Do you have a link to that story? I had it but apparently have lost it. I looked today when I saw your first post about that.
I'll have to track down a cite for you, but it was mentioned repeatedly shortly after the grifters moved to Westchester County. Bill was desperately trying to get into one of the ritzy golf clubs in the area, and was shut out. I'll see if I can find it.
Golfing clubs give Clinton cold shoulder
Security issues, waiting lists, past problems hurt his chances at joining
Steve Holland/Associated Press
Former President Clinton's attempts to join a golf club, such as the prestigious Westchester Country Club, have been stifled by clubs' long waiting lists and reluctance to provide preferential treatment.
By John J. Goldman / Los Angeles Times
NEW YORK -- It is a delicate diplomatic mission, with emissaries making back-channel inquiries to avoid embarrassment.
The initiative is not about Mideast peace, repairing relations with China or forging an arms control agreement with Russia's prime minister.
The goal is getting Bill Clinton into a golf club.
The effort began while the former president still occupied the Oval Office, after he and now-Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, D-N.Y., had bought a home in Westchester County -- a mecca of private courses.
Months later, it is clear that Bill Clinton has a handicap.
Some prestigious clubs such as the Winged Foot Golf Club (site of four U.S. Open championships) and the Westchester Country Club signaled no preferential treatment.
Clinton would have to apply like everyone else. The waiting list at Winged Foot is more than a decade.
Ditto the Mt. Kisco Country Club. And at the Whippoorwill Club, closer to the Clintons' home in Chappaqua, N.Y., the reception was equally chilly. No jumping the line.
It's not just Monica. It's also the mulligans and the problem of post-presidential protection.
"On the one hand, it is a compliment to a club that the former president would be interested in joining," said Peter Landau, historian of St. Andrew's Golf Club in Westchester County and co-author of Presidential Lies: The Presidential History of White House Golf.
"There are a lot of nightmares connected with having a president. If they had (security) dogs sniffing in the ball washers, it would not be a particularly pleasant experience."
Added Chris Hodenfield, editor in chief of Golf & Travel Magazine: "People who belong to these clubs don't like to be told the club is closed off because the president is playing here today. Some presidential interloper comes by with his squadron of walkie-talkies. They just don't like it."
Club admissions committees consider many factors when someone -- even a former president -- applies for membership.
The character not only of the applicant, but of his or her immediate family members, often is weighed, as are the depth of family roots in the community. It helps to have a close and enduring relationship with several club members.
Being viewed as congenial -- and as someone who would use the club regularly -- are definite pluses.
Then there is the issue of the former president's golfing habits.
"When Bill went out to play, they tended to be practice rounds," Hodenfield noted. "He took mulligans. Some people got a little stiff in the neck about that. They would say, 'Is he a golf guy?'
"Clinton fatigue figures in as well. When somebody mentions they belong to a club, they want someone to say an important event happened there, like a U.S. Amateur (Championship). ... It gets down to prestige. Will he lend prestige to our club?"
In a November interview with Golf Digest, Clinton sought to mute criticism of his mulligans.
"My mulligans are way overrated," he said.
The president explained that he lets everyone have an extra shot from the first tee. If someone hits a ball terribly during the round, he will allow another mulligan -- and he will give the other players one as well.
But he said one mulligan every nine holes is his limit.
The boards of directors at some clubs are aware that discussion of Clinton's application could cause splits in the membership.
http://www.detnews.com/2001/politics/0106/01/a06-231032.htm