s culture. Very simply, who are the members and what are their goals. It’s not unusual that memberships goals are very different than leadership’s. Often with substantial investment in their membership (entrance fees) and if they’ve been there awhile the personal relationships developed, members are reluctant to leave and with fear of reprisals afraid to speak up.

The culture of golf – and our private clubs is a most interesting and complex one. Sound familiar?