Beyond the 19th Hole - Building Golf's First True Third Space

Imagine this scenario; 8:30am Wednesday. Your dining room hums with quiet productivity, members with exceptional coffee and laptops, enjoying course views and reliable Wi-Fi. By 11am, early retirees transition to terraces. Lunch brings business meetings, Zoom calls and social gatherings with varied dietary options. Afternoon sees more remote workers, some staying for evening golf.

This isn't fantasy - it's evolution happening at clubs recognising their potential as comprehensive lifestyle infrastructure.

The missed third space opportunity

Coffee shops built businesses around "third space" - somewhere between home and work where people naturally gather. Co-working spaces refined it. Even retail incorporates it.

I think Golf clubs pioneered it. Then forgot about it.

Traditional clubhouses were society's original third spaces where members naturally lingered, conducted business, maintained connections, and integrated life aspects in elegant surroundings.

Modern clubs have infrastructure to reclaim this position.

What comprehensive integration looks like

Clubs succeeding with younger demographics aren't just improving golf, they're reimagining how entire facilities serve modern professional life.

Morning: Exceptional coffee from 7am, varied breakfast options, quiet productivity spaces, reliable digital infrastructure.

Midday: Work suitable lunch menus, flexible dining spaces for different meetings, seamless service supporting conversation flow.

Evening: Social spaces facilitating connection beyond golf, dining justifying the journey, community-building programming.

Weekend: Family options introducing next generation, wellness programming complementing golf, relationship-strengthening events.

This is integration into people’s lives…

F&B as integration backbone

Exceptional F&B connects all these experiences:

Daily Productivity: Premium coffee rivaling specialty shops, healthy breakfast/lunch options, energy-maintaining snacks.

Business Entertainment: Reliable impressive dining strengthening professional relationships, private discussion spaces.

Social Connection: Evening options encouraging lingering, seasonal menus creating return reasons, community-building events.

Wellness Support: Health-goal-aligned options, clear nutritional information, local wellness partnerships.

Golf remains central - F&B becomes the daily touchpoint making membership feel essential.

Honouring tradition whilst evolving

Successful transformations build upon traditions whilst updating execution for contemporary needs.

Preserve: Exceptional service standards, elegant surroundings, exclusive environment, relationship focus. Evolve: Service delivery, menu offerings, space utilisation, operating hours, programming variety. Add: Digital infrastructure, flexible working areas, wellness programming, family integration.

Character remains distinctly club-like; functionality expands to match how successful professionals actually live and work.

The co-working space example

Some clubs are repurposing underutilised dining areas as co-working spaces during off-peak hours. Results: increased daily visits, higher F&B revenue, stronger engagement, organic referral growth.

Key success elements:

• Excellent coffee rivaling commercial alternatives

• Reliable Wi-Fi throughout social areas

• Comfortable seating for extended laptop use

• Varied environments from quiet focus to collaborative spaces

• Seamless service supporting rather than interrupting productivity

Members report that professional workspace with course views has transformed their club relationship from weekend recreation to daily routine integration.

The infrastructure advantage

Unlike startups creating third spaces from scratch, established clubs have inherent advantages:

Space variety for different activities throughout the day, hospitality expertise in premium service delivery, outdoor access providing wellness benefits impossible to replicate urbanly, parking accessibility that alternatives often lack, and established community providing social foundation.

The opportunity isn't building something new - it's optimising what exists.

Looking forward

The future golf club won't just be where you play golf with good food - it will be comprehensive lifestyle infrastructure for successful professionals valuing quality, community, and integration.

Golf remains the cornerstone, but exceptional F&B, thoughtful programming, and intelligent space utilisation create environments where membership feels essential to daily life.

On Wednesday: The financial case for transformation and why £200 monthly isn't expensive - it's undervalued.

Quick one — if you’ve not done this yet, my scorecard helps you spot gaps across guest experience, costs, and day-to-day ops. Takes a few minutes and you’ll get a proper report at the end.