Scene on the green: Drunken antics reported at Piedmont Driving Club
The Piedmont Driving Club, known for elegant events such as this past Atlanta Ballet Ball, apparently experienced some recent unpleasantness.
NOTE: Commenting on this blog has been turned off; at 244 comments it had become a bit unwieldy. Click here for a new PDC blog with open commenting; please try to be civil.
The Piedmont Driving Club, usually the scene of air-kissing luncheons and elegant charity galas, is dealing with allegations of unsavory drunken antics more in keeping with the comedy “Caddyshack.”
A letter from a club member sent to the club’s president and general manager and first obtained and posted by the Deadspin web site, complains in detail about uncharacteristically rowdy behavior at a recent golfing event.
“One member decided to play the 14th hole completely naked,” the letter said. “I have not researched it, but I suspect this is a crime in Georgia.”
It goes downhill from there, with members reportedly taking al fresco bathroom breaks on the greens, one member exhibiting his “ability to pick up a golf ball with his naked butt cheeks” and a member passing out in the men’s grill. The Animal House antics reportedly disturbed a rehearsal dinner that was taking place in the club’s main dining room at the time.
“When someone from the rehearsal dinner came into the men’s grill to ask that the drunken members quiet down, the response from one of the drunken golfers was (physically impossible expletive),” the letter said.
In a statement, the Piedmont Driving Club acknowledged that something happened but didn’t address the allegations in detail.
“We have taken disciplinary action based on what we currently know to be true,” the statement read. “We take this matter very seriously and are looking into it further. When all of the facts are gathered and verified, we will consider further action.”
The letter does not name the miscreants, although a tipster sent us the identities of three very prominent Atlantans who supposedly took place in the shenanigans. We’re told they have been suspended and fined.
Since we first posted the story we’ve heard from a number of people identifying themselves as members. They were about evenly split on whether this was all fatuous nonsense or a matter that deserved more scrutiny. None of them wanted to be identified.
“I’d like it to go away,” one anonymous member told us. “It tarnishes our name.”
On the other hand the letter writer, a prominent local attorney, requested that the rowdy antics “be well publicized throughout the Club. Among other things, let the wives and children of these drunkards be confronted with, and ashamed by, the grotesque conduct of their husbands and fathers.”
- Jennifer Brett/The Buzz/jbrett@ajc.com
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244 comments Add your comment
Club Member
May 31st, 2012
10:26 pm
So….I know it all……..these people you mentioned…..are you saying those people were the culprits?
rockwell
May 31st, 2012
10:26 pm
$70K? Ha….try double that.
I know it all all
May 31st, 2012
10:28 pm
I’m a member and I’m emberrased
Club Member
May 31st, 2012
10:31 pm
Sam is one of the ringleaders for this behavior?
Club Member too
May 31st, 2012
10:38 pm
I am a member too. I have never posted to one of these before and am only starting now to say that I know it all’s facts are incorrect. His information is not accurate. Please don’t post names unless you are 100% sure.
Club Member
May 31st, 2012
10:40 pm
I don’t belive him. Thanks Club Member too.
White people go cray-zee
May 31st, 2012
10:41 pm
@Know it all all
Try being embarrassed for your spelling and your slander – you suck
Club Member too
May 31st, 2012
10:46 pm
You’re welcome. I am embarrassed too and hope this will end soon. I find the behavior reprehensible, if it happened, but I fail to understand the desire on sites like this for people to find out names, punishments, etc.. Let the club handle it, as they have already and are continuing to do.
UF girl
May 31st, 2012
10:47 pm
Isn’t Elton John a member there?
Atlanta Mom
May 31st, 2012
10:47 pm
If you want to read the letter, here it is:
http://deadspin.com/5914356/member-of-prestigious-golf-club-scolds-others-for-urinating-on-the-greens-picking-up-a-golf-ball-with-naked-butt-cheeks-and-much-more
UF girl
May 31st, 2012
10:51 pm
Oh my! After reading that I wonder if Elton is a member.
under par
June 1st, 2012
6:22 am
The large boot is coming or the officers will be out. The behavior is egregious and warrants termination of membership. Rumor says 2 of the wives are the member and not the husbands.
Ronzul
June 1st, 2012
6:57 am
Finest club in Atlanta. A few members acting like fools doesn’t tarnish the reputation of this elite private club. Funny the peanut gallery who could never afford to join or be invited for that matter are piling on while they can. This too shall pass and you’ll still be a member of Canongate when the sun comes up in the morning. Get a life people.
dcb
June 1st, 2012
7:13 am
Hey AJC – give this a break. If this had (as it does) happen at an Elk’s Club, American Legion, or other private membership group event that isn’t known for having the so-called financial elite as members, it would never be mentioned. And for those commenting above, it you don’t like the antics, either don’t join or if the Club doesn’t take disciplinary action and you are a member, resign. I applaud the letter writer for officially reporting the activity to the Club management.
Truth about It
June 1st, 2012
7:33 am
thanks for the link to the actual letter – that is some crazy stuff
jimbob
June 1st, 2012
7:44 am
I was at the PDC pool a few years ago and threw my Baby Ruth in there. Holy cow you should have seen the mayhem!
Mike in Marietta
June 1st, 2012
7:48 am
Nice… I was in Pensacola Beach for the gay gathering over Memorial Day weekend and didn’t see antics like that!
John Walter Wayland
June 1st, 2012
7:49 am
Sounds like a Doc Banks Weekend too me….
TechRon
June 1st, 2012
7:53 am
I belong to a different club and assure you that such behavior would ordinarily result in a fine and suspension at the minimum. Possibly expulsion. I recall a case where a drunken member chased a waitress with a $100 bill asking for sexual favors. He was a very long time member, so they did not expell him but suspended him for a year. Meanwhile he had to continue to pay dues. I thought that was appropriate.
Someone said above that misbehavior is often by guests. I have not seen that. Members who bring guests are directly responsible for guests behavior anyway. Everyone knows that.
Tom
June 1st, 2012
8:04 am
Another Comment, I am a member of Cherokee and nothing of the sort happens there. PDC is a bunch of entitled twits, a very ordinary golf course out near the airport with planes flying very low above it and a club that has long been on the decline. You cannot keep inter-marrying and depleting the gene pool. Soon the next generation will be playing the banjo on the porch out there.
It is probably in the top 10 clubs in town now, but lots better and genuine people at the other 9.
Sam Watson
June 1st, 2012
8:16 am
The letter writer is the one who should be fined; no letter, no publicity, no AJC story. The letter has damaged the PDC far more than the behavior. It would have been just another gossip story with limited coverage.
Also, Ronzul & Tom – What is a “fine” or”top” club? Does it really matter if you are even in a club? Does it make you a twit if you think one club is better than another? Who cares?
Herschworld
June 1st, 2012
8:21 am
Now I know why Tigers eat their young
Humperdink Dillytwaddle
June 1st, 2012
8:28 am
I’m a club member in good standing and I must say the the scatophilia at our fine club is simply out of control. It’s mostly the new money that engages in this unseemly behavior.
tom
June 1st, 2012
8:30 am
Guess the elite are not so and other members want to keep it under wraps. Post their pictures on the front page of the AJC.
John
June 1st, 2012
8:36 am
Blame the bartender! Sweep everything else under the rug, and move on!
Constance
June 1st, 2012
8:40 am
No one at Piedmont is going to resign over the lack of disciplinary action taken by the Board. No one wants to talk about it and the wagons are being drawn in a circle. People at other clubs are mainly doing the talking because some of the perpetrators belong to these other clubs and they can’t imagine it happening there. Throw in the 19 yr old female caddy who’s hired a lawyer and the story has staying power.
yelling they were subjected to
Brogen's Hero
June 1st, 2012
8:45 am
I’m amazed at the level of interest in the PDC Member-Member by non country club members. There will be more tournaments this year and someone else get drunk and do something stupid and no one will care. I could not agree more with Ronzul.
Horrific news hints at rise in demonic activity | News To Me with George Mathis
June 1st, 2012
8:45 am
[...] Since then, other disturbing events have occurred, including a Maryland student eating his roommate’s heart and brain, a New Jersey man throwing his intestines at police and, here in Atlanta, a potential uptick in rich folks getting drunk and golfing naked. [...]
snowstorm
June 1st, 2012
8:46 am
I know some people, who know some people who sell these idiots more coke than you could find on ponce on a friday night.
Not So Casual Observer
June 1st, 2012
8:47 am
Sam @ 8:16,
A “fine” or “top club” would be a club with the facillities to attract those who wish to experience an outstanding, well-manicured golf course, tennis, athletics, excuisite dining and social activities with like-minded people.
Unfortunately, just as on the political blogs, there will always be those who make nasty comments about the entire group as a result of the actions of a few. The letter seems to indicate all of this was within one group of members, or member’s spouses, and the club has taken disciplinary steps within the By Laws against the miscreants. Why does anyone other than PDC care?
Is the newspaper report, and the subsequent comments, just another attempt by Liberal media to promote class envy and divide the haves and have-nots?
markie mark
June 1st, 2012
8:48 am
I grew up on St Simons, and was one of the bartenders at Murphys Tavern from 1977 – 1980, when it was the only establishment on the island with entertainment. I saw almost everybody who lived on St Simons or Sea Island in those years. This, at that time, was the playground for the social elite of Atlanta, and the impression I was left with is this:
The “founding father” of the first generation, who made the family wealth, was usually a gentlemen with grace and impeccable manners. He had worked hard for his wealth and didnt flaunt it.
The son, or second generation, was a little bit more condescending and made sure that you were aware of who he and is family was and their importance in the scheme of things.
The grandchildren tended to be spoiled, out of control, arrogant jerks. Respectful of very little, and totally concerned with their own pleasure, rarely caring of that came at the expense of others….
From what I have read on this blog, after 30 years that impression appears to still hold true…
Tom
June 1st, 2012
8:49 am
Sam, it is that attitude of “shoot the messenger” that has gotten PDC exposed for what it is. It is a well written and witty letter that sought change. The writer was betrayed by a member who made it public, he did not. That pretty much sums up the treachterous social culture at that club and why they are so disliked. Telling a wedding party in the next room at a rehearsal dinner to go “F*#*# themselves says it all.
Atlantan
June 1st, 2012
8:55 am
@MarkieMark you just described Paris Hilton (3rd generation wealth)…. your observations seem accurate based on my experience.
Carl the Groundskeeper
June 1st, 2012
8:55 am
It’s a private club. Let them handle their business internally. Alot of class envy and hate in these comments directed at those who have money.
Not So Casual Observer
June 1st, 2012
8:55 am
Sam @ 8:16,
P.S. there are not ten top clubs in Atlanta, perhaps five if you include East Lake which is more a corporate club.
John
June 1st, 2012
9:00 am
MarkieMark is spot on, that is the cycle of life. Self-made people do not act like the PDC members. And Carl, this is not class envy, because they do not have class. This is more about how member have treated others in town over the years and it is payback. PDC has certain tax exemptions on their property that keeps their property taxes low. That is why we taxpayers should care.
Boner
June 1st, 2012
9:04 am
@ Not So Casual Observer
I was wondering when someone would unnecessarily inject politics into this story. And what is “excuisite dining”?
Goldie
June 1st, 2012
9:06 am
It’s funny because Atlanta is poor. Your cute “playground for the elite” as trashy as they come.
ReeseinDade
June 1st, 2012
9:06 am
Sounds like writing material for yet another dulled out reality TV series. Drunks in Atlanta.
Baltisraul
June 1st, 2012
9:07 am
Alicia……..why would you need photos to prove them guilty? You don’t need photos in a courtroom to prove someone guilty. Eye witness accounts of this behavior is enough to apply santions on these folks. You must be a defense attry?
Biff Wellington
June 1st, 2012
9:09 am
OIts obvious that people need to go back to their shantys!
Al Czervik jr.
June 1st, 2012
9:19 am
Hey everybody, we’re all gonna get laid!
susan moore
June 1st, 2012
9:21 am
Don’t blame the AJC for reporting news that is making the PDC the laughing stock on every trading desk across the country. Your bozo members have earned the disgrace and publicity you now enjoy.
ATL Live
June 1st, 2012
9:24 am
Goldie – Metro Atlanta has the 7th highest median income of any metro area in the nation. When combined with cost of living of only 95 makes Atlanta a city with quite a bit of expendable income.
Thinker
June 1st, 2012
9:26 am
To those who want to indite the letter writer you should consider this. He wrote the letter to the board. He did not distribute it. And more important he was not one of the degenerates. Your thought process is the same as blaming a rape on the woman since she was provocatively dressed.
To those who feel this is unimportant and shouldn’t have been reported on. You do not understand the ‘news’ business. And this was news. I imagine you’d prefer the AJC clear all stories with you first. Sadly we’d have not even heard the earth was round if you had been an editor.
I feel bad for the women members whose husbands perpetrated this act. I equally feel sorry for the many great members of PDC who have to confront the actions of a sordid few. I feel horrified for those who were attending a ‘dress rehearsal’. There is no way to return the joy they anticipated and the horror they received.
Finally, excusing these men since they were intoxicated doesn’t hold in the world of 2012. Yes 100 years ago it may have though there wouldn’t have been any women at the club and the caddies would have been slaves. Times have changed and when it comes to humanity and the concern for kindness and consideration for all the change has been for the better. Unfortunately some remain behind reminiscing on their Neanderthal heritage.
nelson
June 1st, 2012
9:34 am
It always fascinates me what those of Power, Privilige and Justice will do. Dominick Dunne would have a field day with a crime being committed by one of the members of this exclusive club. Dominick understood, greed, avarice and wealth among the upper classes. Thomas Wolfe wrote a book “A Man in Full” which had a lot centered on the Piedmont Driving Club. Got to give them credit[the members] they are just as “nuts” as the lower classes, they just think that it is private and they find that there is no privacy when it comes to abreant behavior. All it takes is money.
Lacey Underall
June 1st, 2012
9:37 am
This story made me LOL!!!! Sounds like they totally had a blast, I wanna go to the next shindig!!!
Lacey
George
June 1st, 2012
9:38 am
Tom you are incorrect that a member betrayed the trust of the letter writer. Fact is he sent the email to several of his friends. Can’t blame them for forwarding as the letter was quite comical to say the least. If he had wanted to indeed keep the letter confidential one person and one person only should have received the letter. That being the president. As for all you people trying to make this into a class issue give it a damn rest. There is bad behavior everywhere. What really bothers me is the inept ability of the board to mske the right decision and expell these guys. After all if you don’t get expelled for such behavior than what the hell do you have to do to get expelled. Not only that but their families are allowed to use the club during the suspensions so in my mind it is not even a true suspension. Having up tell a young child they couldn’t go to pool this summer bc daddy acted like an idiot would at least put done shame and guilt into him.
Jack Wagon
June 1st, 2012
9:42 am
As a purveyor of drunken stupidity myself, I feel for the victims and the offenders.
Lawyer
June 1st, 2012
9:50 am
I wonder if anyone from the legal field has contacted the female caddie?