The Building Committee: Public Doors at Private Clubs
Scotland Run proposes a members’ house beside its public clubhouse. Discovery Land expands at The Hills; members take Baker’s Bay.
Happy Friday, everyone. Welcome to The Building Committee, Best Clubhouse’s editor’s notes column.
Taking a look at this week’s news:
In Scotland and the UK, as I see it, they have golf figured out. At least, as much as the game of golf can be figured out. But they have private golf clubs and public courses. A private clubhouse never really means a locked-away course.
In America we hear storied tales of places we will never play, Cypress Point and Pine Valley among them, and for a lot of golfers that is a bummer. The hierarchy of golf likes it that way and wants to keep it that way, and frankly I think I might, too. But from the outside looking in it hurts, and that is an interesting dichotomy to me.
But once I'm on the inside, I'll probably feel a lot less wistful about all this.
Favorite of the Week
My favorite article this week is about Scotland Run Golf Club in Williamstown, New Jersey. The club is proposing a second clubhouse reserved for members, beside the 28,000-square-foot clubhouse that has anchored the property since 1999. That building, with the Highlander Pub downstairs and a 250-seat ballroom upstairs, would likely keep welcoming the public for its restaurant, weddings and banquets.
It speaks to one of the pain points of American golf. The Stephen Kay quarry course went members and guests only starting with the 2025 season, after 25 years of mixing memberships with public tee times, so this is not exactly the Scottish model. But it shows public and private can share the same land: the public keeps a front door while members get their own house. Fitting, for a club called Scotland Run.
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Discovery Land Has Been Busy
At The Hills in East Quogue, New York, a Southampton Town zoning settlement now lets the Discovery Land club sell up to 177 golf memberships to people who do not own homes there. Until the vote, membership was limited to owners of its 118 residential units; it can now reach 295 members. In exchange, Discovery grants permanent public access easements, must keep a wooded trail open to the public, and must host at least four free charity events a year. That is privacy blurring at the borders.
At Baker’s Bay Golf & Ocean Club in The Bahamas, the 384 homeowner-members (at the time of the regulatory filing) took control from the developers while Discovery keeps managing, so the line moved from the developer to the members themselves, who now own the club rather than a larger company. At Maverick Golf & Ranch Club in Fort Worth, Texas, Discovery opened Tom Fazio’s course, which plays more than 8,000 yards from the back tees.
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The Midwest Is Having a Moment
Some Midwest golf is popping off a little bit. Bridgesong in Blanchard, Oklahoma, a private golf and residential community on about 1,000 acres, has an Ernie Els Signature course expected to open in June or July of 2027. Marion Country Club in Marion, Ohio saw a multi-generational member take a majority interest with local investors, with about $2 million in improvements over five years, including a new 19th hole room.
Westbrook Country Club in Mansfield, Ohio placed third in Golf Inc.’s 2026 Clubhouse of the Year renovation category, and recent weeks brought Quarry Oaks in Ashland, Nebraska (first in that category), Beechmont Country Club in Orange, Ohio and Victoria National in Newburgh, Indiana.
The Last Word
Private clubs are not going anywhere, and I do not want them to. But this week showed a handful of ways the walls can get a little lower without coming down. At Scotland Run the public still has the pub and the ballroom while members get their own house next door. At The Hills a wooded trail stays open to anyone and the club hosts free charity events each year. The clubhouse itself is where that public and private balance gets struck, one room at a time.
That's the week. If something here sparked a thought, a disagreement, or a story, drop a comment below. And if you know a golf friend who would enjoy this, forward it their way.
See you next week,
Ross
Ross Campoli, Founder and Editor, Best Clubhouse
Best Clubhouse covers all things golf clubhouse architecture, golf luxury real estate, and golf development. If you're interested in having your golf club renovation, luxury listing, or architectural project featured on Best Clubhouse, see our partnerships page or reach out at contact@bestclubhouse.com.
