The richest people in the universe are used to getting what they want on account of their gargantuan piles of money. Want to buy access to a president? No problem. A storied football club? It’s yours. A sizable portion of Hawaii? Just write the check. The collective intelligence of humanity? You got it, babe. So in the rare circumstances in which the Über-wealthy can’t just plonk down their money to get whatever they desire, it’s actual news.
That was the case over the weekend when The Wall Street Journal reported that Lauren Sánchez and Jeff Bezos — the third-richest person in the world — have yet to be invited to join the exclusive Indian Creek Country Club in Miami despite owning $234 million worth of property on Indian Creek Island, where the club is located. That’s also despite having been “special guests” at the club’s annual dock party in February, which Bezos reportedly attended “hoping to persuade board members to admit him to the club,” and having “worked the scene, engaging in small talk with members,” i.e., the sort of thing only low-net-worth plebes should have to do.
Unfortunately for Bezos and Sánchez, the very fact of their obscene wealth and fame may be keeping the gates of membership closed to them thus far. As the Journal reported, “As with many private country clubs, admission often comes down to hitting it off with existing members. And while social status and widespread name recognition can help, they are hardly a guarantee, according to some people connected to the club. In fact, too much wealth or notoriety has become a deterrent, as wealthy new applicants arriving in Florida are learning.” In fact, “old guard” members are apparently so turned off by what they see as “billionaire interlopers” that they are said to be “mounting a last stand” and refusing to “offer membership to just anyone who has struck it rich.” To be clear, there is not a single person who belongs to Indian Creek Country Club that is not absurdly wealthy, it’s just that in comparison to people like Bezos, they seem middle class.
