← All rankings
The prestige ranking
A composite of what it costs to get in, the scale of the operation, the club's age, and whether the course carries a named architect. The formula is published in full, and clubs with no cost data are excluded rather than guessed at.
| # | Club | Area | Type | Prestige score | Confidence |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Westchester Country Club | Rye, NY | Country club | 94.9 | Well sourced |
| 2 | Greenwich Country Club | Greenwich, CT | Country club | 91.6 | Well sourced |
| 2 | Baltusrol Golf Club | Springfield, NJ | Golf club | 91.6 | Unverified |
| 4 | Century Country Club | Purchase, NY | Country club | 91.5 | Reported |
| 5 | Apawamis Club | Rye, NY | Country club | 90.5 | Well sourced |
| 6 | Bonnie Briar Country Club | Larchmont, NY | Country club | 83.4 | Unverified |
| 7 | Plainfield Country Club | Edison, NJ | Country club | 82.8 | Unverified |
| 8 | Whippoorwill Club | Armonk, NY | Country club | 82.7 | Well sourced |
| 9 | Siwanoy Country Club | Bronxville, NY | Country club | 81.3 | Unverified |
| 10 | Pelham Country Club | Pelham, NY | Country club | 80.9 | Well sourced |
| 11 | Glen Oaks Club | Old Westbury, NY | Country club | 80.5 | Well sourced |
| 12 | The Stanwich Club | Greenwich, CT | Country club | 79.5 | Unverified |
| 13 | Inwood Country Club | Inwood, NY | Country club | 64.1 | Unverified |
| 14 | Union Club of the City of New York | New York, NY | City club | 63.6 | Reported |
| 15 | Larchmont Shore Club | Larchmont, NY | Shore club | 58.3 | Reported |
| 16 | Aspetuck Valley Country Club | Weston, CT | Country club | 54.3 | Unverified |
| 17 | Manasquan River Golf Club | Brielle, NJ | Golf club | 53.2 | Reported |
| 18 | Knickerbocker Country Club | Tenafly, NJ | Country club | 52.9 | Reported |
| 19 | Echo Lake Country Club | Westfield, NJ | Country club | 52.8 | Well sourced |
| 20 | Spring Lake Bath and Tennis Club | Spring Lake, NJ | Beach club | 52.2 | Well sourced |
| 21 | North Jersey Country Club | Wayne, NJ | Country club | 51.8 | Well sourced |
| 22 | Brooklawn Country Club | Fairfield, CT | Country club | 51.6 | Unverified |
| 23 | Crestmont Country Club | West Orange, NJ | Country club | 51.2 | Reported |
| 24 | Cherry Valley Club | Garden City, NY | Country club | 51.1 | Reported |
| 25 | Beacon Hill Country Club | Atlantic Highlands, NJ | Country club | 50.5 | Well sourced |
| 26 | Spring Brook Country Club | Morristown, NJ | Country club | 50.0 | Unverified |
| 27 | Richmond County Country Club | Staten Island, NY | Country club | 46.0 | Reported |
| 28 | Mendham Golf and Tennis Club | Mendham, NJ | Country club | 45.5 | Reported |
| 29 | Black Rock Yacht Club | Bridgeport, CT | Yacht club | 41.6 | Reported |
| 30 | Westchester Hills Golf Club | White Plains, NY | Golf club | 35.3 | Well sourced |
| 31 | Knollwood Country Club | Elmsford, NY | Country club | -41.3 | Well sourced |
| 32 | Shorehaven Golf Club | East Norwalk, CT | Golf club | -52.2 | Well sourced |
| 33 | Plandome Country Club | Plandome, NY | Country club | -54.9 | Reported |
| 34 | Pretty Brook Tennis Club | Princeton, NJ | Tennis club | -63.1 | Well sourced |
| 35 | Westfield Tennis Club | Westfield, NJ | Tennis club | -74.4 | Well sourced |
| 36 | Seven Bridges Field Club | Chappaqua, NY | Field club | -74.9 | Well sourced |
| 37 | Netherwood Tennis Club | Plainfield, NJ | Tennis club | -86.6 | Well sourced |
How this is calculated
Forty points for the initiation fee on a log scale, because the market prices its own hierarchy better than we could. Thirty for the scale of the operation, from total revenue in the club's most recent Form 990. Fifteen for age, with anything founded before 1900 taking the full weight. Fifteen for a named course architect of consequence. Clubs with no sourced cost figure are left out rather than guessed at, which is why some famous names are missing.