The following article originally appeared in The Pilot on Feb. 2.

It was a nice place to visit, so Tom Graber decided to stay.

The road from Kansas to Pinehurst is long and winding, but, unlike Dorothy, Graber isn’t in a big hurry to go back. The roads he follows these days are cart paths of asphalt instead of yellow brick, and he’s perfectly content to rest his Footjoys.

Tom Graber is the head golf professional at Foxfire Resort and Country Club. He’s been there since 1982 and has survived so many changes in ownership that sometimes he couldn’t remember who was supposed to be signing his check that week. He was just thankful there was a check.

Things have settled down since GolfSouth came onto the scene a couple of years ago, and no one is more grateful for the stability than Graber. He’s 44 now, married to Kim and the father of a son, Kyle, and two daughters, Lauren and Sara. Playing musical owners isn’t something a golf professional with those kinds of responsibilities enjoys.

"I grew up in southwest Kansas," Graber said, "and played college golf at Oral Roberts University. One of my teammates came to work at Pinehurst as an assistant professional and got me an invitation to play in the North and South Amateur. I came down and played in it twice and heard some good things from my friend and the other pros. In the summer of 1978, Lou Miller of Pinehurst called and offered me a job. I’ve been here ever since."

Graber was the first head professional at the Pinehurst No. 6 Course, but left there for Foxfire and a chance to work with golf legend Harvie Ward in 1982.

"I really enjoy this area," Graber said. "I grew up in a small town, and Pinehurst has a small-town atmosphere but big-time golf. It’s the best of both worlds, and it’s a great place to raise a family."

As much as he loved his job and the area, though, Graber’s professional world was filled with insecurity. Foxfire, despite its Gene Hamm-designed 36-holes of golf, was plagued by financial problems. Owners came and went, several of them banks that had taken over by foreclosure.

The only constants were the quality golf courses and the golf professional that wouldn’t go away.

"Right after I got here, the ownership changed," Graber said. "For a while it seemed we had a different owner every year. Nobody really had deep enough pockets to take the resort where it needed to go. The low point came in 1984 when we went through the time-sharing project.

"But throughout it all, one thing was the same. Foxfire was a beautiful place and people enjoyed the atmosphere. The golfers who came still had a good time. You don’t know when you walk into a place what the financial conditions are, and the golf experience is what you remember."

With the coming of GolfSouth, a company that owns several other courses in the Southeast, including Beacon Ridge in West End, Graber’s life changed.

"I always knew there was so much potential here," he said, "and now you can see all these things happening. I have to pinch myself every day when I come to work to make sure I’m not dreaming.

"The GolfSouth people are pros at golf course operation, and working with people with golf knowledge makes my job so much more enjoyable. My wife says I’m just a lot happier when I get home now."

GolfSouth purchased Foxfire with the plan to spend approximately $3 million in upgrading and renovations, including the building of a new clubhouse. So far, the East Course has been totally renovated with new greens, bunkers, cart paths and a state-of-the-art irrigation system. The West Course is currently undergoing the same treatment and will be reopened in early spring. The old clubhouse was burned down, and the new one is scheduled to open in May.

When everything is completed, the total cost will exceed $4 million, according to General Manager Phil Wiggins. As far as Graber is concerned, the waiting and the spending have been worthwhile.

"Even through the difficult periods, the golf operation has always been profitable," Graber said. "People have never not wanted to come here, but now the word is really getting around about all the improvements. People are hearing the compliments and are making it a point to look us up. People who haven’t come out in a while are saying they can’t wait to get back out and play the East Course again.

"I don’t know if I can describe what my feelings are, but I come to work a happier person now and I go home a happier person. GolfSouth made a commitment here, and what they’ve done was based on experience, not guesswork. It has even made a great difference in our maintenance crews. They feel so much better and take pride in what they’re doing.

"As for me, I’m happy they didn’t bring their own guy in here and tell me they’d see me later. I appreciated that, and my family did, too."

According to Wiggins, Graber never had to worry about that happening.

"We knew about Tom Graber and his reputation," Wiggins said. "Getting rid of Tom was never an option.