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TestimonialsA personal letter sent to the President of Brown Golf Management after leaving his position of General Manager at St. James Plantation to begin Brown Golf Management…..John--This is to thank you and compliment you for the great job you did at St. James. The huge improvements in your time here have made St. James a better place to live. The golf courses are in better shape, the restaurants feature better food and service, and the Clubs' financial condition is far stronger. Most of all, the membership here is happier than I have ever seen it. I know that you constantly faced your unfair share of whining, but trust me, it was much worse before you came. You got off on the right foot by dramatically improving communications. Although I was not sympathetic to all the complaints by members, some of it grew out of frustration from not knowing the facts. When you were able to explain not just what the clubs were doing, but also why, this went far to muffle the complaining. The town hall meetings were a great idea, and most important, you were able to provide financial and other information that gave everyone a better understanding of the Clubs' standing and policies. Your use of comparisons of St. James with similar properties was especially effective in showing how St. James is better in many ways than the benchmarks--and is a better value to boot. Your expertise in every aspect of golf, particularly your deep understanding of the economics of the golf industry, gave you lots of credibility when you spoke or made decisions. Your willingness to listen and consider reasonable ideas was a big help. When you decided against them, most people understood that you did so for sound financial or other reasons. I recall that at your first town hall Mary raised the issue of lifting the longstanding ban on walking the golf courses. We were pleasantly surprised that you seemed open to the idea and you soon announced a pilot program to see if it would work. It turned out fine. Just as you expected, it did not slow play, and it remains a good option for those who choose to walk. It is nothing short of a miracle that you were able to make the Clubs profitable during a deep and prolonged economic slump. The elimination of rangers and starters and reducing the pro shop staffs to save costs worked so smoothly that we hardly miss them. You dramatically changed the membership structure here to encourage everyone to become Signature members. The original concept was to make the Reserve exclusive--an approach that not only was not financially sound, but that also served to split the community by holding "Reservists" up as elite. We will miss you and Mimi and the rest of your family. You were all good neighbors and an asset to the community. I wish you the best of luck in you new venture. You're the one who laid out to us the problems of the golf industry, so you obviously know what you are up against. If anyone can make it work, you're the man. An email sent to the President of Brown Golf Management about the lead instructor of Brown Golf’s Complimentary Lesson Program, Patrick Politan also known as PJ..... I spent some time this morning with PJ and I wanted to send a note to express my thanks for making him available. Although I wasn't really expecting instant gratification from a golf lesson, I was pleasantly surprised. Your instruction program is unique and innovative and may contribute to keeping people interested in the game who might have otherwise been on the verge of giving it up (as I was). PJ is an excellent instructor and truly handles the process as a pure professional. You folks deserve to succeed and I sincerely hope the economic situation allows you to do so. Thanks again for providing this valuable service to the members. - Bill Hobson A personal letter sent to the President of Brown Golf Management from the Lowcountry Presbyterian Church…. Dear John On behalf of the twenty-eight players we had at our recent Church outing. I would like to express our sincere appreciation to you and all your staff for making our Fourth Annual a huge success. From P.J. out to the parking lot we could not have been treated better. In addition the food and the service from Tom and his staff was as good as it gets. I would be remiss if I did not specifically mention to th you the hob that Mark Powell did for us. He was the coordinator for Pinecrest and did a great job taking care of all the details which as you know is where the true success lies. John Thanks Again! It is a pleasure for me personally to be a member at Pinecrest and even more so when I see us shine as we did this week. We are looking forward to next year -Bob Lowry Dear John, It strikes me that you deserve to be complimented for your effort in Killington. The best thing that I can say is that you fulfilled your commitment well at, or above, the level promised. You and your group spent serious time here and seem to have turned over every rock there was to turn over. Your conclusions and recommendations will have a clear and useful impact on our decisions as we move forward. Best of luck on your future endeavors. - Bernie Rome - Selectman, Town of Killington, VT. Letters written from members of Churchill Valley CC to the Head Professional Sean Garvey- Dear Sean, I want to personally thank you for all your time, help and dedication to improving my golf game. Thank you for the great clinics, you made them fun and informative, and I won't forget the drills you taught us-pigeon toed, etc.! May you and your family have a wonderful holiday season and good luck wherever you end up! Churchill Valley CC will benefit if you end up staying with us. Again thank you so much for you kind face and quick smile! Sincerely, Yvonne Lucas-Member of Churchill Valley CC Sean, I just wanted to let you know how much I appreciated the time you took to help me work on my game. I wish you luck wherever they send you next. Any club is fortunate to have someone so easy going and focused on customer service. Sorry that the season is over. It's the downside of Pennsylvania Golf. Warmest Regards, Maria Molyneaux Jarrett-Member of Churchill Valley CC |
