The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly About Golf Course Living

We moved these recent comments from members that discuss living on a golf course from a different Blog:

I’m wondering if developers see golf courses as a way of creating pretty views and a focus for the community, even for those not planning on playing. I think I’ve heard that many golf courses aren’t owned/operated by the community that surrounds them. If true, that would protect homeowners from any increased cost of operating them. That was true at Sun City Lincoln in CA where I lived for a while. I’ve also heard that the younger generations aren’t much interested in golf. So in the upcoming years, golf courses may go the way of shopping malls and pedestrian only downtowns – ideas whose times came and then went.?Maybe the next survey should be addressed to retirees who have moved post retirement. I’ve moved twice and am planning a 3rd move. Each move was done after much thought and research but did not result in a place I wanted to stay forever. However, the most important thing I’ve learned is that what I want and need changes as I get older. I nod my head knowingly when I hear pre-retirement and early retirees proudly saying they’ve found their forever home. To me, it comes down to how hard you want to work to stay in a place that doesn’t meet your needs without a lot of help. by Laney Humphrey — July 21, 2018 |

Laney,
I agree with you about what we “think” we want and the actual experience. We also have moved twice in retirement with the possibility of a third move. First time was to a lovely home with some property but several neighbors were inconsiderate with their barking dogs, loud music and shooting guns. And we were on 7 acres! We are currently in a 55+ community and are not sure it’s for us. What drove us here was longing for peace and quiet, which we do have. I hate the “sameness” of the community and would prefer to live in a mixed ages neighborhood (after I check out the future neighbors and their “habits.”)
We lived in a community with a golf course pre-retirement and one neighbor had to have shatterproof windows installed due to golf balls hitting the windows. Fortunately, we were on the opposite side of the street above the golf course. I would caution people who are considering a home on a golf course to keep this in mind.
by Fionna — July 21, 2018 |

We have two golf courses, one in the all age master built community and the other in our 55 community, which is only 2 years old. Developers get premium prices for golf course lots and that is one reason they continue to build them. In all our research and visits to Northern Florida, the Carolinas, Georgia, lived in east Tennessee, Arizona and Nevada 95% that had golf courses were all public courses or country clubs adding nothing to the HOA fee related to the community. Like it has been stated many times in the blogs, check your HOA cost and what they cover. A question about HOA fees and coverage might be useful.
by Bruce — July 21, 2018 |

I’m not a golfer so, as a property owner, I wouldn’t want to have to pay to operate and maintain a golf course. Again going back to my experience in Sun City Lincoln where the golf course was a separate entity, I was walking my dog on one of the paved walkways that went thru the golf course when I was told I couldn’t be there by a course steward. Never having seen any sign or notice of rules, I asked why. He said that I was in danger of being hit by a golf ball so when golfers were on the course, walkers had to get off. Hmmm. Seemed like a real conflict of interest to me! How was I supposed to know if there were golfers on other parts of the course? And here’s another thought, especially for those concerned about personal safety: residents and their HOA have no control over who is allowed on the course. Someone with evil intent could sign up to play and then have easy access to homes, especially those right on the course. Laney
by Laney Humphrey — July 22, 2018

This was sent in by Bruce:
Laney, our courses are posted for golfers only… but access to the course can be obtained from many areas. If the course is public or a country club consider it private property, just like the homes around it. With the way the courses are designed around the community you may not be aware golfers are playing. A week or so ago several woman were on the paved golf paths pulling their children in wagons and our foresome waited till they were safely out of range, a wayward shot could really hurt a person. As I said our courses have postings but access apparently was made by these woman. I have scolded golfers for entering a yard of a house built along the golf course to retrieve their wayward golf ball, that also is private property and should be honored.
by Bruce — July 22, 2018

This is a very good article about life on a golf course. We have lived adjacent to a private golf course for 20 years in the DFW area. We chose a golf course lot for two reasons. We previously lived in the St. Louis area and our developments there did not allow fences. We really liked the open feeling that gave. In Texas, developments mostly all have wooden privacy fences which are ugly and deteriorate over time if not maintained. With a golf course lot, you are paying for the view so there won't be any privacy fencing along the course. The lot will be either unfenced or have a wrought iron fence. The second reason we chose a golf course lot is that I always wanted to join a private golf course to avoid the hackers on public courses.

Our lot had a giant cottonwood tree in the back corner that offered some protection from errant shots. However, it was struck by lightning and had to be taken down. Now, we are pretty exposed to those wayward shots, expecially on windy days. We have some smaller trees around the pool to provide some safety there but I do find balls in the pool sometimes. We also put solar screens on the windows facing the course. The sun in Texas is intense and many people use these solar screens to reduce the amount of sunlight coming through the windows. They have an additional benefit for golf course lots in that they protect the windows from ball strikes.

One benefit of a golf course lot, if you are a golfer, is that you never have to buy golf balls. I have all the ProV1 balls in my yard that even I could lose. Yes, there are lots of curse words from the golfers out on the course and yes there are lots of noise from the equipment being used early in the morning to get the course ready for play that day. However, we do have a great view in back. We only see the fairway and green and a tree line on the opposite side of the fairway. We are not looking into someone's backyard or surrounded by privacy fences. Golf course living works for us even with its disadvantages.

We live in a condo in Florida on a golf course. We do not golf. Our golf course is privately owned. However, condo owners share responsibility via a community association, for the security/gate/fence and the access road. In the past, the golf course was run as a private country club.
Downside: Over the years, golf and country clubs became far less popular in Florida and many courses have closed. Our country club golf course declared bankruptcy in 2004 and finally sold itself to a private owner in 2015. When the club was having financial problems, the condo owners ended up providing all the support for the community association expenses. One wonders about living somewhere dependent on a sport that may become less attractive with time. Golf is not a cheap sport and during economic downturns people play less golf. They drop country club memberships. If the golf course goes bankrupt will developers move in and build on the old golf course. This has happened elsewhere.
Upside: Living in a large greenspace. Our golf course dates back to the 1960s so that there are many large, old lovely trees. It sits on a bay with attractive mangroves, water hazards and water views. All of this attracts a wide variety of birds and other wildlife. It has been a refuge for birds that in the past have been endangered, such as roseate spoonbills. I think the birds keep down the number of pests.
There are many other issues with golf course living. The worst is the noise from all the landscaping equipment. They are out there at five in the morning nearly every day.

In the area I live a few courses have gone bankrupt and the course has gone to seed. Suddenly the view from the golf course lots is rather ugly and the property values of these lots has fallen. Before investing in a golf course lot or house do your research and even then there are no guarantees.

We currently live on a golf course in the Houston area. These past 4 years here, have been my first time. One of the advantages not mentioned is the privacy factor. A golf course is active during the day. We do most of our swimming and partying at night. You don't have to worry about noisy neighbors, or being overly quiet yourself (except for you next door neighbors, and we are lucky on that point too). My wife is very noise sensitive, and this allows a very quiet sleep night.

We have lived on the 12th green of the Orchard Golf Course in Sun City Lincoln Hills CA for 14 years and love it. I have had one golf ball come my way and I picked it up and walked over to the young man who hit it and returned it. He was shocked. I told him "I lose so many of these I wanted you to have yours back. I tell everyone I have a lovely backyard but that I'm annoyed by my gardeners who show up at 6am every morning to mow the yard. Then the rest of the day I have to put up with trespassers all day into the early hours of the evening coming through my backyard. I'm now a Widower and 14 years ago my wife picked this lot and then she passed away last year. I have decided to never leave.

Mike Schultz, your post really touched me.

I like how you mentioned that one of the advantages of living in a golfing community is a peaceful environment that comes with it. My uncle is thinking of retiring soon, and he is thinking that it would be a good idea for him to take up golfing so that he can stay in shape. I'll be sure to mention to him that he should consider moving into a club community.

I lived on a golf course with a beautiful view of the 9th hole and fairway! Unfortunately golfers don’t respect your privacy and at 7AM a missed put turned into the foulest language you can imagine
Frequently I found dents in my siding and on one occasion my rear patio door was shattered!
Livi g on a golf course sounds great but living near one is a lot better

I saw a few comments regarding golfing and staying in shape! One has nothing to do with the other! Most courses require you use a golf cart and that eliminates any walking
Another downfall of golf is the pressure to bet on your performance resulting in most cases of you paying for some else’s golf outing! Bottom line golfing is not a sport ! It takes a huge part of your day! Is expensive!

Find another hobby

Permit me, as a dedicated golfer of 60 years, to respond. I am assuming you are the same Ron who posted about golfers abusing your peace, quiet and aluminum siding. Ignoring the axe you may be grinding and addressing your comments about the game, first off, 26 million Americans do not agree with you. Second, many golf courses permit walking; those who enjoy a good walk can certainly opt to have one. Third, I can say that after 60 years of playing perhaps 1,000 rounds, I have never been forced to make a wager on a golf course. You don’t sound like you are a golfer, given your misconceptions about golfers, so please pardon me if I appear to patronize you. The handicap system in golf is unique to sports (except for bowling and a few other minor sports) in that it can create fair competition between a good golfer and one of lesser ability. You have a handicap of 20, let’s say, and I have a handicap of 10, and I give you 10 extra strokes off your score and we compete fairly. I have done this hundreds of times over the years, about 95% of the time for fun, not money. As for the slam against exercise for golfers, it is true that riding a cart is not especially aerobic. This is why I and many golfers I know will park the cart a fair distance from the ball and walk, often briskly, from cart to ball and back. Golf is a great and sociable game, despite the occasional cursing from those who might take things a bit too seriously. They would be advised, for their health and sociability, to chill out a bit. Good advice also, perhaps, for those who didn’t do the proper research before buying a home beside a golf course fairway.

Larry thanks for your response, as I agree with your comments. My wife and I both golf and so nice to get outdoors and enjoy the views and green space a course provides. Like you been playing for over 20 years amd have not bet money on my play. We have bet on a closed to the pin to see if I or my wife will cook dinner. When buying on a course agree middle of the fairways could be an issue for your home and some golfers do use profanity on wayward shots shame on them.

We live in Canada across the street from a golf course. Up here Canada has strict laws about the types of fertilizers and other chemicals can be used by citizens on their lawns. However that doesn't apply to the golf course. Every spring they send a notice to all of the neighboring households telling us what chemicals they will be spraying. Promising to do it on a non windy day. Being that we are downwind of the GC I can only imagine what toxins we've taken in over the years we've been here. Not to mention countless golfballs flying into our yard. One hitting our car parked in the driveway.

Good Morning Sports Fans!! Yes; I am from Canada & yes; I am out on a Day Pass!! But was smart enough to live a couple of Blocks over from the Golf Course. So do not have much patience for those who live right on the Course & expect serenity 24/7. Ain't going to happen!!
Simple: Boy's will be Boy's, Golfer's will be Golfer's, Golf Courses will be Green & will comply with the Law.
So enjoy; as some day you will be 6 feet Under!! & will not even hear the Bird's Chirp!!

You made an interesting point when you explained that one of the advantages of living on a golf course is that the rounds you get to play are faster. My uncle is an avid golf player, but he hardly ever has the time to play because of how busy his job keeps him. I would imagine that he might be able to find some time to play golf if he lived in a home that was on a course.