Budget friendly clubs in Chicago western suburbs

[BTee17]

Anybody know what Medinah is charging?  I've seen numbers all over the place.  I know they have a large membership but am curious as to how easy it is to get on with 3 courses.

[BTee17]

Cress Creek in Naperville could be worth looking into.  $6k to join. Dues were I believe $395 for junior members when I spoke with them.  The thing that irked me with them was that it jumped to around $1,000 for over 40.

[MountainKing]

1 hour ago, BTee17 said:

 

Have they said what the membership numbers are at or how long the waitlist is?  When I looked into them in the fall of '20 they had around 250 members and told me the wait list was "a couple a months"

 

I did some digging after and did see the Data Center issue, however as stated there is no initiation fee so if/when that happens you just resign your membership and aren't out $5 or $10k.

 

I didn't mind the course but it is your traditional parkland style course.  Didn't get a good look at the pool but it seemed nice from the photos.

 

The tee time thing did scare me as it seemed crowded on a weekday in November and someone stated tee times were hard to come by. As you said that's the whole point in paying all this money is to be able to get on easily.  The lack of worrying about a caddy program made me think maybe it would be easier as people will show and go or play quick with carts etc.

 

It's the only truly affordable club in the area so it's slim pickens if you're looking to stay in that price range.

 

Waitlist was estimated at 2 years.   I've played the course a handful of times over the years, it's a good course, it'll keep the game sharp.  A buddy of mine is a member there and he's always out there playing after work and weekends ect.  He never seems to have an issue.  Any club that's full is going to have a fuller tee sheet, I drive by Butterfield daily and have never seen so many people on that course.  A few years ago you could drive by that course for weeks straight and not see a single person on it.   I honestly don't think this is a problem that is exclusive to Itasca, it's the state of the game right now.

[BTee17]

18 hours ago, MountainKing said:

 

Waitlist was estimated at 2 years.   I've played the course a handful of times over the years, it's a good course, it'll keep the game sharp.  A buddy of mine is a member there and he's always out there playing after work and weekends ect.  He never seems to have an issue.  Any club that's full is going to have a fuller tee sheet, I drive by Butterfield daily and have never seen so many people on that course.  A few years ago you could drive by that course for weeks straight and not see a single person on it.   I honestly don't think this is a problem that is exclusive to Itasca, it's the state of the game right now.

 

I hear you on the Butterfield thing, I live nearby also and pass it often and see the same level of play.  Same goes for driving past Hinsdale on Ogden.  Looks like we're both in the same area, a shame cuz so many great club options near us but all seem to have very large buy ins.

 

Butterfield and Hinsdale I'd heard approach $100k.  Ruth Lake I'd hoped would be more affordable (beautiful property btw) but hear upwards of $60-70k for them as well.

 

Did you say Glen Oak in Glen Ellyn was $20k? Or did I misread that elsewhere?

[MountainKing]

29 minutes ago, BTee17 said:

 

I hear you on the Butterfield thing, I live nearby also and pass it often and see the same level of play.  Same goes for driving past Hinsdale on Ogden.  Looks like we're both in the same area, a shame cuz so many great club options near us but all seem to have very large buy ins.

 

Butterfield and Hinsdale I'd heard approach $100k.  Ruth Lake I'd hoped would be more affordable (beautiful property btw) but hear upwards of $60-70k for them as well.

 

Did you say Glen Oak in Glen Ellyn was $20k? Or did I misread that elsewhere?

 

They're taking advantage of the income in Hinsdale, Oak Brook, Downers Grove ect.  Same reason I think Oak Brook Golf Course is able to charge what they charge for the type of course it is.  

 

Glen Oak if I remember was similar to Naperville CC - Glen Ellyn is another area with some high income people.  I also think right now these places are close to full so they're able to bump that pricing up.  10 years ago was the time to get into some of these places, of course I missed the boat. 

[Duncan8190]

I know as of last year Hinsdale was around $73K for ages 40+; La Grange was $60k - but monthly dues were a bit higher than Hinsdale's.  No clue on Butterfield or Ruth Lake. 

 

Definitely a bummer that there aren't any clubs that are more affordable in the immediate area. 

[BTee17]

On 9/22/2021 at 10:25 AM, Duncan8190 said:

I know as of last year Hinsdale was around $73K for ages 40+; La Grange was $60k - but monthly dues were a bit higher than Hinsdale's.  No clue on Butterfield or Ruth Lake. 

 

Definitely a bummer that there aren't any clubs that are more affordable in the immediate area. 

considering what I’ve seen and heard about the meh course that is LaGrange CC it’s pretty crazy to see that price tag and higher dues than Hinsdale for example. Take advantage of that local wealth I guess. 
 

i always said if Willow Crest built a members only clubhouse area and had the pool etc available to members they could offer a cheaper semi private option. 
 

I think the same for Naperville CC, if they built a pool/tennis for the wives and families they’d be very competitive. As such they were aggressive in pushing for a tour etc when I inquired which leads me to believe they need members.  
 

 

[BTee17]

On 9/17/2021 at 12:52 PM, geochitown said:

 

My info from 1.5 years ago from a friend was that Glen Oak was another level completely from Naperville CC.  Much more expensive.

 

Any idea on a ballpark on the Glen Oak numbers?

[mauiman]

A neighbor just told me Glen Oak is $65k and about $900 a month without food. Small range.