Morning, folks. Now that June is nearly upon us, I wanted to do a deep dive on how to be a proper guest at a country club. I may even write a stand-alone article on member-guest etiquette, but there is some overlap which we will discuss here.
Acting correctly as a guest is a very simple task, and after reading this you should not feel intimidated to step on property at an exclusive club.
For the sake of this piece, let’s pretend you’ve secured an invite to a top 50 private club in the US. If you consistently play nice courses and know what you’re doing, you can stop reading here. If not, let’s dive into it.
Attire
If you haven’t already, please read my first article on what to wear, as this applies even more so to proper golf and country clubs. It’s 80% of being a good guest, and its really easy to just buy a simple clean sky blue shirt and khaki shorts with white shoes. Throw in a needle point belt and a white hat and you’re set.
Let’s quickly focus on what NOT to wear to these clubs:
Streetwear/golf collabs. No Radry, Lululemon, Malbon etc etc
White Belts
Black shoes/shorts/socks in the summer
Ugly golf shirts with large prints
Just dress like this guy and you can show up at any top 50 and be totally fine:
(If this look is appalling to you, Kindly unsubscribe - BTG)
Common Rules
Ok, moving on to when you arrive to the club. I’m always a fan of texting my host before hand to make sure there are no quirky rules of which I am not aware. Some common rules:
No changing shoes in the parking lot
No tipping staff in cash (caddies excluded here obviously)
No phones outside of your car
If you arrive before your host, I’d recommend hanging out in your car until they arrive. Don’t be the guy who makes himself a member for a day by walking all around the club without a member. Bad look.
Driving Range
Don’t be the guy launching drivers over the net into oncoming traffic.
Take divots in straight lines like a proper civilized player
On the Course
If you’re not a great player, the best way to make up for your lack of skill is your pace of play. If you’re going to hit it out of bounds, at least do it quickly. If you are a great player, pace matters slightly less, but let’s not play in more than 4 hours, we’re better than that.
Random Aside: Knowing how to walk on a golf course is an acquired skill, and it is especially important to apply that skill at places that care about pace of play. I’m not sure how to explain this, but you should always be moving forward to your golf ball, unless you’re looking in the woods/fescue. Keep things moving, and be ready to hit when it is your turn.
Final Notes
Offer to pay for the hosts caddie
Don’t bail on lunch/drinks after the round. If you’re pressed for time, have a single beer for 20 minutes and hit the road
Don’t try to pay for drinks, it will be on the members tab. If you’re at a good club they will already know the member number
Leave your phone in the car, and enjoy the experience. The pictures just wont hit the same as the memories of flushed iron shots and the 4 hour walk, I promise. Flex with shit from the golf shop, and stories, not some bad amateur photos of the “sick” redan green
Hope this helps!
-BTG
