The Butler Cabin at Augusta (Ga.) National Golf Club becomes a focal point each spring, when the Masters champion is awarded the famous green jacket by the
previous year’s champion in front of a portrait of the club’s founder, Bobby Jones.
Just a chip shot away from the Butler Cabin is the Eisenhower Cabin, situated between the club’s putting green and par-3 course and just to the left of the golf course’s 10th tee. It was built with help from the U.S. Secret Service in 1953 for President Dwight D. Eisenhower, who reportedly made 29 visits to Augusta National and played its course 210 times during his eight years in office.
When out of the spotlight, both Augusta National cabins are used by club members to host and entertain guests. In this way, they serve as a “tradition like many others” in the club world.
From legendary country clubs furnished with historically significant artifacts to golf clubs with lavish guest cottages, overnight accommodations reflect those clubs’ personalities while providing a relaxing respite for members and guests. And as the following examples show, managers are continu-
ally striving to enhance how their clubs offer lodging to ensure these special amenities add value to the membership experience and create further distinction for their properties while making positive contributions to the bottom line.
SUITE SUCCESS
Overnight bookings are booming for the lodging accommodations provided at Baltusrol Golf Club in Springfield, N.J. “After our clubhouse fire in 2019, we had the opportunity to upgrade the 16 suites we had in the building, and members love them,” said General Manager/COO Kevin Vitale.
“In addition to providing the finest quality pillows and mattresses to assure occupants a good night’s sleep, the plumbing system [in the clubhouse] was upgraded to provide plenty of hot water at a very high pressure. We have now become known for our showers,” Vitale noted.
In addition to the suites in Baltusrol’s main clubhouse, there are an additional 16 in the carriage house on the property; nine of these were recently converted from employee dorm rooms. Two houses were purchased near the club to use for staff because the demand for overnight rooms
from the membership was overwhelming. As more members sell their local homes and embrace a snowbird lifestyle, they rent suites for two to three weeks at a time during golf season, Vitale explained.
For all overnight guests at Baltusrol, welcome baskets consisting of fresh ground coffee, deluxe chocolates and gourmet nuts and snacks are provided upon arrival. There is no room service—members are encouraged to use club dining rooms and socialize.
Member preferences are constantly being added to the club’s point-of-sale (POS) system to inform and remind staff of special considerations such as what types of pillows the
guest likes, beverages to be stocked and even their favorite room from among those being made available. To further enhance the club’s lodging amenity, a newly created position that oversees the hotel and front desk provides personalized, concierge-type services for overnight guests to match what the members at Baltusrol have come to expect whenever they use the club.
RIVERSIDE RETREATS
Chartered in Portland, Ore., in 1896, Waverley Country Club was the second private golf club established west of the Mississippi River. A bespoke retreat on the Willamette River describes the casual yet refined nature of the club, and its four overnight rooms reflect that description. Each room has wonderful views overlooking the river or the property’s North Garden.
Waverley’s overnight rooms are “used on a regular basis by our membership,” said COO/General Manager Christian Thon. The suites are used in a variety of traditional ways by members, guests of members, bridal parties and for memberguest tournaments.
They are also booked very quickly—such as whenever the club announces a wine dinner that includes an overnight stay, Thon said. The lucky four guests who secure reservations for these popular events can simply walk up the stairs at the end of a fabulous evening, and are served a fresh breakfast in the suites the following morning.
Waverley also offers the Egan Cottage, named after member and golf course architect H. Chandler Egan. Located riverside in the middle of the golf course between the 10th and 11th holes, the three-bedroom, two-bath cottage includes a kitchen, dining and living areas, fireplace and laundry room. Members often rent the cottage for months at a time while remodeling their homes, Thon said.
FARM LIVING
The Mansion, a restoration of the original Georgian structure on the estate property that is now occupied by the Hamilton Farm Golf Club in Gladstone, N.J., offers 10 suites to accommodate members and their guests for short-term stays.
Additionally, The Lodge, a four-bedroom house on property with individually keyed rooms, can be rented for a few weeks at a time.
From May through September, occupancy of both venues at Hamilton Farm exceeds 90%,
according to General Manager Michael Ferguson. Rooms in The Mansion are very popular for special events and particularly weddings, he noted. Hamilton Farm’s culinary team prepares special menus for guests at The Lodge when it is used for cocktail parties and dinners.
“Guests enjoy the convenience of having accommodations just upstairs from the event,” Ferguson said. Being able to provide a way for hosts and guests to avoid driving home after events, he added, “certainly helps to drive catering revenues.”
GAME ON
University of Virginia football and graduation weekends come with a lottery to use one of the 40 guest suites on the historic property of the 1,650-member Farmington Country Club in Charlottesville, Va.
Twenty of the rooms are in Farmington’s clubhouse, and an additional 20 are in one of the club’s wings which are directly accessible from outside.
Each membership at Farmington includes a complimentary room night, which encourages attendance at special events throughout the year.
To keep the club’s accommodations current with the latest amenities and furnishings, three or four suites are budgeted for renovation every year, reported Club Manager Brandon Johnson. Currently, two suites are being combined into a 700-square-foot space to provide a premier experience with a coffee bar, sitting room and fireplace in addition to the bedroom.
Further enhancement of Farmington’s accommodations will come with a new gallery to be installed in one of the clubhouse’s guestroom hallways. “We have a beloved member, Jack Rinehart, who grew up at the club and was the former architect,” Johnson explained. “He donated 26 pieces of artwork to the club that are watercolors of different areas of the Farmington property and that date back to his childhood memories. It is really impressive work, and each piece has a little story to it that will be displayed next to the art [in the gallery].”Overall, Johnson said, “Our guest rooms and the surrounding spaces have been a big focus, and we continue to invest in them, as they have become so important to our membership.” The demand for accommodations at Farmington, in fact, has never been so high—and to help meet anticipated future needs, the club has added three four-bedroom cottages to its master plan.