So, let's say you won the $330 million lottery...

[JC Jones]

I'd fund El Boqueron

Precisely.  And I'd  make sure I had a pumped out golf cart with a cooler of beer on it so I could drive around the site, kick back and make fun of Joe Hancock.

For fun, I'd pay a $1mm initiation fee to Kingsley and make sure Brian played the MSU fight song every time you hit balls on the range.

[Tim Gavrich]

In this order, I'd join/apply to join:

- Shelter Harbor
- Bulls Bay (played it with my father today; fantastic)
- Ballyhack
- Greenbrier Sporting Club (which would allow me to play the three resort courses as well as the Snead course)

Then, I would buy Vista Links from the town of Buena Vista, VA, fix it up, and re-christen it the W&L Club.

Yes, I've thought about this before.

[Ken Fry]

Some ideas:

Buy the house to the right of the #17th green at Crystal Downs and tear it down.  The last thing that vista needs is a building looking like a World War II bunker...

Become a member of Augusta then fund the massive renovation of the course back to something MacKenzie would agree was the "original design intent....."

Install an underground tap system from the clubhouse to the wall on the 18th tee at Kingsley so no group will find an empty surprise.

"Hi Elin, my name is Ken....." (just kidding...my wife is better....)

Ken

[Jud_T]

Install an underground tap system from the clubhouse to the wall on the 18th tee at Kingsley so no group will find an empty surprise.

DING, DING, DING...We have a winner!

[Mark McKeever]

I'd buy Merion and every weekend I'd partner with Cirba against TEP and Moriarty.

This sounds very familiar with another "epic match"  eh Joe?

Mark

[Steve Lapper]

Net-Jets, The Outpost Club, and Costco

or.... The Aerospatiale Club, Hertz Gold Card,  and a club just north of the Westhampton Airport!
 

[Mark Chaplin]

Nice to see love for the Outpost Club we are hosting them to a match in April.

[Tom_Doak]

If I won that kind of money -- which is unlikely, since I would never buy a lottery ticket -- I would go out and develop my own golf course, and keep enough money in reserve to develop another someday in the distant future.  But I've noticed that most of my clients only devote 10% of their net worth to their golfing pursuits, so I would try to keep it at that level.

[Chip Gaskins]

Tom

I think I read the cash pay out would be $208 million of the total.  1/2 for taxes, leaving $100 million.

Using your 10% gauge would leave you with $10 million of "golf" money.  Would that pay for the course you want to build?  (of course the other $90 million would be growing at 5-10% so you have much more as you said in the "distant future" for your 2nd course)

Where would you look for land?

Happy New Year!
Chip

[Joe Bausch]

I'd buy Merion and every weekend I'd partner with Cirba against TEP and Moriarty.

This sounds very familiar with another "epic match"  eh Joe?

Mark

I dare you.  I double dog dare you!   

[Peter Pallotta]

Trouble is (ha, trouble) that the 'national' membership rate wouldn't apply for very long, since I'd move in soon after joining -- preferably into a small, on site boutique hotel; I've always wanted to live in a hotel, so I could get room service and so as to not be disturbed even for a moment from my Thinking and Writing.

Hey, wait a minute - that sounds like John Kirk's life!!

[Andy Hughes]

I'd buy Merion and every weekend I'd partner with Cirba against TEP and Moriarty.

Would you play Colt's West course or the Macdonald/Whigham East layout?

 

Joe, neither---I am partial to the HH Barker version.   
I am still firmly convinced everyone is wrong and Robert White deserves most of the credit

[Tom Yost]

Not sure I would want to join a club that would have me as a member.

 

[Harris Nepon]

Without even the slightest bit of hesitation I would pick Ballyneal. And i would also put my name on the list for Oakmont. 

[Tim Bert]

I would be a member at Kingsley.
I would be a member at Ballyneal.
I would be a member at either Lookout Mountain or Holston Hills, so I had a fun course to play that is short road-trip friendly from my home.
I would join Vanderbilt Legends Club so I could play local golf.

Most importantly, I would probably spend as much time at Bandon as I would at any or all of my member clubs.

I should probably add somewhere further south to ensure nice weather winter golf as well, but with all the golf I'm going to be playing at these other courses in the spring summer and fall, I would probably do well to rest in the winter.

[Tim Leahy]

Buy a house down the street from Rustic Canyon near the In&Out, a limo, driver and join all the Gentleman's Clubs in LA County. There are a lot of out of work actresses working for dollars in those places!

[jeffwarne]

Simple-buy the Machrie
and a home in Aiken,SC
done
328 million left to give to charity(and the tax man-same thing)

[mike_beene]

I don't play the lottery.Already won it by  not being born in a war torn or third world setting.

[Wade Schueneman]

If I won that kind of money -- which is unlikely, since I would never buy a lottery ticket -- I would go out and develop my own golf course, and keep enough money in reserve to develop another someday in the distant future.  But I've noticed that most of my clients only devote 10% of their net worth to their golfing pursuits, so I would try to keep it at that level.

Do you have a site in mind?

[Rob Rigg]

Build "The Walkers Course" near Portland, OR.

We have the site and the archie but a little short on cash

[Sam Morrow]

Buy a house down the street from Rustic Canyon near the In&Out, a limo, driver and join all the Gentleman's Clubs in LA County. There are a lot of out of work actresses working for dollars in those places!

Holy crap, are we related?

[Jim Franklin]

Rock Creek would be first and then Victoria National.

[Sean_A]

I guess folks have already done research on this to know which clubs have national memberships and if one needs a special in or not.  I don't have a clue, but I reckon a good way to find is to first take an epic trip(s) to take advantage of invites and do some personal onsite research.  That said I would look for a membership in Michigan to have an excuse to the family.  Other than that I would want a decent weather place for the winter, but in or quite near a cool town. 

Palmetto looks interesting to me and Aiken seems to be a nice town - would want to check it out.  I am assuming Yeamans Hall is out as needing an in (probably like Palmetto), but I like Charleston an awful lot.  Are there places near the city which doesn't require blue blood lines?  Ballyneal and Sandhills seem interesting, but I am not sure of their availability or if they are nice areas to live.  Its really hard to say where go.  Of course one could develop his own course and that may be fun for a while, but I don't have much desire to manage a course/club. 

Somebody, shoot some ideas out there as real possibilities for a low caste guy from the Motor City who has no desire to talk about Wall St.   

Ciao     

[Jud_T]

Sean,

With $200mm in your pocket and your sunny disposition, you'd be welcome pretty much anywhere beyond Augusta with a bit of networking, and you might even, god forbid, develop a taste for Wall Street as well....