At Haesley Nine Bridges, upgraded strollers with a range of luxury features.
GOLF
If you think that a Caddy’s work is to keep calm and shut up, you haven’t played golf South Korea.
Like many aspects of the game in this golf-crazy country – club design, course maintenance, cuisine and more – caddy culture transcends everything.
For starters, renting a catcher is not optional. Wherever you play in South Korea, strollers are required. And passive pack mules they are not. Club choice? Bright. They help with this. The same applies to repairing damage and ball marks. But they also act as bartenders, pouring drinks at the request of customers; vocal cheerleaders shouting “Nice shot!” almost every time they see one; goalkeepers; and – get this – chauffeurs. In South Korea, trail walking is almost unheard of. Everyone takes strollers, including the caddies, who pilot four in a five-seater buggy with all their bags strapped to the back.
Almost without exception, these catchers are women, part of an increasingly professional workforce that has grown steadily since the 1990s, when golf began to take off in South Korea. Currently, there are over 500 courses in the country, which is almost twice as many as 20 years ago. And while certain caddy customs vary from club to club, not all loop programs are created equal. Some of them are more exclusive and detail-oriented than others.
To take Haesley Nine Bridges as an example.
Located on the outskirts of Seoul, the Heasley course is one of the most prestigious golf courses in the country and boasts facilities to match. Overlooking the immaculately kept championship course is the 170,000-square-foot modernist clubhouse, a three-story architectural marvel with glass walls, wood columns and traditional stone masonry.
Combined with excellent infrastructure, the caddy program is as refined as possible. The same applies to transport on the route. Haesley’s tenants don’t drive regular golf carts. They drive so-called “limousines” that the club has spent years designing. These first-of-its-kind carts look and feel like mini-luxury vehicles, with streamlined curves and an array of enhanced features, including a sophisticated heating and cooling system (golfers in South Korea experience all four seasons), individually padded seats and a wide, curved front glass for better visibility.
Never mind, good walk, broken. Golf at Haesley is a calmer, improved ride.
To see these specialized carts in action and learn more about South Korean caddy culture, watch this video.
