During the month of October, McConnell Golf invites you to get involved and participate in fundraisers held throughout our properties. Members at each of our clubs can also give back with $1 from every Meyer Filet and McConnell Golf Salmon BLT sandwich order going toward our Susan G. Komen fundraiser. On Sunday, October 17, every McConnell Golf cart fee booked will also go towards our fundraising efforts. Click here to donate and to follow our progress throughout the month of October! Read on below to see how several of our properties are also contributing to Susan G. Komen.

The Country Club at Wakefield Plantation – Yoga for a Cause & Rosé Drink Specials

On October 5, the staff at The Country Club at Wakefield Plantation hosted an outdoor yoga class. Participants paid $15 to attend the class as proceeds benefited Susan G. Komen. They also wore pink and enjoyed a complimentary glass of rosé. Additionally, during the month of October, the main clubhouse and Breaker Bar & Grille will donate a portion of funds from their rosé sales to Susan G. Komen.

Country Club of Asheville – Family Fun Run, Yoga on the Lawn, Pink Cocktails, Pickleball Social & Tennis Clinic

On October 11, Country Club of Asheville is hosting their first Family Fun Run. Participants will meet at the driving range for drinks and snacks before taking off for the walk/run. They will have the option to walk or run along the back nine of the course, which is 2.3 miles, and the run will end at the range where a wall of foam awaits participants. There is a $10 minimum donation to participate.

Members also have the option to participate in a special evening yoga class on the lawn or a pickleball social on October 13. All proceeds will go toward our Susan G. Komen fundraiser. Afterwards, members will meet by the firepit for "pink" cocktails and watch the sunset over the mountains. There is a $20 minimum donation to participate in the yoga class and a $25 minimum to participate in the pickleball social. Finally, on October 14, the tennis staff will host a morning clinic followed by tennis play and a luncheon at the clubhouse. The cost to participate is a $20 minimum donation per person. 

Brook Valley Country Club – Drink & Entrée Specials, Tough Day Scramble, Closest to the Pin Contest & 50/50 Raffle

Every day during the month of October, Brook Valley Country Club has drink specials and two dinner entrée offerings will $1 going toward our Susan G. Komen fundraiser. On October 3, Brook Valley also hosted a Two Person Tough Day Scramble and Closest to the Pin Contest. The entry fee for the Tough Day Scramble was $50 with $25 going toward the event. Entry for the Closest to the Pin Contest was a wager of the participant's choice as they competed against the club staff on the 18th tee. 

Raleigh Country Club – Sunset Yoga & Cocktails

On October 20, Raleigh Country Club will host a sunset yoga session on the pool deck. The cost is $20 per person and all proceeds will benefit Susan G. Komen.

Read More

Founded in 2007, Folds of Honor's mission is to provide educational scholarships to the spouses and children of America’s fallen and disabled service members. Their motto says it best: Honor their Sacrifice. Educate their Legacy.

To display McConnell Golf’s commitment to these families who have sacrificed so much for our freedoms, members of the golf professional staff at each of our properties will play a golf marathon from sun-up until sun-down beginning on Tuesday, June 1, and on select dates in June and July. Each golf professional has committed to playing at least 100 holes!

To learn more about what your club is doing to get involved and raise money for Folds of Honor, click on your club's link from the list below.

Brook Valley Country Club (June 1)

The Cardinal by Pete Dye (June 1)

Country Club of Asheville (June 1)

Grande Dunes Members Club (June 21)

Holston Hills Country Club (June 1)

Musgrove Mill Golf Club (June 15)

Old North State Club (June 1)

Porters Neck Country Club (June 1)

Providence Country Club (June 1)

Raleigh Country Club (June 1)

Raleigh Golf Association (June 14)

The Reserve Golf Club (June 1)

Sedgefield Country Club (June 1)

Treyburn Country Club (June 7)

The Water's Edge Golf Club (June 1)

The Country Club at Wakefield Plantation (July 5)

Read More

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.

Read More

Footprints on the Green, McConnell Golf’s community engagement program, encourages members and club staff to join forces to give back to the community. The program often encompasses food drives and community service days, but recently participants have contributed by playing golf. A lot of golf.    

Golf Marathon Supports Folds of Honor

On May 27, Holston Hills Assistant Professional Joey Batuello played a golf marathon to support Folds of Honor. Staff also participated at CC of Asheville and Old North State Club, and together the sister properties raised over $40,000.

After a “breakfast of champions” complete with “some pre-emptive Advil”, Batuello headed to the club on his day off.  He played a total of 180 holes covering a whopping 62,717 yards in 13 hours and 15 minutes. Batuello finished 13-under-par for the day with 33 birdies, two eagles and just one double bogey. Amazingly, he played the first 145 holes using the same ball.

Batuello was inspired to join the cause by the CC of Asheville golf staff, who invited others to join them in the golf marathon. “I have some family that served and two of my best friends are currently serving in the Navy,” Batuello explained. “It’s an absolutely perfect reason to do it.”

The Folds of Honor mission is to provide educational scholarships to the spouses and children of America’s fallen and disabled service members.

Batuello set out to raise $5,000 in donations, the equivalent of one scholarship. The Holston Hills membership responded immediately, meeting the goal in less than 48 hours. When all was said and done, Batuello had raised nearly $19,000.

“It’s just awesome to see how they rally around our troops, our soldiers, and our country,” he said of the Holston Hills membership.

Batuello admitted that midway through his fifth 18-hole round of the day, the aches and back pain began to creep in enough to take some more Advil. But his motivation behind the marathon encouraged him to keep going.

“You gotta think about soldiers who are going all day long,” he said. “They can’t stop. It’s not like they have a way [to rest] if they’re going through the desert or they’re going through anything. Why should I stop because I’m in a little pain?”

PGA Shootout Event Expands the Effort

Just a few days following Batuello’s exploits, Holston Hills stepped up again, when a foursome of PGA Tour players who hail from the Knoxville area — three-time tour winner Scott Stallings, Wes Roach, Peter Malnati and Eric Axley, who is a member at Holston Hills — participated in the Holston Hills Country Club PGA Shootout presented by Pete Michaels Traffic.

All told, the event raised $6,000 for local charities. “It's nice to be able to give back, playing junior golf in Knoxville here,” said Roach.

Read More

McConnell Golf encourages members of all ages to give back

McConnell Golf is a driving force in all its local communities, hosting a variety of charity events and donating to many more. Footprints on the Green is a company-wide effort that encourages membership and staff to give back in fun, creative and, of course, meaningful ways. Many of these service programs are designed to be kid-friendly – because it’s never too soon to nurture a giving spirit.

“McConnell Golf is a family that wants to give and serve others. We help our children learn those values through service programs throughout the year,” says Kym Reed, Director of Fitness and Activities at Providence Country Club. “It is an honor to help our Providence Playhouse Kids understand what they have, and how much they can give to others, at every age.”

Activities that instill the spirit of philanthropy in young children help set the stage for their future. “They learn the importance of being able to help others who are less fortunate,” says Natalie Clemens, Corporate Director of Member Activities and Wellness. “They learn that whether we are helping our planet, people or animals, it’s a good feeling knowing that you can make a positive impact.”

Recent kid-centric charitable efforts at McConnell Golf have included: 

• Polar Bear Plunge events at Wakefield Plantation and Porters Neck made a splash with January jump-in-the-pool fundraisers to protect polar bears via World Wildlife Fund. WWF’s mission is to conserve nature and reduce threats to the diversity of life on Earth.
• Red Nose Day was filled with fitness-focused events at Wakefield Plantation and Providence. Red Nose’s mission is to end child poverty by funding programs that keep children safe, healthy and educated
• Military Appreciation Events at McConnell clubs support active, retired and fallen military personnel and their families. Retired Army Lt. Colonel Tim Hoch and Navy Commander Scott Desmond spoke with children at Providence Country Club, who then assembled care packages for soldiers in Afghanistan and patients at their local VA hospital. The kids were excited to receive a “thank you” picture from the soldiers.
• Summer Camp Projects at Sedgefield and Old North State gave kids plenty of opportunities to give back. They made cookies and thank-you cards for local firefighters; created blankets for Project Linus, a nonprofit that provides homemade blankets to children in need; built birdfeeders for use around the golf course; and expressed appreciation for staff by writing thank you notes and serving ice cream.

Read More

McConnell Golf is proud to support the athletes and the organization.

This past year, the warm smiles and genuine hearts of Special Olympics athletes brought McConnell Golf properties together.

Director of Tennis Operations Kyle Thortsen and The Country Club at Wakefield Plantation hosted the Wake County Special Olympics team at the tennis complex. Together, club staff and junior players led practices, games, and lessons to help Special Olympics athletes prepare for state competitions.

“We encouraged our juniors to get involved and see how rewarding it is to give back to the community,” says Thortsen. “Next year, our goal is to extend our commitment with this organization to our Sedgefield, Providence, and Asheville properties.”

Also at Wakefield, Director of Golf Adam McLaughlin hosted an invitational tournament at the nine-hole Plantation Course. It allowed athletes that did not get a chance to compete in the state championship an opportunity to play in a local tournament.

“We are humbled by their courage, contagious spirit, and eagerness to get better as individuals and teams alongside their family and their loved ones,” says Michael Thomas, club manager at Wakefield.

Over the past six years, members and staff from Treyburn CC, Wakefield, and Raleigh CC have volunteered for the Track and Field Spring Games in Raleigh. They’ve taken on roles to announce winners, organize races, and cheer on athletes throughout the games.

Nearby, Brook Valley CC welcomed all Special Olympic athletes from Greenville County to enjoy an end-of-year pool party celebration. East Carolina University Assistant Athletics Director Matt Maloney was in attendance and shared a little about the celebration with Brian Bailey of WNCT News.

“I started 21 years ago coaching these wonderful friends ... a few years later, we wanted to celebrate all the good things they do not only in the pool but also in the community,” said Maloney.

On a personal level, I have been involved with the Special Olympics in every stage of my life and am so proud of our clubs for continuing to engage with our community. I believe lending our facilities, our resources, and our time deepens our relationships with those we support and teaches us all of the power of giving.

Read More

Wakefield Plantation’s We Care Golf Classic supports military families.

Now in its sixth year, the we care golf classic brings together members of the military not only for a day of golf, but also to raise money for North Carolina military charities. The 2017 event distributed $80,000 to USO of NC, the Soldiers & Airmen Assistance Fund, and the Wakefield Senior Men’s Golf Association (SMGA) Scholarship Fund, which provides college funds for kids from military families. Since the first tournament in 2013, the event has raised more than $350,000.

We Care began as a grassroots effort by Wakefield’s SMGA, a group of some 90 men who are very involved with local military outreach. When one of the SMGA member’s grandsons was deployed, the group sent care packages to his unit. They began sending packages to another unit, too; during this time, they decided to launch a new golf tournament with a focus on military outreach, and thus, We Care was born.

For the 2018 We Care tournament, the focus of the golf outing is the men and women in the NC National Guard. Each foursome will include civilians and a member of the military.

“For our military guests, this is a great day of golf, food, and fellowship,” says Michael Thomas, Wakefield’s club manager. “The joy they get out of this day is incredible. But it’s nothing compared to the sacrifices they make for us.”

In addition to spearheading the We Care event, SMGA members stay busy year-round. They volunteer as a group at a Raleigh soup kitchen. Each Thanksgiving, they donate turkeys and cook them for the community. And they work with the Special Olympics every year as well.

“They do an extraordinary amount of good stuff both on and off the course,” says Thomas. “It’s the most amazing thing. They’re an unbelievable group of gentlemen with hearts and priorities to help others. They play golf three days a week, and in their spare time, they’re volunteering. They could easily write a check, but instead they donate their own time, energy, and efforts to make things happen. Of all the things that have taken place during my 15 years at Wakefield, the creation of SMGA and all they do for our community is what I’m most proud of. It’s very rare to have such a large number of members who share the same vision and passion to give back without ever being asked. They just jump right in.”

Read More