With all the investment and effort that goes into developing and maintaining club properties, it only makes sense to try to maximize the use of your grounds not only for golf and other forms of recreation, but for banquets, weddings, meetings, and special member events as well. Outdoor events offer unique opportunities to show off the natural beauty of a club and create especially effective and memorable social atmospheres that just can’t be duplicated within the confines of a clubhouse. And sometimes, holding an event outdoors can be surprisingly easy, compared to indoor alternatives.
Consider, for example, the beautiful simplicity of the “crawfish street party” held at Kingwood Country Club in Kingwood, Tex. Using a grassy area of the property and part of a blocked-off street, the club’s staff “serves” guests by literally pouring the meal onto tables covered with butcher’s paper. Guests casually nibble their way through the event as a Zydeco band provides entertainment. There’s no need for tableware, and the club uses disposable decorations. So cleanup is as simple as wrapping up the table messes in the butcher’s paper, and tossing it. Clambakes are another themed event that can be held in this fashion, with dinner “served” directly on the table and without any need for dishes or silverware.
Carnivals are another great event, especially for the more family-friendly clubs or those trying to make strides into that demographic, that just can’t be done right anywhere but outdoors. At the Ocean Edge Resort and Club on Cape Cod (Brewster, Mass.), this idea has been turned into an annual Summer Fest that is held on the expansive lawn in front of the property’s mansion. The club rents popcorn and cotton-candy machines to create an even more authentic, old-fashioned carnival atmosphere. And while rides may be out of the question for an event like this, because of insurance or budgetary concerns, plenty of fun can still be had through traditional “carny” games.
The Ocean Edge Summer Fest highlights an important internal benefit of these special outdoor events as well. They can give club staff a welcome break from the norm, as they can also be outside having fun for a day, taking on face-painting or dunking-booth duties. This different type of interaction with members can have great long-term benefits, too, in terms of breaking down inhibitions and creating new levels of comfort.
Other types of outdoor events that can be pulled off with the same degree of simplicity, and the same kind of memorable impact, include luaus with whole pigs roasting on an open spit. And while we’re not exactly sure of the connection, at a luau held by Connemara Golf Course and Clubhouse in Nicholasville, Ky., a Neil Diamond impersonator provided entertainment.
Setup for outdoor events can also have special promotional benefits, too, as members and guests take note of what’s being put up and start to ask what’s going on. When the Kingwood CC throws an Oktoberfest in a wooded area on its property, the strings of lights that are put up ahead of time help bring a lot of advance attention to the event, which is done full out, complete with costume and strudel-eating contests.
And “full out” is really the only way to go when you’re having outdoor events, club event coordinators say. No matter what the theme, they advise, have fun with it. The parties that are most likely to flop are the ones that don’t make a convincing go of an idea.
Rainy-Day Wishes
The irony of outdoor events, however, is that without proper planning and attention to detail, they can prove to be especially restrictive. Just by deciding to move outside, a whole host of additional concerns are added to the standard list that accompanies any event. Atop the list of new concerns is the need to tie things down so they don’t blow away, and the possibility of noise violations—especially if you’re situated in or near a residential community.
Then, of course, there’s the number-one “must have” for an outdoor event: a contingency plan for bad weather. While this seems like an obvious and simple enough consideration, those who have been there say it’s amazing how easy it is in the heat of the planning process, to overlook some very important details related to Mother Nature’s willingness to cooperate.
The most critical step, says Rick Lang, Ocean Edge’s Assistant Director of Food & Beverage/Banquet Director, is to make sure to thoroughly discuss the options with the event sponsor well before party-spoiling weather is imminent. When it comes down to an actual stay-or-move decision, Lang says, the resort’s staff usually makes the call, but if there are gray areas, he’ll defer to the sponsors.
“Say there’s a 70% chance of rain,” he explains. “That makes it more complicated, and we have to get the weather radar involved.”
It doesn’t hurt, Lang adds, to relate previous experiences to the sponsor as they mull over their options. For example, you can tell them about groups that decided to take their chances with questionable weather, only to have it start raining halfway through the event. When it takes thirty minutes to move everything indoors and set up in a new space, as guests stand to the side and wait, does that ruin the party? Not necessarily—but it does increase the chances that the event will be remembered for the wrong reasons, versus making the decision to move inside before the guests arrived and settled in.
Extensive lists are also a must-have for successful planning of outdoor events—even more so than for those held indoors, planners say. They should cover everything that’s needed in the way of tableware, serving utensils, furniture, decorations, and any other items that might be a special—or even standard—requirement for a particular event. The more detailed the list, the better, club coordinators stress. And don’t forget to include an “extra everything” for the guests that didn’t RSVP, or to handle the spotted fork or chipped glass with grace.
“When in doubt, bring too much,” advises Ocean Edge’s Lang, who did outdoor catering for celebrities before beginning his club career. “For an event held in our mansion, it can take 60 seconds to run back to the kitchen for a pair of tongs. But outside on our property, which stretches two miles across in some places, we’re looking at five or six minutes for the same task.”
Show Them the Ropes
Once the details, logistics and contingencies have been covered, what are the other necessities for a successful party? Just as you would indoors, you must still take care to utilize space effectively. While the tendency is to let an outdoor event sprawl out, because this is a rare opportunity to not have to pack guests in like sardines, it’s still a good idea to informally define the party area—not only to promote better socializing, but also to help keep guests from wandering off into unsafe or off-limit areas of the property, and to help your staff handle setup and cleanup more efficiently.
This doesn’t mean you need to set up fences to corral the crowds. But tables should still be set up in fairly close proximity, and decorations should be used to both show where the event is centered, and where the outer limits lie. Tents can also help establish focal points and boundaries, as will pre-existing landscaping or patio walls.
For events held at night, lights can also be used to help define the party area—just be careful the surrounding areas aren’t dangerously dark. And if the party area is some distance from the parking lot, clubhouse or any other area that guests might be moving to and from throughout the evening, make sure it is also well-lit. Lining a path with v
otive candles is a nice way to handle this while simultaneously adding to, not detracting from, the ambiance. Paper bags containing votives also have a nice glow. Just make sure there’s enough light to see where the path is and keep guests on solid footing.
Resist the urge to fight nature. A few citronella candles or tiki torches are fine to keep mosquitoes at bay, but beyond a few special cases, it’s best to be one with nature. Make the most of the views. If you’re hosting a wedding, use the golf course as a backdrop. But even for less formal events, make sure there’s eye candy beyond the table centerpieces. Keep bushes and trees—especially those near patios and other gathering areas—well-trimmed, so no vistas are blocked.
Really Getting Away From It All
Located on a beach? Maybe your resort sprawls on and on. Even for typical club properties, outdoor parties shouldn’t be limited to the patio that connects to the French doors of the dining room you added during the last renovation.
Beach setups are great because they add an instant casual air, as people kick off their shoes. It’s easy to build a bonfire for light and warmth, and the natural beauty means that decorations can almost be nonexistent. All that’s needed are some matching chairs and a solid system to collect trash. This setting is great for family-friendly events, as it’s more than difficult to have any sort of formal event while standing in sand. Just make sure that kids stay out of the water.
Sprawling resorts, such as Ocean’s Edge, have the unique opportunity to host multiple events simultaneously. That’s a difficult logistical situation that takes a master to run, and a staff large enough to take on a small country’s army. If you have those resources, great, but if not, you can still utilize large areas with a single event. Think of it like a pub crawl, without the pub. As you might do inside, try hosting cocktails in one area and then migrating the party to a separate area for dinner and perhaps dancing.
This way you can set up a buffet without interrupting the party and distracting from the scene. When it’s time to eat, the buffet’s waiting and fresh out of the kitchen. If you’re using mobile bar carts, it’s easy to transport them to the new area. By opening the party in an area without tables, guests are more likely to mingle, and the party will get off to a more lively start.
Lawns are good places for parties that are too large for your veranda or patio. You probably don’t want to use any part of the playable course—unless you can think of something creative to do with the cart paths—but keep the driving range in mind as prime real estate for a large gathering. Remember, too, that tents can be set up more easily on grass than on concrete or asphalt, where holes for the poles often need to be drilled, and then patched.
Make sure, though, that attendees are made aware of when an event will be held on a soft surface. The last thing you want are women whose heels are sinking into the ground and guests getting annoyed that their shoes are being damaged. Consider setting up temporary flooring for the entire area—not just a dance floor.
Cathy Bellnap, Private Events Director at Kingwood Country Club in Kingwood, Texas, says that despite weddings being held on the golf course, the brides still wear heels without problems, because the drainage is so good. She makes a good point, but keep the women and their heels in mind when watering before an event. C&RB
Summit It Up
• Outdoor events offer unique opportunities to show off the natural beauty of a club and create especially effective and memorable social atmospheres.
• The special casual nature of some outdoor theme parties can sometimes make them easier to set up and clean up than indoor affairs.
• Contingency planning and attention to detail are especially critical to the success of outdoor events.
Moving the Indoors Outdoors
When being indoors simply won’t work, but no one wants to deal with the weather that waits outside, consider renting a climate-controlled tent. Most tents these days are available with sides that roll down for protection. If the weather isn’t too extreme, this might be enough to keep a crowd warm on a cool fall day. Walls are also a simple way to keep wind or light rain at bay. It’s probably best, however, to get walls with built-in “windows” so guests don’t start to feel claustrophobic. That’s the opposite of what anyone should feel when outdoors.
Sure, a walled-in tent with air conditioning units attached might not be the prettiest site when approached from the parking lot, but the inside is another matter. It gives you a space to hold a large crowd in comfort when your indoor banquet room is too small, or maybe under renovation. No one said you had to completely shut down and lose all your banquet revenue while undergoing renovations. Just make sure your kitchen can work around the obstacles. —JLS
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