Consider golf clubhouses. Like golf courses, they vary widely in their scale and style, as well as in the services they provide.
Some are barebones operations, composed of little more than four walls and a roof, with rustic aesthetics and scant amenities beyond a locker room and a bar. Others are extravagant facilities, with comforts that rival those of luxury hotels.
Take the clubhouse at Haesley Nine Bridges.
Haesley, host of the Bridges Cup, ranks among the most prestigious clubs in South Korea, a golf-crazed country where the game is often played amid astounding opulence. Outings tend to be all-day affairs, with sit-down meals at the turn, and saunas and steams after the round, followed by abundant dinners. Clubhouses are designed to accommodate those interests. But even by lavish South Korean standards, the clubhouse at Haesley goes above and beyond.
Designed by Shigeru Ban Architects, a pioneering firm known for marrying modernist aesthetics with traditional construction methods, the facility is a 225,000-square foot architectural marvel, eco-conscious and avant garde. It’s three stories, laid out on an hexagonal grid, wrapped in a latticed, wooden shell inspired by a traditional Korean body pillow called a “bamboo wife.” Natural light floods the space, filtering through the grid-shell roof. Inside, there are glass walls and doors and a soaring atrium supported by towering tee-shaped timber columns. The stone foundation was built by old-school masons, masters of a time-worn trade.
Cuisine is central to South Korean golf culture, and the Haesley clubhouse caters to that side of the game, too, with a high-end dining room and a wine cellar worthy of a Michelin star restaurant. Other features add to the sense of welcome, including a VIP lounge, a party room for karaoke and other celebrations. A separate wing is given over to private suites and overnight accommodations, so you can wake up the next day and do it all again. For a closer look at a clubhouse unlike any other, check out the video above or below.
