Hollywood Golf Club Sued for Discrimination

Sept. 27, 2006 — -- Lakeside Golf Club, where a membership starts at $80,000 and photos of Frank Sinatra playing caddy for Bing Crosby and Bob Hope grace the lounge walls, is the epitome of Hollywood's most exclusive and privileged luxuries.

It's a club for everyone who's anyone in Los Angeles. So how is it decided who gets to join, how often they can play, and what membership privileges they're granted?

Jennifer Merkel admits she's a poor golfer, but she took up the sport anyway in the hope that it would bring her closer to her husband, a life-long player with a membership at Lakeside.

But Merkel was told she couldn't golf with her husband on Saturdays or Wednesdays, because of club policy. Furthermore, she was informed that on Sundays, unless her husband was available to play with her, she couldn't tee off until after 11 a.m.

Merkel insists that the club has been less than accommodating, not because she's lacking in golf skills but because she's a woman.

"We should have the same privileges that a male member has," Merkel said, adding, "It doesn't matter whether you're a good golfer or not, I should have the same rights they do."

Her husband, Reggie Lee, agrees.

"It's distressing to me that in this day and age, that a club like Lakeside exists where it discriminates against women and treats them like second-class citizens," said Lee.

Which is why Merkel and Lee have filed a civil rights lawsuit against Lakeside Golf Club, alleging that it discriminates against women by denying them membership, barring their entry to certain lounges and restricting their tee times.

Lakeside, one of Hollywood's most recognized and respected golf courses, is renowned for its impressive and ultra-exclusive membership roster. That same directory now faces intense scrutiny in light of Merkel and Lee's accusations that the club refuses to grant regular membership to women.

Merkel claims that as a woman, she is limited to "special" membership status, which prohibits her from serving on the club's board, holding equity or playing whenever the course is open. Those privileges are reserved for the club's regular or life members, all of whom are men, said Merkel's attorney, Leo J. Terrell.