One path to membership at Aronimink Golf Club, the site of this week’s PGA Championship, involves winning a major tournament on its grounds—and then waiting.
For 63 years.
That is exactly how Gary Player earned his place. When Aronimink last hosted the PGA Championship in 1962, Player edged Bob Goalby by a single stroke to capture the Wanamaker Trophy. More than six decades later, in the fall of 2025, the club honored that achievement by making Player an honorary member and dedicating a room in the clubhouse in his name.
A delayed recognition, certainly. But it fits a club that rarely accelerates its processes.
Founded in 1896 as the Belmont Golf Association and relocated to its current spot west of Philadelphia in 1926, Aronimink remains an old-school enclave that adds members the traditional way: deliberately. A source familiar with the club told GOLF.com that writing a check alone won’t secure entry. Like many elite clubs, the application process remains shrouded. There is a waiting list—less a sequential list than a pool of hopefuls.
“You could be accepted in as little as six months,” the source said. “Or you could wait a decade and never get in. They don’t work through a queue one candidate at a time.”
Once admitted, the financial commitment is significant. Aronimink has long been one of the most expensive clubs in the region. The initiation fee stands at $150,000 (more than double that of the Philadelphia Cricket Club), plus monthly dues of around $1,800.
Membership comes with perks. Beyond access to a Donald Ross design—restored by Gil Hanse and Jim Wagner in 2017 and ranked 84th on GOLF’s Top 100 Courses in the U.S.—members enjoy a full range of amenities: swimming pools, paddle and tennis courts, trap shooting, and a historic Tudor-style clubhouse with a veranda overlooking the course.
In 1962, Player
