A private buyer has made an offer for $2.4 million but owed creditors, including Wachovia Bank are still awaiting $3.6 Million.

The offer was official Tuesday when Bob Naples, president of the member-owned club announced that Thomas O’Malley, chairman of Switzerland-based refinery Petroplus would make the purchase.

O’Malley is currently the owner of a Worth Avenue condo in Palm Beach and recently bought two Palm City golf courses. The Chapter 11 reorganization could allow O’Malley to make the purchase without being responsible for the debt.

According to court records the of the club in 2006 was $9 million and the Palm Beach County Property Appraiser’s Office lists the value at $5.8 million.

In 2006 before any sign of the recession the country club spent about $3.5 million renovating its Arthur Hills-designed golf course but when the recession hit memberships began to slip and events were canceled.

The Ironhorse housing community has approximately 320 homes valued between $300,000 to $1 million. The club has 200 golf memberships, but needs at least 20 more golf members and 50 “social memberships” to make the club viable said, Naples.

Social memberships were required until a Fourth District Court of Appeal judge backed a 2008 circuit court ruling that said that Ironhorse’s developer couldn’t unilaterally change homeowner documents forcing residents to pay the $2,900 fee in 2009.

A new voluntary social membership fee will go into affect that will cost members $2,200 annually.

The Malibu Country Club conducts business under the name of Malibu Associates and is home to a 10,000 square foot club house and an 18-hole golf course that was built by a group of Japanese monks in 1977.

In the Chapter 11 report it listed assets of $42.9 million and debts of $35.8 million. Bankruptcy chair at Kayne Scholer Marc Cohen is advising Malibu Associates along with counsel Ashleigh Danker. Bankruptcy records show the Los Andgeles based firm has been paid $150,000 for restructure work as well as $50,000 dollars worth fees from Santa Barbara firm Cappello & Noël and $6,344 to Irvine firm Blakely & Blakely for restructure work.

Under a company called RSR Jr. LLC, Fuld owns 5+/-% of Malibu Associates and was at the helm of the 4th largest investment bank when it collapsed leading to the largest filing of bankruptcy in the U.S. history of $613 billion dollars.

Malibu Associates owes $34.6 million to the California National Bank which froze the club’s line of credit in May. U.S. Bancorp acquired California National Bank’s assets after it was seized by federal regulators last week.

It is said Malibu Associates plans to continue negotiating with the bank regarding the loan.