Becoming An Overseas Member Of A UK Royal Golf Club

Even though I have never played golf over in the UK, I find myself thinking, boy it would be great to be a member of courses I have admired from afar but never played like Royal County Down, Royal Porthcawl or Royal Cinque Ports. A big part of the reason for my interest is that these courses seem to be great places to play and also just to hang out and be a member.

Another factor stems from a great thing about the UK model of golf in that many of the courses you hear about are technically "private" but they allow outside/public play and by doing so, keep the membership fees to something reasonable.

Most private golf courses in the UK have membership options on their websites with all the numbers and membership terms so you can daydream or seriously consider becoming a member. Not necessarily so with "Royal" golf clubs. Royal golf clubs are clubs that have an association with the British monarchy (usually it takes a royal person to be a member of a club plus an application process) and there are currently 62 of them throughout the world. Royal golf clubs seem to keep how one becomes a member and how much membership costs very close to the vest.

Recently I took a look around at the UK Royal websites, daydreaming as usual, and was surprised that a few of them are upfront about how you become a member. The information that I could find, I share with y'all with a surprising discovery at the end!

Royal Dornoch:

Very reasonable membership fees with a 1,080 Pounds buy-in plus 540 Pounds a year in dues. The first course on the list is one of the best prices I could find for a top tier course (except for one notable exception below), especially if I wanted to be an overseas member. They don't seem to have any obvious "must know 3 members and also be a member of another club" type rules that I can see  making this a GREAT option to join. RD is also a course I might realistically join for the quality of the golf, the history and as a side benefit, it is close to a Coore & Crenshaw course they are trying to build in the area.

https://royaldornoch.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/Membership-benefits-at-Royal-Dornoch-2020.pdf

Royal Musselburgh

Ok, wow this course offer an overseas membership of 352 Pounds a year for the sixth oldest golf course int he world! The membership application looks really straightforward too and speaks to the laidback nature that I get from the website.

https://www.royalmusselburgh.co.uk/join-royal-musselburgh/

Royal Ascot

Billed as "one [of] the friendliest clubs around", the club charges a reasonable 550 Pounds per year for overseas members. They also have a "buddy scheme" to help settle new members to help make friends which I think is a great idea. More clubs so be invested in incorporating members into the club culture once they join. Good on ya RA!

https://www.royalascotgolfclub.co.uk/uploads/document/enquiry-pack-march-2020-sm-1583398098.pdf

Royal Epping Forest

This is a fascinating "Royal" course. The course is owned by the members yet the City of London administers the course. Thus you can become a member for 420 Pounds but will have to pay separate greens fees when you play. Interesting!

https://www.refgc.co.uk/membership

Royal Cromer

The course looks beautiful nestled up by the cliffs near Norwich. Royal Cromer offers a "Country" membership (which I have always assumed to apply to overseas members but I think just applies to residents "in" country) for the low price of 550 Pounds a year. Another benefit of this course are reciprocal rounds with multiple royal golf courses. I am a big fan of reciprocal rounds and would only join a golf course with the ability to play others (counterintuitive I know).

https://howdidido.blob.core.windows.net/clubsitespublic/file_e76e27cd-45cc-4e33-b9dd-75dea620d919.pdf

Royal Eastbourne

First this club has 2 courses, always a benefit when looking to be a member somewhere. Secondly it seems like they have a lot of flexibility with membership, including a winter membership for 6 months for only 250 Pounds. The thing I like most about the course is that they brag about having one of the best greenskeepers (Paul McDowell) which I LOVE. Yes, be proud of your staff!

https://www.regc.co.uk/membership_offers

Duff House Royal Golf Club

Do you know that Alister MacKenzie redesigned a royal golf course in Scotland? An overseas membership to this undiscovered gem is only 290 Pounds a year. Plus what is up with that name? I guess it is named after the local mansion but still, Duff House, love it!

https://www.duffhouseroyal.com/membership

Royal Montrose Mercantile Golf Club

160 Pounds for the year, not bad, not bad at all. Also what is interesting here is that there were two clubs with the first getting royal designation in 1845. Both clubs merged just in 2019 although why they chose Mercantile in the title is unknown to me. It's a very British title though!

https://www.royalmontrosemercantilegolfclub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/RMMGC-Membership-Fees.pdf

Royal Norwich

RN has a fascinating membership format in addition to the regular 5, 6, 7 day membership. It looks like you can buy membership points and then use them to play rounds at the course with most, if not all, of the advantages of regular membership. What an interesting idea and something I wish private courses here in America would adopt.

https://www.royalnorwichgolf.co.uk/braid-points-membership/

Royal North Devon

I have always been intrigued by RND, it seems like a fantastic course and boy are they having a fascinating sale! If you are applying for overseas membership right now in 2020, there is no initiation fee and it looks like membership only costs 260 Pounds a year! I mean the quality of the course and the price kinda makes me want to join this club even though I don't live in the UK!

https://www.royalnorthdevongolfclub.co.uk/visitors/membership-subscriptions

So there you have it. Should I become a RD or RND member (if either one will have me)? What about the Royal Porthcawls, Cinque Ports and County Downs of the world? Anyone want to bring me into the fold?

If anyone knows how to become a member of any of the other Royal courses let me know in the comments! Also, what course would you want to join if you could? Let me know in the comments!

Cypress Point Quest - Day 1581

And so the grind continues. Here we are, well on our way to 2,000 days of actively trying to play Cypress but no luck thus far. I haven't been super aggressive over the last few months, just hoping the universe places some people in my path that can help me out.

I did decide to shake a few things up in the karma department though. On eBay, there was a sale of Titleist golf balls branded with the Cypress Point logo.

I took this as a sign and a challenge. I am going to fill my golf bag with these balls (phrasing) and I am going to play with them until they run out. My goal? To play Cypress Point before the balls run out. I figure the golf balls will act as a defacto hourglass to help me get my butt in gear.

Part of that is I have to start getting back up to the NorCal area. I had a trip to Pasa which needed to be rescheduled due to weather and I am hoping to take a quick jaunt up there in the Fall to play a few private courses in SanFran. The closer I can get to Cypress, I feel the odds of me meeting someone with a connection there will increase.

If you spend any time in Monterey you start to wonder how they could accommodate all the people attending the Pro Am. 17 Mile Drive is often blocked off for shuttle buses and there isn't a lot of parking for the attendees. This problem had to been doubled for the recent US Open there. It sounds like though a lucky few got their fill of Cypress while parking! https://golfweek.com/2019/06/17/u-s-open-hot-spot-parking-lot-next-to-18th-tee-at-cypress-point-club/

Riviera Photo Essay

Riviera CC is one of the top golf courses in the world. Top 100 has it at 37th in the world and you won't hear me complaining about that ranking. I have attended the Genesis Open several times and each time makes me want to play The Riv more and more. 

The first hole (above) gives you the classic golden area California open with a huge downhill tee shot and an hourglass green. I have had dreams about hitting that tee shot into the upper atmosphere to start my round at the Club.

I am always amazed at the severity of the greens here. There are some where placement is key and misses are death (death by bunker that is).

To me, the back side of the course (where the infamous 6th and the above 16th reside) is some of the most fascinating. You can feel the history back here with these ghost trees and immaculate greens.

I just love this shot. It goes to show that if you miss at the Riv in the wrong place, you are in for a world of hurt.

This was George Thomas' favorite hole and I can see why. The strategy off the tee, the bunkers mirroring the swales of the land, it is fantastic!

This is perhaps my favorite fairway bunker in golf. It is just an outrageous monster of sand rising out of a sea of green.

The Riv is a course that I have seen in person multiple times but never have had the good fortune to play. If I ever got the chance, I would enjoy every second and then beg to play 36. It is that good a course and can be played over and over again with boring a golfer (truly, a high compliment!).

For more info on Riviera, check out the link: http://www.therivieracountryclub.com/

Top 10 of 2018

They say any day on the golf course is better than a day at work. While that is certainly true, there are a few golf courses I played this year that are heads and shoulders above the rest. Courses that I will remember for a very long time. Check out the list and let me know what courses you played this year in the comments!


10. Lake Merced

Of all the private clubs on this list, Lake Merced was one of the most fun all around experiences and if I lived in San Fran, I would join it in a second. The routing is great, the trees and the bay breezes are great. The membership is great. All the course needs is a little TLC and it would be fantastic. Maybe on day if I get all the money, I will definitely get a national membership here, it is that good.

http://www.re-gripped.com/2018/05/lake-merced-golf-club.html

9. Barton Creek- Coore/Crenshaw

This course was a tale of 2 nines. The front side kinda a straightforward resort course. The back side? Totally tubular! Rolling hills, crazy greens, great second shots, the back nine had it all.

https://www.coorecrenshawquest.com/2018/12/barton-creek.html

8. Austin Golf Club

The first rule about AGC is that you can't talk about AGC. The second rule of AGC is see the first rule.

https://www.coorecrenshawquest.com/2018/12/austin-golf-club.html

7.  Saticoy

Wow, this is the last course I played in 2018 and it was a real gem. A classic course from the golden age, it still holds up to today's tests and will give you all you want a more. I was really blown away by this one.

https://www.re-gripped.com/2018/12/the-saticoy-club-review.html

6. Pacific Dunes

The views are outrageous. The architecture challenging and engaging. It is consistently ranked in the top 10 in the US much less the world. Still though, with the wind up this course is a beast. All that beauty and routing aside, if the wind is up good luck to ya as the design elements make it close to unplayable on some holes. Strong like, not love.

http://www.re-gripped.com/2018/04/pacific-dunes.html

5. Bandon Trails

You feel like you are in a completely different universe when visiting Bandon and playing Trails and that is a good thing. C&C do an excellent job creating a lot of variety out of the pines and the 11th hole remains one of my favorite holes they have designed thus far.

http://www.coorecrenshawquest.com/2018/04/bandon-trailspreserve.html

4. Pacific Grove

Quite simply, it lived up to its reputation of the poor man's Pebble Beach. For $40 you can get out there and knock it around on the front side and say what's the big deal but whoa doggie, you turn to that back side, and you get all the coastal Monterey golf you can handle. This is beyond a gem and a must play if you are in the area!

http://www.re-gripped.com/2018/02/pacific-grove-back-9.html

3. San Francisco GC

Holes 1-9 are perhaps the best stretch of nine holes in the US. The routing superbly uses the landscape to amazing effect, they are 9 holes that will challenge and delight any golfer and the clubhouse and locker room almost have a patina halo around them. Sadly, the back 9 just doesn't hold up to the front with a lot of parallel holes but still excellent by any measure. Still that opening 9 is strong enough to vault the club to number 3 in the rankings.

http://www.re-gripped.com/2018/05/san-francisco-golf-club.html

2. Bandon Dunes

The best course at Bandon, one of the best courses I have played, this course has it all. Width for errant drivers, visually stunning holes and fun greens. People may say Pacific is tougher but it isn't better. Bandon is divine.

http://www.re-gripped.com/2018/05/bandon-dunes.html

1. Cal Club

After playing this course you could've knocked me over with a feather. It is like someone went to the best sandbelt courses in Australia took them up and placed them in San Francisco. Olympic has the pedigree, San Francisco GC has the mystery but Cal Club has the golf, best course I played in 2018 by far!

http://www.re-gripped.com/2018/06/cal-club.html

The Saticoy Club Review

When you think of the classic "golden age" courses in Los Angeles, most golfer's minds are drawn to names like LACC (1911), Riviera (1925), and Bel-Air (1925). However, there is another golden age course built in 1921 that often gets overlooked by many in the LA community but shouldn't. Of course, I am talking about Saticoy.

Designed by William Bell in 1921, this course has all the hallmarks of a golden age SoCal course. The opening tee shot is a severe downhill par 4 (much like Riv and Bel-Air).

 The course has plenty of width yet there are trees to keep you honest.

Fantastic bunkering with excellent sand.

and some killer par 3s including a par 3 ninth hole and a crazy downhill par 3 tenth hole. This course screams the golden age and yet I felt it was still very modern. The maintenance staff there has made excellent turf choices and the greens roll true with devilish contours.

As excellent as the front side is, the back side is where the course really shines. What Bel-Air, LACC and The Riv don't give you is stunning views of the surrounding countryside but Saticoy gives you that in spades.

My favorite holes on the back nine had to be start the par 3 13th which leads you up to the high point of the course for the awesomesauce 14th which is a par 5 14th featuring a gorge and gorgeous views!

Couple that with the par 4 15th which has a great tee shot and fantastic green complex

and you have a three hole stretch that I would put up against any in the world. 

The course ends on a long, roping par 5 with a crazy blind shot into the green. For my first time playing the course, the lack of yardage markers and a few blind shots made for some questionable decisions on my part but Saticoy is a course that demands you to play it more than once, and more than once I will. 

The only knock on the course is that they need to trim the rough down a little bit. Balls hit offline seem to nestle in there and were tough to find but 98% of the rest of the course was top notch! 

Saticoy deserves to be in the same breath as Bel-Air surely and those fortunate to get an invite onto this private Ventura Country track should accept. I can't wait to play it again!

For more information on Saticoy please check out this link: https://www.thesaticoyclub.com/

Cal Club

The Cal Club socks you in the mouth with its audacious routing, wide open style of play coupled with crazy bunkering, Cal Club stands supreme in my eyes as the best golf course in San Francisco.

The opening par 5 gives you a sense of everything you will experience on the day. A blind tee shot with wild bunkers looming on the horizon leading to an amazing green complex which you can approach either in the air or a bump and run (I chose bump and run with a 5 wood and made par).

You then go up and down over hill and dale. The routing cuts its way between hills allowing for a variety of shots and with superb conditioning and green complex giving you all you could ask for. The course wends its way up to the standout 6th hole.

Not only is it an amazing par 3 but it gives you $1,000,000 views of the entire course. It is a blessed spot.

One of the best things about the course is how it uses the hillsides to create slopes and playing angles. The second hole shows how a straight shot will play but also fades and draws could use the slopes to get you to the promised land.

Speaking of slopes, the cape hole at Cal Club is outrageous. Aim as far left as possible or if you could bomb it like the assistant pro I was playing with, you go for the green.

The backside is just as interesting as the front side, giving you tough par 3s (including the quintessential downhill San Francisco par 3) and cool blind shots.

The course ends with a fascinating par 4 where you hit over the hill to gain the speed slot but still have a long iron into a green surrounded by an amphitheater. You can just imagine being a member at Cal Club at a Member-Member tourney with the whole club watching you as the match goes the distance to 18.

If you couldn't tell, I really enjoyed my time at Cal Club. I have yet to play Olympic or Harding but I can't imagine them knocking Cal Club off the top perch in San Francisco. Considering the pedigree of the other courses in NorCal this is high praise indeed. Cal Club, if you get a chance to play it, you MUST.

For more info on Cal Club check out this link: http://www.calclub.org/

Lake Merced Golf Club

If you overlook Lake Merced Golf Club, located in San Francisco, you will do so at your own peril. I had always found the course visually compelling when I watched in host LPGA events on TV but playing it, I thought the routing was great causing intriguing shots and would definitely be my home course if I lived in San Francisco.

What I found particularly intriguing was how enjoyable it was to tee off with some blind tee shots framed by beautiful trees

and then when you get up to your ball, seeing these great approaches to the greens.

I mean, I probably just described your favorite parkland course with that general description above but believe me that when I say that Lake Merced's routing and framing of holes creates a rather magical atmosphere and makes this a truly special course.

Also, like every San Francisco course I played during my trip there, this course featured a downhill par 3, dramatically framed. This one was a doozy but so fun to play!

One of my favorite holes is the par 5 ninth that starts off with a blind-ish drive and I happened to drive it right where Lydia Ko did in the recent LPGA tournament.

I also hit three wood from that spot but unlike Lydia, I didn't quite make it to two feet from the cup. It doesn't matter because the green is so awesome and framed by the clubhouse that it is a great way to wrap up the front 9.

The back nine features several of the same types of holes that you find on the front side (a blind tee shot playing downhill on a dogleg right, a tee shot that has the ability to catch the speed slot and wind up 30 yards from the green, etc.) and while on most courses this would lead to some grousing, here it works.

That is the thing about Lake Merced, what you think might not work on scorecard, works in person. The routing is great over hill and dale. The tee shots give you something to chew on as do the approach shots. The greens are in great shape. Sure the bunkering is a little ragged and they could do with some tree trimming but the bones of the course are great and I would gladly be a member there if I could, especially if they have a late afternoon membership:

The 18th hole is emblematic of the course as a hole as it is a fun, let it all hang out par 5 hole. You just wail away on shots until you can't wait anymore. If you can get on this gem, do it!

For more info on Lake Merced check out this link: https://www.lmgc.org/

Also do yourself a favor and check out Andrew's golf blog. This guy is a talented writer, golfer and all around good guy and well worth a bookmark: https://golfblogit.wordpress.com/