By DAVID DROSCHAK All of John McConnell’s previous private club purchases across the Carolinas came as “financial saves,” but Brook Valley Country Club in Greenville added a different twist to that equation. The late Carlton Taylor was an original Brook Valley investor who McConnell knew from working together at Burroughs Corp. Taylor (who died in 2010) bought the club…
By DAVID DROSCHAK Golf course architect David Johnson weaved his way around briar patches and battled through thick woods and wetlands, suddenly emerging into an open field on a tract of land in Rocky Mount the Ford family had asked him to check out for a possible golf course layout. On first impression —…
By Stuart Hall In mid-May, rain started falling midway through the first round of the NCAA East Regional Championship at Lonnie Poole Golf Course on North Carolina State’s Centennial Campus. Enough rain fell that play was eventually suspended. All total, there was 4.8 inches of precipitation, which was more than enough to wash out the…
By DAVID DROSCHAK Tom Pashley has seemingly done it all at Pinehurst, from cooking omelets to raking bunkers to working the overnight shift as part of the audit team during his stint in the mid 1990s as part of the resort’s first-ever Manager in Development Program. So, even though some of the names have changed…
By Stuart Hall Tami Bright was sitting in her Heritage Golf Club office three days after the reopening of the course’s putting greens following a nearly two-month renovation when a member stopped in her doorway. The brief conversation served as a litmus test for whether the renovation was well received. “It’s good to be back…
By David Droschak Few places change on a daily basis like the Outer Banks. Guarded to the east by the mighty Atlantic and to the west by a series of picturesque sounds, hurricanes, winter storms, sand dunes and wind have combined to form a magical landscape. The golf at Nags Head Golf Links and sister…
Carolina Trace County Club in Sanford has been acquired by Texas-based Escalante Golf, a boutique owner and operator of high-end golf clubs across the country. Carolina Trace Country Club, opened in 1972, is the centerpiece of the 1,600-home Carolina Trace Community. The club features two layouts designed by acclaimed golf course architect, Robert Trent Jones Sr.…
BY TIM PEELER Danesha Seth Carley knows not every golf course can undertake an $11 million restoration the way Pinehurst No. 2 did for its unprecedented doubleheader U.S. Opens. The resort paid architects Bill Coore and Ben Crenshaw a lot to take the course back to Donald Ross’ original vision when it opened in 1907…
Named Pinehurst No. 9, course will be available immediately to members, early July to resort guests VILLAGE OF PINEHURST, N.C. (June 2, 2014) – Pinehurst Resort & Country Club today announced it has completed the acquisition of National Golf Club under terms finalized with current club owners, the Robinette family. The Jack Nicklaus Signature Design…
By STUART HALL On a winter night in December 2008, Tim Kreger was conducting a fundraiser to benefit the golf team at his alma mater, Clemson University. At night’s end there was a tee time to play Prestwick Country Club in Myrtle Beach, S.C., still available. Kreger did not want to see a free round…