Hillendale Country Club has been sold in a foreclosure auction, months after it closed amid financial struggles.

An anonymous buyer represented by Towson attorney Mayer Guttman on Wednesday purchased the 100-year-old club for $3.05 million in court in Baltimore County, the Baltimore Business Journal reported. The buyer also assumes $400,000 in tax debt. The sale includes the club’s 147 acres, a clubhouse, an 18-hole golf course, tennis courts and swimming pools.

Guttman did not respond to a request for comment.

Court records show the foreclosure was prompted by the club’s difficult financial times. Though the club had been profitable in recent years, generating about $500,000 in net revenue in 2022, it wasn’t enough to emerge from a $1.2 million hole. The club had trouble repaying several loans from former club member Kevin McDonagh, including a $2.2 million infusion in 2018 and another $200,000 in May. McDonagh said in court records that he intended to buy the country club, but eventually did not go forward.

The closure comes as some country clubs fold due to declining memberships, slim profit margins and high operating costs. Many clubs have treaded water since the pandemic due to declining revenue. Clubs have also struggled to court younger generations.

In Eastern Baltimore County, Sparrows Point Country Club sold part of its golf course for a luxury housing development to avoid bankruptcy in 2017, the Baltimore Business Journal reported.

Current zoning, however, restricts a developer from building more than three homes on Hillendale Country Club’s spacious property. A developer can only bypass this by securing approval from the county planning commission.

For now, it’s unclear what the buyer’s plan for the country club is.

“They probably will keep it the way it is,” said Paul Cooper, vice president of Alex Cooper Auctioneers, which handled the sale of the property. Drastic changes would trigger a lengthy approval process.

The country clubs that have survived the pandemic have shown resilience. Waitlists for the clubs have climbed past pre-pandemic levels, said Ken Butler, a partner with Club Benchmarking, a company that analyzes club data. In 2019, about 25% of clubs had waitlists, he said. That number now stands at around 50%. The clubs that are doing well, he said, have largely focused on improving amenities to attract new members and boost revenue.

“Up-to-date fitness centers, smart, casual dining and good non-golf sports ... those kind of investments are going to be critical for any club that’s trying to emerge from a financial hardship,“ Butler said.

Correction: This story has been updated to correct the name of the company Club Benchmarking.