Serenity in the Sandhills
What started off as the beginning of an annual exploration of America’s best golf destinations with your brother, is now a place to gather and find calmness in the Sandhill pines of North Carolina.
2020 for some was a time for lockdowns and putting life on hold, for my brother Andy and I, we used the light loads on airlines and quiet of destination towns like Pinehurst to kick off our journey to home ownership in the village.
Little did we know when we made our first trip to Pinehurst that year what life would bring, ultimately leading us to become property owners in a place we’ve come to love spending time.
Morning dew and first tracks on Pinehurst No. 2. (Photo Credit: Jeff Nolan)
Our first trip to the “Cradle of American Golf” included a stay at the Carolina Hotel at Pinehurst Resort, with round on Pinehurst No. 8., No. 7., No. 3, No. 4 and of course the turtleback greens of Pinehurst No. 2. My back hurts typing that, but man was it some of the most fun & serene golf I’ve been able to play in 4 days, which also included a loop around Tobacco Road.
Unfortunately, our round on No. 2 was dampened by bumpy greens that didn’t come back from aeration as expected and certainly weren’t up to par (no pun intended, there are many bogeys that day) for that of a major championship golf staple. That being said it presented us with an opportunity that leads us to now owning Five on 5 at Pinehurst.
With some determination to communicate honest guest feedback and some simple LinkedIn outreach, we were given a forum to voice our suggestions to Pinehurst’s leader and how the communication with guests could be improved for future once in a lifetime golf trips.
Through our conversation and approach to the conversation, we were offered the opportunity to return to Pinehurst and stay at Dornoch Cottage, Donald Ross’ home (and now live-in museum) on Pinehurst No. 2.
With an offer in-hand, we weren’t going to let a return visit and opportunity to share our experience in Pinehurst dissipate. More to come….
