Santa Ana Country Club
Newport Beach, Orange County, California · Newport Beach / Big Canyon golf market
- Access
- invitation only
- Holes
- 18
Thinking About Living in Santa Ana Country Club?
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Santa Ana Country Club is the oldest golf club in Orange County, with roots to the 1901 nine-hole Santiago Golf Club in Peters Canyon; it moved to Newport Beach in 1914 as the Orange County Country Club, then to its present Santa Ana Heights site in 1923-1924. The club's name is a genuine identity trap for a buyer-facing platform: it reads as though it should be in the City of Santa Ana, but Santa Ana Heights was annexed into the City of Newport Beach in two stages (east of Irvine Avenue in 2002, west of Irvine Avenue in 2008), with the USPS zip code changed to Newport Beach's 92660 in 2009.
Golf & Course
The club opened nine holes in September 1924 on 144.29 acres purchased from Bradford and Bryan McCoy, with the second nine following in 1925 -- giving it its present 18-hole routing. No architect of record was confirmed this session.
Membership & Access
Does buying a home here include club membership?
Private, invitation-based membership across Full Golf, Social, and Corporate tiers; the club does not publicly disclose pricing, consistent with an invitation-only model. Reported initiation-fee figures conflict sharply across sources and were not resolved this session.
Living in Santa Ana Country Club
The club sits in the West Bay/Santa Ana Heights area of Newport Beach. No evidence was found this session that it is the organizing amenity of one specific residential development (unlike Big Canyon) -- its residential relevance is general, tied to the broader desirability of the surrounding Newport Beach area rather than a purpose-built golf subdivision.
Location & Surrounding Area
Santa Ana Heights sits near John Wayne Airport, between Costa Mesa, Newport Beach, and the City of Santa Ana -- annexation history is the key fact a buyer needs to correctly place this club.
Costs & Fees
Figures below are labeled Current only when the source itself frames them as presently accurate. Everything else is labeled Historical — a source checked today does not make an old fee a current one.
Initiation (range low)
Historical — as of 2026$30,000
Low end of a reported Full Golf initiation range ($30,000-$40,000). A separate estimate elsewhere put the figure at 'over $100,000' -- genuinely conflicting, not resolved this session.
Initiation (range high)
Historical — as of 2026$40,000
High end of the same reported range; see conflicting-source note on initiation_fee.
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What Buyers Should Verify
- Current initiation fee -- sources conflict sharply ($30,000-$40,000 vs. 'over $100,000'); confirm directly with the club.
- Course architect of record -- not confirmed this session.
- Gated status and full amenity list -- not confirmed this session.
Notable
- Orange County's oldest golf club, with roots to the 1901 Santiago Golf Club.
- Physically located in Newport Beach (Santa Ana Heights, annexed 2002/2008), not the City of Santa Ana, despite the club's name -- a real entity-identity trap corrected in this research pass.
- USPS changed the area's zip code to Newport Beach's 92660 effective July 2009, following full annexation.
Considering a Move to Santa Ana Country Club?
Whether you're comparing Santa Ana Country Club with another Newport Beach / Big Canyon golf community or you're ready to start looking at homes, US Golf Living can connect you with a local real-estate specialist.
US Golf Living provides independent real-estate research and can connect consumers with real-estate professionals. Golf membership, availability, fees and approval are determined independently by the applicable club.