The most exclusive golf clubs do not have velvet ropes. But some have security gates, small memberships and obligations on the scale of the national debt. All this makes them tricky to access. Many of these countries appear in the latest GOLF rankings Top 100 courses in the world. Here are 11 of the hardest training periods on the list.
AUGUSTA NATIONAL – Augusta, Ga.
Hello again friends. Settle in to our mostly non-stop streaming, drink dogwood and magnolia pastels, and let that pre-recorded birdsong go. By the time the last shot lands, you’ll feel like you’ve memorized every ridge and rise Alister MacKenzie’s masterpiece—which is fitting, since experiencing it in person is, for almost all of us, a nice little fantasy.
CHICAGO GOLF CLUB – Wheaton, Ill.
A founding pillar of the USGA and home to the nation’s premier 18-hole course, Chicago Golf it’s the game’s version of a beloved old grudge. Membership is small. Unaccompanied play is not allowed. And guests are asked to leave the property until their host arrives and crash once said host leaves. If courses could channel the whimsical charm, CB Macdonald’s creativity would be on the front steps of his clubhouse, begging the world to get off the lawn.
CHILDREN’S BATHROOM, ABOVE – Childress, TX
Located in a secluded area of ​​the Lone Star State, where rugged dunes run along a beautiful bend in a wide river, Childress is the newest course in our world’s top 100, but Childress follows an old franchise model: high initiation fees, small number of members.
CYPRESS POINT CLUB – Monterey, California.
“Cypress used to have a big membership drive,” Bob Hope liked to joke about his hometown club. “They expelled 40 members.” The loop today still hovers around a few hundred lucky souls who get to stroll through a seafront layout so spectacular you half expect park rangers to show up and warn you to stay on the designated paths.
FISHERS ISLAND – Fishers Island, NY
Both literally and figuratively secluded, this Seth Raynor gem is located on the eastern tip of Long Island, accessible only by boat or private plane and well beyond the grasp of everyday golf. Wealth here precedes paper currency. And prefers anonymity: in 1979, after GOLF placed Fishers in its first world ranking, the club politely asked to be removed. Hard to reach? Absolutely. But once you’re there, it’s seared into the memory.
HIRONO – Kobe, Japan
Japan’s devotion to politeness and tradition finds a fitting expression in Hirono. What does not extend so easily is access. There is no unaccompanied play. Almost no major tournaments – only Japan Amateur and Japan Open have broken through. A recent Martin Ebert restoration has only piqued curiosity, but the guest list remains as tight as ever.
MORFONTAINE – Hauts-de-France, France
Many golfers dream of hooking it in this sandy, piney wonderland an hour north of Paris. Très peu actually manages it. Built in 1913 as the personal playground of the Duke of Gramont, Morfontaine has remained a discreet haven for French golfing aristocracy and various world heirs. Unaccompanied visitors are as common as steak tartare without an egg yolk. Unless you count a Duke among your acquaintances, you may never get close—though you’re sure to hear legends about his lunch.
THE OLD COURSE AT ST. ANDREWS – St. Andrews, Scotland
Yes, there is a ballot. Yes, there is a pick-up line. But unless you’re local or affiliated with the R&A, you’ll probably want a tour operator to help navigate a tee sheet that fills up over the years. One of the game’s minor paradoxes: the old course is open to everyone, which makes it feel, at times, almost impossible for anyone to book a spot.
PINE VALLEY – Pine Valley, NJ
Since we’re all about analytics these days, let’s chew on some. The world’s top-ranked course means global demand to play it. Most members live far away. Guests cannot come unaccompanied. Add in the fact that Pine Valley doesn’t fundraise or host corporate days — rare backdoor entry points at other elite clubs — and the equation is simple. The probability that you’ll make it here hovers somewhere around July snowball territory.
SEMINOLE – Juno Beach, Fla.
Imagine the stereotypical Florida golf enclave—the fine clubhouse, the over-the-top landscaping, the gold-plated carts—and then imagine the opposite. This is Seminole. Ben Hogan once said that if he were a young pro, he would do anything he could to get access to this Donald Ross classic. Sound advice, although not easily followed. This is the club, after all, that is rumored to have passed to Jack Nicklaus.
SHANKIN BAY – Hainan, China
A GOLF employee once spent a few blissful days in this Coore-Crenshaw design, sat on the cool seaside bluffs on Hainan Island, and met exactly one other group. The gap is by design. Membership is limited, initiation fees are seven figures, and on many days the staff outnumbers the golfers so much that employees have been known to spell out guests’ names on range balls, in giant letters on the grounds.
