By DAVID DROSCHAK With more than 300 private clubs scattered across the world – and its fair share in the Triangle and the state of North Carolina (and still growing each year) – tackling a story on the far-reaching affect of ClubCorp’s network can be a bit overwhelming. Sure, the firm has golf clubs in…
By BRAD KING When he was contemplating converting the green complexes at historic Pine Needles resort in Southern Pines from bentgrass to an ultra-dwarf strand of bermudagrass, Kelly Miller didn’t have to look far for a good sampling — just across Midland Road, in fact, to the Mid Pines Inn & Golf Club. Miller, the longtime…
By DAVID DROSCHAK The ultimate gated communities – North Carolina’s six military golf courses – offer up quite a bucket list for those who would like to check off the box of unique golfing experiences. Ever start a round with an F-15 fighter jet taking off in clear sight? Now is your chance ……
By DAVID DROSCHAK Golf has certainly gotten ultra complicated over the last decade, let alone the last century. From computerized swing analysis to oversized drivers to balls flying farther to signature architectural designs to extravagant maintenance budgets, the sport has taken its share of twists and turns – and hits from critics. But a humble…
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…