Right now, Medinah Country Club is at the center of the golf world. The 2026 Presidents Cup is being held there from September 24–27, making it the only club in history to have hosted the U.S. Open, PGA Championship, Ryder Cup, and Presidents Cup.
But behind that staggering championship résumé is an ownership story unlike any you will find at a typical golf club — because Medinah is not owned by a billionaire, a corporation, or a private equity firm. It is owned by its members.
What Is Medinah Country Club?
Medinah Country Club is a prestigious private, member-owned country club located in Medinah, Illinois, approximately 25 miles northwest of downtown Chicago.
The club sits on 640 acres of land and features three full 18-hole golf courses, Lake Kadijah, a 120,000-square-foot Byzantine-style clubhouse topped with minarets, a Racquet Center, Swimming Pool, Gun Club, and exceptional dining facilities.
The club currently has more than 1,100 members and operates on a membership-by-invitation-only basis, with a clearly stated mission to offer “a world-class golf experience and the highest quality, family-oriented, private club amenities to its members on a fiscally responsible basis.”
Who Owns Medinah Country Club in 2026?
Medinah Country Club is a private, member-owned club. There is no single individual owner, no corporate parent company, and no outside investor holding equity in the property. The club is collectively owned and governed by its member body — just as it has been since the day it was founded over 100 years ago.
This is a crucial distinction. Medinah is not a product of the modern wave of private equity-backed golf acquisitions that has swept through the industry in recent years.
It operates as a nonprofit private club, where members collectively fund operations through initiation fees and annual dues, and elected club leadership governs on their behalf. The club’s own mission statement emphasizes operating “on a fiscally responsible basis” — the language of a member-governed institution, not a corporate enterprise.
Ownership and Key Details Table
| Party | Role | Ownership | Key Detail |
|---|---|---|---|
| Medinah Country Club Members | Collective Owners | 100% member-owned | Private nonprofit club; no outside shareholders or corporate parent |
| Club Board of Directors | Governing Body | Elected by members | Oversees all major strategic and financial decisions on behalf of members |
| Medinah Shriners (Founders) | Historical Founders | Founded 1924; no current ownership stake | Chicago’s Medinah Temple Shriners created the club as a private retreat |
| 94 Perpetual Members (Great Depression era) | Historical Saviors | Paid $3,500 each for lifetime membership | Their contributions kept the club alive during its darkest financial period |
| PGA Tour | Event Partner | No equity | Hosts the 2026 Presidents Cup at the club’s Course No. 3 |
| No corporate owner | N/A | N/A | Not affiliated with ClubCorp, Troon, or any management company |
The Origin Story: Shriners, Sand, and a Dream
Medinah Country Club was founded in 1924 by a group of Shriners from Chicago’s Medinah Temple — the branch of the Ancient Arabic Order of the Nobles of the Mystic Shrine based in the city.
The Shriners were searching for land with character on the outskirts of Chicago to build a private golf and social retreat, and they found it in what was then a small community called Meacham in DuPage County.
Scottish-born architect Tom Bendelow — known as the “Dean of American Golf” — designed all three original course layouts. The first course opened in September 1925, followed by Course No. 2 in 1926, and the now-legendary Course No. 3 in 1928.
Charter member and renowned architect Richard Gustav Schmid designed the extraordinary clubhouse in a Byzantine style — inspired by a two-year study of mosques and architecture across the Middle East and Asia — featuring a 60-foot-high central rotunda, Moorish domed towers, and minarets that remain one of the most photographed structures in American golf.
The community that grew up around the club was eventually renamed Medinah, Illinois — after the club itself.
By the late 1920s, the club had approximately 1,500 golfing and social members and was firmly established as one of the great private clubs in America. Then the Great Depression hit.
The Great Depression: How 94 Members Saved Medinah
The Great Depression nearly ended Medinah Country Club entirely. Membership collapsed, dues went unpaid, and the club’s finances were in crisis. What followed was one of the most remarkable acts of collective commitment in the history of American private clubs.
94 members each paid $3,500 for what were called “Perpetual” memberships — family memberships valid forever — specifically to rescue the club from financial ruin. That collective injection of private capital kept Medinah alive.
In addition, the club responded by waiving initiation fees, lowering dues, holding fundraising events, and — significantly — hosting professional golf tournaments to generate publicity and revenue. The club also opened its membership rolls to non-Shriners for the first time, a major departure from its founding principles.
Those 94 families and their descendants are the reason Medinah exists today. It is a founding story unlike any other in golf.
Medinah’s Championship History: What Member Ownership Built
The fact that Medinah is member-owned has not held it back from hosting the biggest events in world golf. If anything, the club’s governance model — which prioritizes long-term stewardship over short-term profit — is precisely what has allowed it to invest in its courses and infrastructure over a century.
Medinah Country Club’s Course No. 3 has hosted five major championships: the U.S. Open in 1949, 1975, and 1990; and the PGA Championship in 1999 — won by Tiger Woods — and 2006, also won by Tiger Woods, making him the only player to win two majors at the same venue.
The club also hosted the 2012 Ryder Cup — one of the most dramatic in history, remembered as the “Miracle at Medinah” when Europe staged the largest comeback in Ryder Cup history to win on the final day.
Medinah will now add a fourth major event type to its trophy case when it hosts the 2026 Presidents Cup from September 24–27, with Brandt Snedeker captaining the U.S. team and Geoff Ogilvy leading the Internationals. When that event concludes, Medinah will be the only club in golf history to have hosted the U.S. Open, PGA Championship, Ryder Cup, and Presidents Cup — a feat no other club on earth has achieved.
The Iconic Clubhouse: A Monument to Its Founders
The Medinah clubhouse is worth its own conversation — because it is not just a building. It is one of the most extraordinary structures in the history of American sport.
Designed by charter member Richard Gustav Schmid and opened in 1926, the 120,000-square-foot clubhouse was modeled on a mosque in Turkey after Schmid spent two years studying architecture across the Middle East and Asia.
The Shriners’ full formal name — Ancient Arabic Order of the Nobles of the Mystic Shrine — explains the Arabic and Islamic architectural influences built into every corner of the building.
The 60-foot-high central rotunda, the Moorish dome, the minarets, and the dramatic winding drive approach that reveals the building have made it what club historian Nick Novelli calls “unparalleled in golf.” Every member, he says, is still taken aback by their first sight of it — regardless of how long they have been members.
Membership at Medinah: Exclusive, Invitation-Only
Medinah Country Club operates on a strictly invitation-only basis. Prospective members must be sponsored by existing members and go through a formal application process. The club does not publicly disclose its current initiation fees or annual dues — consistent with how most elite private clubs in America operate.
The club currently has more than 1,100 members across golfing and social categories, supported by a full-time professional staff operating the three courses, clubhouse, dining, racquet facilities, swimming complex, gun club, and event services.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Q1. Who owns Medinah Country Club in 2026?
Medinah Country Club is a private, member-owned club with no corporate parent, no individual owner, and no outside investors — governed entirely by its member body.
Q2. Is Medinah Country Club owned by a corporation?
No. Medinah is not affiliated with any management company like ClubCorp or Troon — it is a fully independent, privately governed, member-owned club.
Q3. Who founded Medinah Country Club?
Medinah Country Club was founded in 1924 by Shriners from Chicago’s Medinah Temple, the local chapter of the Ancient Arabic Order of the Nobles of the Mystic Shrine.
Q4. Who designed the Medinah golf courses?
Scottish architect Tom Bendelow — the “Dean of American Golf” — designed all three original courses. Course No. 3 was later refined by Rees Jones.
Q5. What major events has Medinah hosted?
Medinah has hosted the U.S. Open (1949, 1975, 1990), PGA Championship (1999, 2006), Ryder Cup (2012), and the 2026 Presidents Cup — the only club to host all four.
Q6. What is the 2026 Presidents Cup and when is it?
The 2026 Presidents Cup takes place at Medinah from September 24–27, 2026, with Brandt Snedeker captaining the U.S. team against Geoff Ogilvy’s Internationals.
Q7. How did 94 members save Medinah during the Great Depression?
94 members each paid $3,500 for lifetime “Perpetual” family memberships specifically to save the club from financial collapse during the Great Depression in the early 1930s.
Q8. Is Medinah Country Club open to the public?
No. Medinah is a strictly private, invitation-only club. Access is available only to members and their guests.
Medinah Country Club is owned entirely by its members — a private, nonprofit club that has been member-governed since its founding in 1924 by the Shriners of Chicago’s Medinah Temple. There is no corporate parent, no private equity backer, no billionaire owner. Just over 1,100 members on 640 acres of some of the most celebrated golf real estate in the world.
That member-owned governance model is the same one that helped 94 committed families save the club during the Great Depression with personal payments of $3,500 each — and the same one that has produced five major championships, the 2012 Ryder Cup, and now the 2026 Presidents Cup.
When the world watches Medinah this week from September 24–27, it is watching a club that belongs to its members and has for over a century.