What Forest Lake Country Club does

Forest Lake Country Club is a private, member-owned country club operating since 1926 on 125 lakefront acres in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan. Founded by Colonel Edwin S. George and designed by William Diddel (with later refinements by Arthur Hills), the club generates revenue primarily through recurring membership initiation fees and annual dues across four tiers — Full Golf, Social, Intermediate, and Legacy — supplemented by dining revenue across four venues (The 1926 Room, The Great Hall, The Pub, and the Gator Grille), golf shop merchandise and instruction, club fittings, tennis programming, swim programs, catering for weddings and corporate outings, and facility rentals. Acquisition is sales-led: a dedicated Membership Director manages personalized outreach, referrals, and onboarding for prospective members in the affluent Bloomfield Hills and greater Detroit-metro market.

The club's product surface centers on an 18-hole Par-71 championship golf course, a 1,400 sq-ft golf shop, four clay tennis courts, an Olympic-sized heated pool, and a 3,000 sq-ft year-round fitness center. Its technology backbone is the Clubessential private-club platform, which powers member authentication, reservations, event registration, dress-code documentation, and communications. A long-standing Evans Scholars Foundation partnership supports caddie scholarships (currently 35 club alumni), tying member experience to a community-impact narrative. The club completed a comprehensive course, clubhouse, and experience transformation in 2024, coinciding with its centennial and the launch of expanded retail and simulator-based entertainment.

Monetization is concentrated in subscription-based membership recurring revenue with ancillary transaction-fee revenue from F&B, retail, and event hosting. The customer base spans affluent individuals and families (golfers, tennis/racquet players, swimmers, social members, and younger professionals entering via the Intermediate path), with no enterprise-customer dependency. Geographic concentration is single-site in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan.

Name

Forest Lake Country Club

Legal name

Forest Lake Country Club

Website

https://flcc.us

Company type

Private

Founded year

1926

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

Forest Lake Country Club is a private, subscription-based country club in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan, founded in 1926, offering an 18-hole championship golf course, dining, tennis, swimming, and fitness amenities to affluent member households through Full Golf, Social, Intermediate, and Legacy tiers.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Private Country Club

NAICS

Golf Courses and Country Clubs (71391)

SIC

Services-Membership Sports & Recreation Clubs (7997)

akta.pro primary industry

Golf Courses & Golf Facilities (MPAKAEAD)

akta.pro secondary industry

Golf Clubs & Club Fitting Retail (CRAMAGAA)

Keywords

• Private country club
• Championship golf course
• Membership club services
• Club dining venues
• Recreational amenities

Headquarters

HQ city

Bloomfield Hills

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Supply Chain, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Membership Initiation and Dues: Private country club generates primary revenue through membership initiation fees and recurring annual/monthly dues. Forest Lake offers multiple membership categories (Full Golf, Social, Intermediate, Legacy) each with distinct privilege levels and associated costs. The club emphasizes its exclusive, invitation-based membership model.
2. Dining and Food Service: Revenue generated from multiple dining venues including The 1926 Room (elegant dining), The Pub (casual bar), The Great Hall, and seasonal Gator Grille. The club generates revenue through à la carte dining, special event catering, holiday dinners, wine tastings, and gourmet wine dinners throughout the year.
3. Golf Operations and Events: Revenue from golf shop merchandise sales (apparel, clubs, accessories from brands like Callaway, TaylorMade, Titleist), golf instruction services, private lessons, and hosting of corporate/charity golf outings. The club designates Mondays for outside golf outings and charges for event coordination and catering services.
4. Golf Outings and Event Hosting: The club hosts numerous outings throughout the summer season, generating revenue through event fees, catering services, and facility usage charges for corporate, charity, and private group golf events.
5. Tennis and Recreation Programs: Revenue from tennis instruction (private lessons, group sessions), court time fees, junior tennis programs, swim lessons (group and private), and pool facility usage including the Snack Bar during summer season.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Forest Lake Country Club sells private memberships to an exclusive country club experience built around an 18-hole Par 71 championship golf course in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan. Members pay recurring dues and initiation fees for access to golf, member dining across four venues, tennis courts, an Olympic swimming pool, a fitness center, social events, and the caddie/Evans Scholars program. Additional revenue is generated from à la carte dining, golf shop merchandise, instruction, and event hosting for corporate, charity, and private groups.

Product overview

Forest Lake Country Club is a private country club offering a portfolio of recreational and hospitality services centered around its 18-hole championship golf course (Par 71, designed by William Diddel and redesigned by Arthur Hills). The club's core offerings include golf facilities (the championship course, a full-service golf shop, instruction programs, and a caddie program), member dining across four venues (The 1926 Room, The Great Hall, The Pub, and The Gator Grille), aquatic facilities (Olympic-sized heated pool with diving and wading areas), four clay tennis courts with coaching programs, and a 3,000 sq-ft fitness center. The club offers four membership tiers: Full Golf, Social, Intermediate, and Legacy. The club recently underwent a complete transformation of its course and facilities, and operates a partnership with the Evans Scholarship Foundation for caddie scholarships.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Quantifiable outcome

• Each Evans Scholarship is valued at approximately $125,000 over a four-year period for eligible caddies
• +2 more outcomes

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Western Golf Association / Evans Scholars FoundationcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 1930Forest Lake Country Club partners with the Evans Scholars Foundation, overseen by the Western Golf Association, to support deserving caddies with financial need in obtaining college education. The club sponsors caddies who meet eligibility requirements including strong caddie record, excellent academics, demonstrated financial need, and outstanding character. Each Evans Scholarship is valued at approximately $125,000 over four years at Michigan or Michigan State University. Since 1930, the program has produced 11,323 college graduates with a 3.4 GPA average and 95% graduation rate. Forest Lake currently has 35 alumni among the Evans Scholars program.

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights3 records

Direct peers

• Birmingham Country Club: Long-established Birmingham, MI private club with golf, tennis, dining, and swimming; competes for the same Bloomfield Hills / Birmingham HNW household segment with similar membership tiers.
• Country Club of Detroit: Grosse Pointe Farms private club with championship golf and full country club amenities; competing Detroit Metro private club targeting the same HNW membership profile.
• Plum Hollow Country Club: Southfield, MI private club with 27 holes of golf and full country club amenities; directly competes for Detroit Metro private golf memberships.
• Grosse Ile Golf & Country Club: Grosse Ile private club with championship golf and full country club amenities; serves a comparable Detroit-area HNW family membership with similar amenity mix.
• Bloomfield Hills Country Club: Adjacent Bloomfield Hills private club offering championship golf, tennis, dining, and swimming to the same affluent Detroit Metro demographic; competes head-to-head for Full Golf members in the immediate trade area.
• Oakland Hills Country Club: Premier Bloomfield Hills private club hosting major championships, with championship golf, dining, and social amenities; closest comparable in scale, prestige, and trade area to Forest Lake.
• Indianwood Golf & Country Club: Nearby Lake Orion private club with championship golf, dining, and member amenities; competing for Detroit Metro private club members with comparable full-service amenity mix.
• Detroit Golf Club: Historic Detroit private club with two 18-hole championship courses, dining, and social amenities; directly comparable as a member-owned private golf and country club serving the same Detroit-area HNW market.
• Lochmoor Club: Grosse Pointe Woods private club with golf, tennis, pool, and dining; comparable Detroit-area private country club serving a similar affluent family-oriented membership.

Broad incumbents

• Invited (formerly ClubCorp): National operator of more than 200 private golf and country clubs; broader incumbent benchmark for private club operating model, membership structure, and pricing economics, even though it is multi-property rather than single-site.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/ForestLakecc
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/forest-lake-country-club---bloomfield-hills

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles18 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Forest Lake Country Club