This has been an eventful summer for everyone—I’ve been caught lounging at clubs across New York and Connecticut, and enjoying the pool and basking in the sun. But I can feel the fall nip in the air, and, with it, new menus, khakis, and sports coats.
It isn’t too late to enjoy a summer reprise. Joseph Swartz reports to us from the Miami Surf Club, which today lives on as a Four Seasons. And, with the move indoors, Clubland USA once again calls for clubs to reclaim their billiards tables. And, while you’re at it, enjoy the pool outside until it’s too cold to even dip your toes in, or the padlocks come on (whichever is later).
Dispatches from Clubland is brought to you today by yours truly.—IJ
Reciprocal Report: Miami Surf Club
This article was written by Joseph Swartz.
Not all stories have happy endings. That would prove to be true for both the Miami Surf Club and the special person who accompanied me during my visit in 2010.
My first visit to the Miami Surf Club was Memorial Day weekend in 2010, roughly two years before it ultimately became the Four Seasons Hotel at the Surf Club. It was only a year since I had joined the Army and Navy Club and I was excited to explore as many reciprocal clubs as possible.
Soon after approaching the Club’s entrance in my rented Kia, as a poor lieutenant and country bumpkin, I became apprehensive. What had I gotten myself into?
“Is there a self-park option,” I asked the valet, bracing myself for my precious little money being drained by valet fees over the course of the weekend.
“Don’t worry,” the valet responded. “Parking is complimentary.” Soon, my rented Kia was conspicuously parked in a sea of luxury vehicles.
After all, my visit to Florida wasn’t purely leisure. It was to explore the possibility of building something with more depth with an old friend and fling, Marvin.
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For the Love of Billiards
Clubland USA calls for clubs to celebrate the universal club sport
There’s a satisfying smack that comes from the perfect strike of a billiards ball —clean, sharp, and sonorous. Few things compare to a game of billiards at your club while nursing drinks, chatting and bonding with your club peers. You might be too lubricated to play an actual sport, but never enough to wield a billiard striker.
Clubland today is in dire need of social cohesion and bonding. After all, the heart of club life lies in the casual camaraderie that exists between kindred club rats, brought together by the shared space and institution they inhabit. But bonding isn’t quite automatic; that casual camaraderie doesn’t arise out of thin air.
It’s for this reason that Clubland USA’s first editorial calls upon clubs to return billiards tables to their clubhouses—with a sense of urgency. We believe this to be the first step to clubs fulfilling their need for greater social cohesion and bonding and eliminating unnecessary stuffiness.
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Dispatches from Clubland
Labouring Away at Arthur Ashe: Clubland USA made it to the US Open last week. Labour Day marked the completion of the round of 16 for both men and women. Quarterfinals are scheduled to be played today and tomorrow. The Open, however, was marred by tennis player Jelena Ostapenko’s tirade against Naomi Osaka following Ostapenko’s exit.
Gold at the Pan-Am: At the recently-concluded Pan-American Squash Championships, the squash player Juan Vargas, along with the Columbian team, came back with a gold medal. We wish Vargas all the very best for his upcoming appearances at the Silicon Valley Open in Redwood City, CA, and the US Open at the Specter Centre in Philadelphia, PA.