You needn't bother asking unless you're an Internet millionaire. If you are, memberships are still available. The place to play near San Francisco if you're on a budget is Crystal Springs Golf Course, right off Interstate 280 a few miles south of the airport, in Burlingame. It's a public course overlooking a fjord-like landscape, the reservoir where San Franciscans store the water they've pumped in from the Colorado River. Crystal Springs hangs on a hillside, is a pleasantly hilly walk, covered with big pines and full of wildlife.
Deer roam the fairways casually, ignoring the golfers.
In fact, one was sleeping in the shade of the 17th fairway when I played through. Crystal Springs is not a great golf course, but like CordeValle it's in a great setting. The ideal tee shot is to drive it over the deep ravine on the left, if you're man enough. As a matter of fact, I pulled my tee shot too far left and watched it disappear out of bounds. If you could figure out how to get to the bottom of that ravine, and I'm sure someone has, it's got to be a balata bonanza.