But that hasn’t discouraged the new owners of the Country Club of Whispering Pines (CCWP) from forging ahead.
CCWP, which was floundering under debt and uncertainty as a member-owned club less than two years ago, is flourishing under the guidance of its new, private owners, CCWP, LLC.
The club hadn’t seen an ownership change since 1985, when the members purchased it.
Since ownership changed hands June 30, 2004, the club has seen renovations and upgrades to both golf courses and the clubhouse.
Chip Harris, general manager with Avestra Golf, the company that’s managing CCWP, said the changes are geared toward making the club better in every way possible.
“We’ve made close to a half-million dollars worth of capital improvements,” Harris said. “A lot of those aren’t visible, like upgrading the computer system or renovating the villas. We’re generally upgrading the entire property to bring it back to the state in which we felt it should be.”
The most obvious outward change to the 36 holes that make up the club’s two golf courses has been some work on the towering pines that give the village its name.
“It was easily identifiable that we had some problems with turf quality based on shade, lack of air circulation, etcetera,” Harris said. “We took it a step further and brought in a forester to evaluate our trees. Our primary concerns were shade-related issues and encroachment of the root systems on cart paths and the greens, where they could pull nutrients out of the soil.”
Thinning the stands of trees also eliminated some diseased trees and improved the overall health of the flora on both courses.
“The village had a few complaints about the trees, but overall, the response from the membership and the community has been very favorable,” Harris said. “The work was so long overdue.”
Membership Growing
The club’s membership has grown rapidly since last summer. The growth has continued despite the sometimes negative attention brought on the village because of events that have pitted Village Council members against a group of disgruntled village residents.
“Since closing, we’ve added 136 members,” Harris said. “Our total membership is about 398, which is lower than it’s been at its peak, but it’s considerably higher than it was when we closed. We’re moving in the right direction.”
Harris called the controversies surrounding the village’s municipal facilities “unfortunate.”
“I don’t think it does anything to help promote the community itself, but I have not noticed any negative reflections that have come back on the club,” Harris said. “We have seen continued growth in membership numbers and continued growth in the community.”
CCWP Events Coordinator June Vetter said an influx of younger families into Whispering Pines is helping the club’s membership.
“It’s going to take time and there’s a small group of people in the community — not the club — who might be unhappy about things here, but the majority of the people just love living here,” Vetter said.
Harris said attracting younger members is important to the growth of the club.
“The growth of the club, the game of golf and the community is going to come from younger families,” Harris said. “We’re trying to design membership packages that will provide the values that different groups need.”
Focus groups have been implemented to help the club attract new members.
“We want to know what peoples’ needs are,” Harris said. “Our membership here has been extremely supportive of youth programs and getting young people involved in golf and other club activities.”
‘One Big Family’
Woody Davis, managing partner of CCWP, said the club wants to continue to be an integral part of the Whispering Pines community.
“Whispering Pines is like a family,” Davis said. “There’s been some disturbances here, but all families go through that. There’s an ongoing evolution here and we’re part of that evolution. We are going to be a part of this community. As owners, we are going to support this management to do whatever it takes to be successful.”
Harris concurred.
“When somebody moves into the Sandhills and they’re considering membership into a club, our goal is that Whispering Pines be one of their first considerations,” he said. “That’s the reputation that we want.”
There are three levels of membership available at CCWP: A golf membership, a sports membership and a social membership. The different levels help make CCWP a more inclusive club.
“The golf membership gives members full use of the golf, tennis, pool and fitness facilities,” Harris said. “It also includes all of the social functions here at the club, which are continuing to grow.”
The sports category includes everything but golf privileges, though it still allows for golf at a reduced rate.
“That plan has been of great interest to a lot of younger families,” Harris said. “We have a number of military families that have joined.”
Harris said a recently deployed soldier who is a member of the club said membership has provided his family with a support group.
“The club was a support group for his family while he was overseas and that’s how we like to think of the club, as one big family,” Harris said.
The social category allows for participation in social activities and events associated with the club.
“We have a couple of bridge groups and bingo once a month,” Harris said. “It’s been extremely well received.”
Vetter oversees the social events at the club. Each month features one major social event, and a member association has been created.
“We work closely with that association to make sure that we’re meeting all their needs as far as social and tournament activities are concerned,” Harris said.
A new fitness center, located on the ground floor of the clubhouse facility, is one of the newest capital improvements made to the club.
Avestra also runs Foxfire Country Club, which means members of both clubs can interact and play at both venues. Harris said the interaction between the two clubs has been very positive.
“We’ve seen a pretty good crossover in both golf and social events,” Harris said. “The membership association has created a home and home match, where they’ll have a group come from Foxfire to play and vice versa. It’s a perfect opportunity for friendly competition.”
U.S. Open
When the sale of the club took place last year, marketing was addressed. Harris said Vetter is serving as a liaison between the club and the community.
“We’re promoting Whispering Pines and getting the word out,” Harris said, adding that the clubhouse is available for public use. “We’re available for social functions like weddings and business meetings. We have a wonderful facility that can seat 300 people.”
Harris said allowing public use of club facilities is a sign of the times.
“In this day and age, it’s extremely important, especially in an area like Moore County where you have 40 other golf clubs,” Harris said. “Surviving on membership alone is very, very difficult. Whether you’re one of the more exclusive clubs or not, you still have to rely on outside functions to supplement your income.”
The 2005 U.S. Open is at Pinehurst, but Whispering Pines is adjacent to the Moore County Airport, something that hasn’t escaped CCWP management’s attention.
“The U.S. Open will definitely increase our exposure,” Harris said. “The United States Golf Association (USGA) and all the rules officials are going to be staying with us here at the club. We’re fortunate and pleased about that.”
When Whispering Pines was founded by A.B. Hardee, the two courses were known as East and West. Over time, East became The Pines and West became The River. Now the club has rekindled the use of the original names.
Those wanting more information about CCWP can contact Mona Smith at (910) 949-3000.
