Ultra-exclusive private golf course opens in South Florida — with $1 million membership fee
A world-class golf course, a racquet center, a private yacht club, and much more – all yours to enjoy, so long as you have a spare million dollars lying around.
The Shell Bay Club in Hallandale Beach, South Florida, opened on Tuesday — a private leisure and residential development designed by Witkoff Group and PPG Development for "connoisseurs of life well lived."
Sprawled out along the Intracoastal Waterway, much of the 150-acre plot is dedicated to an 18-hole private golf course, designed by Australian two-time major winner Greg Norman.
Clocking in at 7,254 yards in length, boasting no tee times and a "world-class caddy program," the course is flanked by a 20,000-square-foot clubhouse, a 12-acre practice facility and a nine-hole par three course.
"The course at Shell Bay will be one of the most unique, pure golf experiences I have ever designed," Norman said in a press release.
"Completely isolated from its surroundings, the walkable layout will capture the true essence of the game with immaculately conditioned fairways, sweeping sandbelt-style bunkers and contoured greens that test every club in your bag.
"It will be a place where you can totally immerse yourself in the game."
Immersion comes at a price, however, with membership initiation fees for The Shell Bay Club coming in at $1 million.
Tenants living in the 108 residences and penthouses that make up the 20-story condominium tower overlooking the course receive automatic social club membership, with the option to pay the additional fee for the golf course.
Opening next year, the minimum unit cost is $3 million, a spokesperson for C&R PR agency said, with penthouses starting from $11 million.
There is no option to have a golf-only membership, the spokesperson added.
By contrast, initiation fees for Georgia's Augusta National Golf Club, host of The Masters, range from $250,000 to $500,000, according to Forbes in 2021.
"Golf is the most undersupplied asset in the Miami market, and consequently, Shell Bay is a generational opportunity to create the first new private course in the area in 25 years," Witkoff Group Co-CEO Alex Witkoff added in the press release.
Shell Bay Club members also have access to a range of amenities, including admission to the Shell Bay Yacht Club, which offers a 48-slip private marina to give residents with private vessels and charters direct access to the Atlantic ocean.
The site's racquet club boasts hard, clay, and grass surfaces, as well as courts for pickleball and padel, while a member's pavilion encompasses spas, social rooms and a pro shop.
Residences — which come with butler service — are kitted out with floor-to-ceiling windows offering panoramic views over the course, with managing hospitality group Auberge Resorts Collection set to open a boutique resort for guests on site in 2025.
