New Clubhouse for Hilands Golf Club

The one-story farmhouse at 714 Poly Drive in Billings opened as the Hilands Clubhouse in 1923. Over the years, several additions have been made to the clubhouse, the last of which was completed in the 1950s.

The original building was so dated and inefficient that spending $4.4 million to build a new facility will save time and money versus a renovation. High Tech Construction was selected to manage the project and construction began September 2009 with the demolition of the original structure.

The new clubhouse is being built within the original building’s footprint to minimize disruption to the golf course. The orientation of the building will allow the existing line of Ponderosa Pines to the west, most of which are over 100 years old, to be preserved, along with other dense trees for exterior shading.

“We had favorable weather during demolition; however, we did face some weatherrelated challenges during the foundation and framing activities,” says Kevin Hintt, High Tech’s project manager. “Our foreman, Ken Cysewski, along with a group of excellent subcontractors, performed extremely well during some difficult conditions to keep the project on schedule.”

The new 13,400-square-foot energy efficient clubhouse, designed by A&E Architects, will maintain the intimacy, look and feel of the original club and highlight a traditional Montanastyle golf course. The building incorporates native stone from the area on both the building’s exterior as well as around interior fireplaces. Warm colors and woodwork such as dark stained quarter sawn oak has been employed in the design because of its timeless quality.

Contributing to the design was James Kordonowy, principal/interior designer for Homesite Designers. High Tech/A&E brought James in on this project because of his extensive experience and success in designing restaurant interiors. James’ knowledge and input has proven invaluable for the Hilands Clubhouse design.

Hilands Golf Club remains on its original site, chosen by golf legend Walter Hagen, making it the oldest private golf club in Yellowstone County and one of the oldest in the state. Opened in late 1922 with six holes, it soon expanded to the nine holes it offers today. Hilands has 275 members with have full golf memberships and another 80 members who belong as social members.

“We need a space to facilitate family gatherings and keep private party areas separate from member areas,” says Doug Hagen, the club’s general manager. “We host a lot of social events at the clubhouse and a new facility will afford us the opportunity to provide a more welcoming environment to our members and guests.”

The interior space was designed to keep the family area separate from the bar and formal spaces. The location of the bar, club dining, banquet rooms and family dining will offer much improved views of the nearby greens and fairways.

In addition to the clubhouse, the club will feature a new pool and children’s play area. The adult pool remains the same size; however; the deep end will be shortened in order to expand the decking. This will provide more space for members to gather and facilitate better traffic flow around the pool area. The kiddie pool is a “zero entry” pool that will slope down to a one-footdeep level and will include spray and splash features. The close proximity to the second green and clubhouse make the swimming area a hub of summertime activity for families. Construction is progressing on schedule, to be completed this coming June. According to Doug Hagen, “Five contractors bid on this project and all seemed qualified, but it was High Tech’s solid history of getting jobs done on time and within budget that made them stand out from the rest.”

High Tech thanks Hilands for the trust and confidence they have placed in us to build a facility of which we will all be proud.