Keeping it on the fairway

Inside Adolfson & Peterson Construction’s new headquarters for the PGA of America

By Granger Hassmann

In 2018, the PGA of America made a bold announcement: It planned to move from its long-time headquarters in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, to the Dallas suburb of Frisco. While they did not land in the sand traps, they did have a few hazards to overcome as project planning for the PGA’s new home started in early 2020, just before the world locked its doors and everything went virtual because of the pandemic.

Adolfson & Peterson Construction (AP) worked as the project contractor in partnership with Cushman & Wakefield, which served as the construction manager. Design firm Page was the architect. The headquarters project—a new 106,622-square-foot, $33.5 million building—plays a significant role in the larger PGA Frisco 660-acre mixed-use campus that includes two new 18-hole championship courses, a 510-room Omni Resort, a 30-acre practice facility, a performance center and a clubhouse. The project is part of a unique private-public partnership between the PGA of America, Omni Hotels & Resorts, the City of Frisco and the Frisco Independent School District.

Construction Planning in a Pandemic

As the design work and planning started, the pandemic hit. Like the rest of the business world, AP had to adjust from the way it was accustomed to operating. The entire preconstruction process initially transferred from in-person to Teams and Zoom meetings. It learned the protocol of being on camera rather than meeting in person while looking over drawings and plans. Despite these new challenges, the design, management and cost assessment planning went smoothly. It was not as much a challenge as more an adjustment to doing things differently. The AP team used to be in a conference room with 20 people and having drawings taped to the wall. Now, its gathering was limited to five to six people. Doing everything electronically created different communication processes to ensure everyone was heard. But this was something we were all learning and experiencing together. The construction timing tremendously benefitted the PGA, as the supply chain industry had not started its downward spiral yet. Thankfully, we didn’t experience the struggle of escalating prices and materials shortages that came as the pandemic lingered. This was a very high-tech, unique building, and the PGA was already paying a premium for certain project elements. AP was managing and staying under those targeted expenses, and when changes did occur, we were fortunate that Page’s

From left to right: Granger Hassmann, vice president of preconstruction and estimating; Josh Patton, assistant superintendent; Dan Huntington, assistant superintendent; Travis Thompson, senior superintendent; Bob Lemke, vice president of operations; Will Pender, regional president.

design provided options for exchanging materials. Each of the partners involved from Page to the PGA and Cushman & Wakefield was aligned with what we were trying to do to reach the mutual goal.

No Sand Traps Here

That teamwork resulted in an incredible building that maximizes the golf-course views while incorporating beautiful native Texan Lueders limestone cut in large sections of four-foot stones and placed with deep horizontal joints. This stonework contrasts with the double-height glazed curtain wall systems marked with vertical fins. There was no Lego stacking here; there are lots of bends and turns with architecturally exposed structural steel wrapping around the building. The use of unusual roof elements, architectural welding, stones, plaster, metal panels and a tremendous amount of glass added to what is a visually stunning facility. The PGA is seeking LEED Silver certification for the building, which features many green-building practices including the use of regional and local materials. The building’s orientation maximizes natural light while minimizing solar gain. The interior designs feature natural, recycled and low-VOC (volatile organic compounds) materials to enhance the indoor air quality. With three floors of office space, the building features a top-floor conference room and an outdoor terrace lounge space overlooking the driving range and golf course. The ground floor serves staff, PGA members and guests with a video studio and education center. The lobby design highlights a wood wall sculpted to mimic the contours of a golf course. It also includes terrazzo flooring and an open social stair with side seating areas.

For the Win: Delivering on Time & Under Budget

As with all projects of this nature, there’s a fiscal responsibility to meet and often challenges related to the process of putting those dollars together and staying within that GMP (guaranteed maximum price). The PGA strives to be financially responsible but also recognizes how a facility of this caliber requires an investment. One of the biggest project challenges we encountered resulted from the big snowstorm in February 2021. Portions of the building are below grade, which was impacted greatly by the adverse conditions.

Fortunately, at that point, we were about 70 to 80% complete with the structural steel erection. So, while the DFW Metroplex was shut down for almost two weeks, our leadership team was communicating about how we would thaw out. A lot of planning was done to make sure we could get to the job site safely as we also determined how to clear the entries and work decks to get things ready for the crews’ return. Safety was the top priority, and it did not want to burn three or four days simply managing snow. Despite document changes, add-ons and delays due to the historic winter storm, the AP contractually met its deadlines.

AP’s Shot of the Day

At the end of the day, this PGA HQ is really a cool building. It was all done first class. The coaching and training areas, the golf simulators, hitting bays, and chipping and bunker practice areas are impressively located within the building. There also is space for club maintenance and an adjustment center; it’s the best of the best. We knew this would be a landmark project with many eyes watching its development, and it has been an extremely popular project. We have done big projects for multiple Fortune 500 companies, but there is something special about building the PGA of America’s headquarters. PGA Frisco is expected to drive more than $2 billion in economic impact to its stakeholders and the community over the next 20 years. PGA’s mission is to get people involved in golf, and they have put down community roots. The leaders want to teach the lessons learned from golf and develop a lifetime love for the sport. This is their field of dreams, and it is just the beginning. The PGA is reaching out to the community with big ideas and this building is part of that. CCR

Granger Hassmann is VP of preconstruction and estimating for Adolfson & Peterson Construction, leading both the AP Southwest and Gulf States Regions. He has achieved a volume of more than $1.5 billion in work over the course of his career. You can reach Granger at ghassmann@a-p.com.