For the first time in its 17-year history, Raleigh-based McConnell Golf propelled all 10 of its North Carolina courses into the state’s top 100 rankings, including a trio of layouts ranked among the state’s top 20.

Those three — Old North State Club on the shores of Badin Lake, near New London, Greensboro’s Sedgefield Country Club and Raleigh Country Club — all remained in North Carolina’s top 20, while the other seven helped McConnell Golf maintain its status in the state’s top 100.

A perennial state top 10, Old North State Club was ranked No. 9 in North Carolina, while Sedgefield CC — which annually challenges the world’s best golfers during the PGA Tour’s Wyndham Championship — moved into the state top 10 at No. 10. Raleigh CC was ranked No. 20 in the state.

In 2020, along with the addition of Porters Neck Country Club in Wilmington to its portfolio, McConnell Golf unveiled a $5.5 million restoration of Donald Ross’ last design at Raleigh CC, overseen by architect Kyle Franz. Architecture experts predict RCC will jump higher in the state rankings following the modern-day reimagining of the iconic course.

In December, McConnell Golf expanded its footprint across the southeast with the purchase of The Water’s Edge Country Club in Penhook, Va., on Smith Mountain Lake.

McConnell Golf is an owner and operator built upon the concept of “pure golf for the true golfer,” focusing on enhancing both the individual club’s and its company’s overall membership value. The McConnell Golf collection of clubs throughout the Carolinas, Tennessee and now Virginia includes courses designed by legends Pete Dye, Tom Fazio, Arnold Palmer, Greg Norman, Hale Irwin and Ellis Maples.

In the 2021 North Carolina Top 100 rankings, Durham’s Treyburn Country Club was ranked No. 31, followed by the Country Club of Asheville (48), The Cardinal by Pete Dye in Greensboro (52), Porters Neck Country Club (75), Charlotte’s Providence Country Club (79), The Country Club at Wakefield Plantation in Raleigh (81) and Brook Valley Country Club in Greenville (100).

The 2021 state rankings also included two specialty categories. Old North State Club was ranked No. 4 among the state’s “Fairest Courses to Play” (“regardless of overall difficulty, courses that best reward good shots and penalize poor ones in a manner that is reasonable”). Meanwhile, Sedgefield ranked No. 10 in the state for “Most Strategic Courses” (“the degree to which the course requires thoughtful planning and precise execution of shots from tee to green”).

“Our courses continue to merge history, beauty and opportunity for our avid golfing membership and their guests,” said McConnell Golf President & CEO John McConnell. “With the enhancements made at Raleigh Country Club and new projects planned at other McConnell Golf courses, I am proud of what we have accomplished in the past year and eager to see how the rankings play out in the future.”

Raleigh Country Club’s restoration project turned out to be a masterpiece and I cannot tell you how impressed I am with the new layout.

The N.C. Golf Panel presented its 26th annual report on the state’s 100 best courses in the April issue of Business North Carolina magazine.

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Good Sport

Justin Mathers channels passion for golf into lifelong profession

The term “lifer” describes people who have committed themselves to a certain task or career for a long time. Enter Old North State Club Director of Golf Justin Mathers: the epitome of a lifer in the golf industry.

Growing up as an all-sport athlete in Michigan, Mathers enjoyed playing soccer, hockey and tennis, among other sports – but he didn’t pick up a golf club until a friend invited him to play at a local course during his junior year of high school.

“I was terrible, shooting around 100 the first time out,” he laments. “As an athlete I was determined to get better, and quickly. I worked at it all day, every day, all summer long. By the time we went back to school, I was shooting rounds in the 70s and actually broke par once. I was hooked and have not stopped playing and learning the game since.”

As he fell in love with the game, Mathers was convinced by his senior year of high school that he wanted to be in and around the game for the rest of his life.

“Luckily I lived in Michigan, home of the first – and in my opinion, the best – Professional Golf Management School in the country, Ferris State University,” Mathers notes. While in college he played soccer and hockey, and although he did not play golf for the school, he was around it constantly. “I was able to enjoy three wonderful internships all over the country and then take my first head professional job in 2003.”

The internships were at Boyne Highlands, The Heather Golf Course in Michigan; Cuscowilla in Eatonton, Georgia; and Desert Mountain (Outlaw) in Scottsdale, Arizona. He graduated from Ferris State University with a degree in Marketing/Business and Professional Golf Management.

Today, when not in the golf shop at Old North State Club, sending an almost daily golf course update through a whimsical email full of member nicknames and photos, Mathers and his family reside in Waxhaw, North Carolina, a suburb of Charlotte.

Mathers was “acquired” by McConnell Golf when Providence Country Club came on board, as he was PCC’s Head Golf Professional at that time. Transitioning into the role of Director of Golf at Old North State Club in July 2019 allowed him to enjoy a promotion while staying within the McConnell Golf family. However, the new job title and location have not come without sacrifice.

“My wife and daughter do not play golf but they have always supported my decision to be in the golf business, which keeps me away on weekends and holidays,” Mathers says. Regarding his family, his parents live in Michigan but visit a few times each year; he has sisters in New York and Oregon. Originally from Louisiana, Mathers’ bride of 11 years, Angelle, is a nurse with Atrium’s Health Risk Management team out of Concord, North Carolina. 

“Piper, our daughter, is my favorite person in the world! She is the true love of my life,” proclaims Mathers. “Piper lives and breathes soccer, the same way I did when I was her age [12], and she has even convinced me to be the assistant coach for her club team. I also have a three-year-old Double Doodle named Mr. Clark who has been a wonderful addition to our family. We like skiing [water and snow], fishing, cooking and watching sports. Well, Piper and I do at least!”

When it comes to golf, Mathers is a true lifer with lofty aspirations. “My goal is to one day become the PGA Golf Professional of the Year at the national level,” says Mathers. “Obviously, I would love to win the Carolinas PGA Golf Professional of the Year as well!”

While awards and accolades are accomplishments we all strive to achieve in our respective industry, Mathers’ true passion is fostering and growing the next wave of golf professionals while also keeping the golf program at Old North State Club exciting and fresh with new ideas.

“I look forward taking staff under my wing, developing and mentoring them in the hope that they will do the same if they stay in the business,” Mathers says. “I plan on keeping the energy level high here at Old North State Club while continuing to learn from some of the other great directors of golf employed by McConnell Golf. I have always strived to live by the saying, ‘It’s not what you take when you leave this world behind you, it’s what you leave behind you when you go.’”

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Kentucky Derby Pie Cookies

Growing up in Kentucky, the first Saturday in May was always one to remember. Rather than the traditional Derby Pie, this cookie was always around during my childhood. So enjoy a Mint Julep, a Hot Brown, and a Kentucky Derby pie cookie while you cheer on your favorite horse! Riders Up!

Yield:  4 Dozen Cookies

Ingredients:

1 Cup Softened Butter

1/4 Cup Sugar

1/4 Cup Turbinado Sugar

1 ½ Cups Packed Brown Sugar

2 each Eggs

1/2 Cup Kentucky Bourbon

3 ½ Cups Flour

1 ½ TSP Baking Soda

1 TSP Salt plus extra for Finishing

16 oz. Bittersweet Chocolate, rough chopped

1 ½ Cups Walnut Pieces

Directions:

Preheat Oven to 350°F. Line a baking sheet pan with parchment paper.

Cream butter and sugar together. Scrape down bowl. Add bourbon and eggs and mix until combined.

Sift together flour, salt, and baking soda. Add to wet mixture, in stages, scraping down bowl between additions.

Add walnuts & chocolate to incorporate. Let dough cool to allow butter to set back up.

Scoop heaping Tablespoon onto lined sheet pan.

Bake 10 to 12 minutes or until almost set.

Sprinkle with desired amount of salt and let cool.

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Crunchy Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies

Ever thought about your favorite things to eat and then thought, “What if I combined some of these?” Cereal, chocolate chips, marshmallows, milk and butter, see the theme here? Well the folks at Momofuku Milk Bar in NYC made this dream come true for me… Here is our rendition of their famous “Cornflake Chocolate Chip Marshmallow Cookie.”

Ingredients:

8oz. Unsalted Butter, at room temperature                          1 ¼ Cups Granulated Sugar

2/3 Cup Light Brown Sugar                                                    1 Egg

1/2 TSP Vanilla Extract                                                           1 ½ Cups All Purpose Flour

1/2 TSP Baking Powder                                                          1/2 TSP Baking Soda

1 ½ TSP Kosher Salt                                                                3 Cups Cornflake Crunch (below)

2/3 Cup Mini Chocolate Chips                                                1 ¼ Cups Mini Marshmallows

Directions:

Using a paddle on your stand mixer, combine the butter and sugars in the bowl and cream together on medium-high for two to three minutes. Scrape down the sides of the bowl, add the egg and vanilla, and beat for an additional seven to eight minutes.

Reduce the mixer speed to low and add the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Mix until the dough comes together, no longer than one minute (do not walk away from the machine during this step, or you will risk over-mixing the dough). Scrape down the sides of the bowl with a spatula.

Still on low speed, paddle in the Cornflake Crunch and mini chocolate chips just until they’re incorporated, no more than 30 to 45 seconds. Paddle in the mini marshmallows just until incorporated.

Scoop and roll 1 ½ oz. dough balls and place onto a parchment-lined sheet pan. Pat the tops of the cookie dough domes flat. Wrap the sheet pan tightly in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least two hours, or up to one week. Do not bake your cookies from room temperature — they will not hold their shape.

Heat the oven to 350°F.

Arrange the chilled dough a minimum of three inches apart on parchment lined sheet pans. Bake for 14 minutes. The cookies will puff, crackle, and spread. At the 12-minute mark, the cookies should be browned on the edges and just beginning to brown toward the center. If they still seem pale and doughy on the surface, leave them in the oven for an additional minute or so.

Cool the cookies completely on the sheet pans before transferring to a plate or to an airtight container for storage. At room temperature, the cookies will keep fresh for five days; in the freezer, they will keep for one month.

Cornflake Crunch

Yield: About 4 Cups

Ingredients:

6 Ounces of Corn Flakes

1/2 Cup of Milk Powder

3 TBSP Granulated Sugar

1 TSP Kosher Salt

9 TBSP Unsalted Butter, melted

Directions:

Heat the oven to 275°F.

Pour the cornflakes in a medium bowl and crush them with your hands to one-quarter of their original size. Add the milk powder, sugar, and salt and toss to mix. Add the butter and toss to coat. As you toss, the butter will act as glue, binding the dry ingredients to the cereal and creating small clusters.

Spread the clusters on a parchment-or-Silpat-lined sheet pan and bake for 20 minutes, at which point they should look toasted, smell buttery, and crunch gently when cooled slightly and chewed.

Cool the cornflake crunch completely before storing or using in a recipe. Stored in an airtight container at room temperature, the crunch will keep fresh for one week; in the fridge or freezer it will keep for one month.

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Join us in fighting heart disease and stroke in millions of women across the country by showing your support and wearing red on Friday, February 5! McConnell Golf will serve a Heart Healthy Seared Ahi Tuna Salad in honor of American Heart Month and the Eat Seafood American Movement. A portion of proceeds will go to the American Heart Association.

Post your photos wearing red on social and tag McConnell Golf and your home club, in addition to using #EatSeafoodAmerica to show your support.

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Chocolate Dipped Coconut Macaroon Cookies

This has been one of my favorite cookie recipes for as long as I can remember. As a kid my grandmother would make these for us when we would come and visit. While all of the others would devour the chocolate chip cookies, I had these all to myself. If you like coconut and chocolate, this recipe is for you! With the toasted outside, creamy inside and smooth chocolate to tie it all together, it cannot get much better.

Ingredients:

16oz. Sweetened Flaked Coconut

1 Cup Sweetened Condensed Milk

1 TSP Vanilla Extract

Pinch of Salt

6oz. Semisweet Chocolate Chips

2 Large Egg Whites

Directions:

Start by mixing the coconut, sweetened condensed milk, vanilla and salt thoroughly in a mixing bowl.

Next, separate the egg whites from the yolk and beat the egg whites until they form a stiff peak.

Gently fold the egg whites into the coconut mixture.

Using a small scoop, scoop the mixture onto a parchment lined sheet pan spacing each about two inches apart.

Place the macaroons in a 325°F preheated oven for 25 minutes, rotating as needed to prevent burning.

While macaroons are baking in the oven, melt the chocolate in a double boiler or microwave, stirring frequently.

When cookies have cooled completely, dip the bottoms in the melted chocolate and place them on a clean sheet of parchment paper.

Enjoy!

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Cocoa-Molasses Drop Cookies

From 1985-2015, H. Robert Sharbaugh was a member of the Country Club of Asheville and had served time as a member of the board for a number of years. He was very well-known and admired by club members and staff alike. He meant a great deal to me, especially during my earlier years at the club. One memory of him that stands out to me in particular was the year that, this self-proclaimed chocoholic, gifted me a very old, yet pristine Hershey’s cookbook from 1934 that had been revised and reprinted in 1971. I think of him fondly every time I open the binding to see his name on the inside cover. Thank you for your service to our country and the many laughs throughout the years. This one is for you Mr. Sharbaugh!

Yield: Approximately 2-3 Dozen Cookies

Ingredients:

1/3 Cup Unsalted Butter, room temperature
1/3 Cup Granulated Sugar
1/3 Cup Molasses
1 Egg
1 Cup All-Purpose Flour, sifted
1 TSP Baking Powder
3 TBSP Hershey’s Cocoa Powder or whatever you have on hand
1/2 Cup Chopped Nuts

 

Directions:

Cream butter and sugar; add molasses and the egg.

Sift together all dry ingredients and add to wet ingredients.

Fold in the nuts and scoop mixture into 1 inch rounds onto a greased and lined sheet pan.

Bake at 375°F for 8 to 10 minutes.

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