Santa Rosa Golf and Beach Club: is it open to visitors, and where to play instead

Santa Rosa Golf and Beach Club is a private, member-owned club off 30A at Dune Allen in Santa Rosa Beach, and it is not open to visitors. It went private in February 2022, membership has been reported full with a waitlist, and no guest-fee or rental route is published. The nearest public alternatives are Sandestin's three public courses, 7 to 9 minutes away.

This guide explains the club's status and history, then sets out the courses you can actually book from a Santa Rosa Beach base.

Quick facts

• Status: open, private, member-owned. Not open to visitors.
• Went private: February 2022 (club announcement quoted on the SoWal forum, February 3, 2022).
• Address: 334 Golf Club Drive, Santa Rosa Beach. Golf club 850-267-2229.
• Beach club: 4801 W County Hwy 30A. Phone 850-267-1240.
• Course: 18 holes, par 72, original course built in 1971.
• Renovation: $3 million by Bill Bergin, 2021.
• From Destin Harbor: 30 minutes, 16.5 miles.
• Nearest public golf: Baytowne, 7 minutes from the Home2 Suites in Santa Rosa Beach.

Can visitors play Santa Rosa Golf and Beach Club?

No. The club site describes it as the Emerald Coast's premier private golf and beach club, and in February 2022 it moved to a private membership model. Membership has been reported full with a waitlist.

We found no guest-fee rate, no reciprocal arrangement with other clubs and no vacation-rental route. That means renting a house on 30A, even next door, does not get you a tee time. If you know a member, ask them about guest rules directly; those were not published.

Santa Rosa Golf & Beach Club is on our map so you can see where it is, marked as not open to visitors.

About the club

GolfNow lists 1971 as the build year for the original course. It is a pine-lined parkland layout off 30A at Dune Allen, with a separate Gulf-front beach club on 30A, which is where the "beach club" in the name comes from.

In 2021 Bill Bergin of Bergin Golf Designs led a $3 million renovation, per Emerald Coast Magazine (April 2021): greens reshaped, drainage improved and holes 11 and 14 rebuilt, plus clubhouse work. It reopened to members in fall 2021, and a short-game area had opened in fall 2019. Bergin also renovated Kelly Plantation in 2024.

Tee ratings, turf types and overseed practice were not gathered for this private club. Its condition after Hurricane Isaias, which made landfall near Destin on October 9, 2026, was not checked.

Where to play instead

Since Santa Rosa Golf and Beach Club moved to private membership in February 2022, a Santa Rosa Beach base relies on courses nearby. The good news is that all four Sandestin courses sit within 16 minutes of the Home2 Suites and Topsail Hill, and three of them sell public tee times.

Santa Rosa Beach sits between Sandestin to the west and the WaterColor and Watersound end of 30A to the east. These are the alternatives you can book:

Sandestin rates are from sandestin.com, read October 26, 2026; Windswept Dunes from GolfNow; Camp Creek from the inn pages. Times are routed free-flow estimates from the Home2 Suites by Hilton Santa Rosa Beach and the Topsail Hill Preserve State Park Campground. Rates change.

The Sandestin courses

The three public Sandestin courses are the obvious substitute. Baytowne is the cheapest at $99 public or $75 for resort and Hilton guests most of the year. The Raven, a Robert Trent Jones Jr. layout, is the pick of the three at $159 public in season, dropping to $109 from November 2, 2026. The Links is the bay-side original, short and windy.

Two fall closures matter: Baytowne closes November 2-8, 2026 and the Links November 3-9, 2026 for overseeding greens, with discounted rates in the weeks after. Book through Sandestin; resort guests can book up to six months ahead against 14 days for the public. See the Raven course guide, the Baytowne course guide and our Sandestin golf comparison.

Burnt Pine

If you want a private-club round, Burnt Pine is the closest to it you can book as a visitor. It is open to members and registered Sandestin resort guests (the Hilton Sandestin also says its guests have access), with resort-guest tee times after 1 p.m. only, at $179 in season and $149 from November 2, 2026. Booking is by phone on 850-267-6500. More in our Burnt Pine golf club guide.

Windswept Dunes

Windswept Dunes at Freeport, across the US 331 bridge, is the best public 18 north of 30A on value: a long links-style course through sand dunes, 7,752 yards from the back with a 145 slope. Choose forward tees. See the Windswept Dunes course guide.

The Watersound Club courses

At the east end of 30A, Camp Creek, Shark's Tooth and The Third are private but sold to Camp Creek Inn and Watersound Inn guests at $295 a round. That is the only published way onto a private 30A course for a visitor. After Hurricane Isaias, Camp Creek reopened on October 17, 2026 as nine holes and Shark's Tooth was closed until further notice. See our Watersound Club golf guide.

Staying in Santa Rosa Beach for golf

• Home2 Suites by Hilton Santa Rosa Beach: opened 2023, 107 suites with kitchenettes and free breakfast (aggregators), on US 98. Not on the beach and no club golf access, but 7 to 13 minutes from all four Sandestin courses. Rates not captured; check rates.
• Topsail Hill Preserve State Park Campground: 156 RV sites with full hookups, a pool and a tram to the beach, at $42 a night plus a $7 utility fee and a $6.70 reservation fee. Stay limits apply: 14 nights in high demand, 56 nights per park per six-month period.
• Sandestin Golf and Beach Resort: 14 minutes from the club, and the stay that unlocks resort rates on all four Sandestin courses, including Burnt Pine.

Our 30A vs Destin guide compares the bases, and 30A golf covers every course along the coast road.

Other private clubs on this coast

Santa Rosa is one of several clubs a visitor cannot book. Panama Country Club in Lynn Haven is private, and the Eglin AFB course closed in December 2025. Our private golf clubs near Destin guide lists them all with the nearest public alternative.

For a member club on the Alabama coast that does sell public tee times, see Peninsula Golf Club in Gulf Shores.

Plan it on the map

Open the Destin golf map to see Santa Rosa Golf and Beach Club alongside every course you can book from Santa Rosa Beach, with drive times from each stay. The $30 plan builds a day-by-day trip using only courses open to you.