IN EXCESS : Buddy, Can You Spare a Greens Fee?

Among the country club set, hard times mean carrying your own golf bag--that is, if you can still afford your dues. Yes, the recession has reached even the manicured putting greens of L.A.’s exclusive country clubs. For instance, in a recent month at MountainGate in Bel-Air, 200 upper-crusties shouldered their own clubs, some claiming they needed the exercise, all of them saving the $12 golf cart fee--hey, if you hit the links three or four times a week, that kind of expense can add up.

So can hospitality. According to Tom Grant, western regional director of private clubs for American Golf Corp., which owns and manages MountainGate: “The membership is playing the same amount of golf, but they’re not bringing as many guests.” It’s as much as $105 extra for each freeloader, er, friend who tees off, after all.

Grant also notes that golfers are sticking to their own clubs instead of sampling L.A. County’s more than 35 other private courses, where they’d have to pay greens fees. And one Westside club reports that members have been switching from full privileges to limited hours, which are, of course, cheaper.

Historically, there was a waiting list to get into most clubs. Now, economically strapped executives and retirees--many devastated by sinking interest rates--are putting their memberships on the auction block. Roughly 50 MountainGate lifetime memberships are on the market and some are going for significantly less than their original $55,000 price, says Grant. It’s not just MountainGate; one San Fernando Valley club recently sold a block of memberships at $10,000 below the usual $70,000 asking price.

Calabasas Golf and Country Club’s general manager, Mike Chikubu, is down but not out. “Twenty to 30 members just quit and nobody has joined,” he says, figuring it’s a $6,000-a-month loss for the club. But he has no intention of cutting the $38,000 family membership. “We’re waiting for the economy to come back,” he says.

The sluggish economy has even affected the prestigious Bel-Air Country Club, particularly in the banquet business. “Large corporations aren’t having as many parties,” says Roy McKinney, Bel-Air’s president. But the Bel-Air, like the rest of the country, is simply tightening its belt, he says. “We’re just not spending money foolishly.”