The Lodge at Old Kinderhook

Construction is underway at Old Kinderhook

A Q&A About The New Lodge

By Brian Weis

Old Kinderhook is delighted about the widespread coverage of The Lodge at Old Kinderhook. With the recent groundbreaking, we have received some great questions. Executive Director, Bob Renken answers below:

In a nutshell, what is The Lodge at Old Kinderhook
It's a lodge style hotel and conference center with new amenities to complement existing recreational offerings. The goal is to expand our season and attract more meeting and event business.

Where exactly, will the The Lodge located?
The Lodge will be positioned next to the Golf Shop/Hook Café and will run along Old Kinderhook Drive (the main road) toward the lake. The guest rooms will overlook the 15th fairway & #18.

How will the positioning of The Lodge affect #15
It will reduce the yardage of 15 by a maximum of 40 yards. We'll be adding a bunker by the green and reshape the fairway to enhance the hole.

What type of guests are you trying to attract with The Lodge?
A wide range of group customers will find The Lodge at Old Kinderhook to be a good fit for their needs. From corporate meetings & business retreats, to small conferences and even family reunions, our lodging, meeting space & recreational options will attract guests for many reasons. In addition, many of our existing customers have influence within their companies - we believe they will find reasons to expand their visits to Old Kinderhook beyond recreation - they will find Old Kinderhook is great for conducting business.

We've heard talk about some unique amenities, can you elaborate?
We envision the green space between the lodge & conference center to include several outdoor firepits where guests can unwind or roast s'mores. Our outdoor pool will feature an expansive pool deck area to enjoy the water and watch golfers pass by. The indoor pool and seasonal ice rink will offer visitors recreational options in cold weather months.

What can you tell us about the ice skating rink?
We expect the ice rink to be open mid-November to March as weather permits. The rink will be open to the public and be available for private parties and functions for fee structure that has yet to be determined. The ice rink will function as a covered pavilion Spring, Summer and Fall and serve as a great venue for outdoor weddings and meeting space.

How did you come up with the name?
Our Executive Team talked about a variety of options, but when it came down to it, "Lodge" was the only word that captured the essence of what we are delivering... and so it became The Lodge at Old Kinderhook.

Revised: 12/05/2013 - Article Viewed 33,921 Times - View Course Profile

About: Brian Weis

Brian Weis is the mastermind behind GolfTrips.com, a vast network of golf travel and directory sites covering everything from the rolling fairways of Wisconsin to the sunbaked desert layouts of Arizona. If there’s a golf destination worth visiting, chances are, Brian has written about it, played it, or at the very least, found a way to justify a "business trip" there.

As a card-carrying member of the Golf Writers Association of America (GWAA), International Network of Golf (ING), Golf Travel Writers of America (GTWA), International Golf Travel Writers Association (IGTWA), and The Society of Hickory Golfers (SoHG), Brian has the credentials to prove that talking about golf is his full-time job. In 2016, his peers even handed him The Shaheen Cup, a prestigious award in golf travel writing—essentially the Masters green jacket for guys who don’t hit the range but still know where the best 19th holes are.

Brian’s love for golf goes way back. As a kid, he competed in junior and high school golf, only to realize that his dreams of a college golf scholarship had about the same odds as a 30-handicap making a hole-in-one. Instead, he took the more practical route—working on the West Bend Country Club grounds crew to fund his University of Wisconsin education. Little did he know that mowing greens and fixing divots would one day lead to a career writing about the best courses on the planet.

In 2004, Brian turned his golf passion into a business, launching GolfWisconsin.com. Three years later, he expanded his vision, and GolfTrips.com was born—a one-stop shop for golf travel junkies looking for their next tee time. Today, his empire spans all 50 states, and 20+ international destinations.

On the course, Brian is a weekend warrior who oscillates between a 5 and 9 handicap, depending on how much he's been traveling (or how generous he’s feeling with his scorecard). His signature move" A high, soft fade that his playing partners affectionately (or not-so-affectionately) call "The Weis Slice." But when he catches one clean, his 300+ yard drives remind everyone that while he may write about golf for a living, he can still send a ball into the next zip code with the best of them.

Whether he’s hunting down the best public courses, digging up hidden gems, or simply outdriving his buddies, Brian Weis is living proof that golf is more than a game—it’s a way of life.