An energetic staff finds no shortage of inventive ways to invigorate the wide range of activities offered at this “old” Arizona club.
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Old Tucson, located west of Arizona’s second-largest city, replicates how the town looked as a wild-west outpost in the 1860s. After it was created in 1939 by Columbia Pictures for the filming of “Arizona” with William Holden and Jean Arthur, and then used as the setting for many other classic Westerns, Old Tucson became known as “Hollywood in the Desert” for how it took moviemakers away from using studio backdrops and into a new era of on-location epics.
When Old Tucson was in its heyday, stars such as John Wayne and Dean Martin made their way during breaks in the shooting to a nearby place where they could play golf and relax that represented an updated version of Tucson and how it was growing at the time.
Tucson Country Club (TCC) was founded in 1947 by the developers of Tucson Country Club Estates, on property that sat on a remote edge of a town with barely 50,000 people. Its scenic Midwestern-style, Billy Bell-designed golf course attracted not only Hollywood stars but top players drawn by the challenging desert terrain that was lined with tall trees, bordered by mountains, and filled with all the great, clean air the region was becoming known for.
Today, Old Tucson functions largely as a theme park while selling itself out for everything from car dealer commercials to rap videos. TCC, meanwhile, now stands as one of the most established institutions of a city that has grown nearly 20 times larger from when the club was founded—and in the process, spread well beyond the “remote edge of town” where TCC still stands.
The TCC staff, led by GM/COO Donald E. Beaver, Jr. (front row, second from right), has preserved established club traditions while seeking to create new ones.
While Old Tucson is no longer what it once was, TCC—now a symbol of the new “old Tucson”—shows no signs of suffering the same fate. The club expresses pride in its heritage and long-time community standing, at the same time it keeps looking for ways to move forward and stay in step with changing social trends. That, in fact, is how Tucson Country Club now describes itself—as a place “where history and tradition meet the future.” (The slogan has taken on special meaning with the club’s first second-generation President; current President Henry Boice was preceded in that position by his father, Fred.)
Defying the Stereotypes
Perhaps not surprisingly in the state of Goldwater and McCain, vestiges of the more traditional aspects of country club operations can still be seen and found in how Tucson CC functions today, even though the club has changed significantly from how it looked and operated 65 years ago. For example, an on-site barber shop is still available to members, as a valued amenity that’s been moved twice and now resides in the lower level of TCC’s third clubhouse, which was built in 1987.
TCC also retains a long-standing tradition of having a men’s-only grill, even if that might lead to challenges to its right to offer one as a private, member-owned club (a complaint alleging an incident of gender discrimination in that grill was made in 2009; it remains with the state attorney general’s office, awaiting further action or dismissal).
Certainly, like any well-established club operating in today’s transitional membership environment, Tucson CC does now continually face the need to maintain the proper balance between what makes club life appealing and satisfying to its older and longest-standing members, and what can attract, and keep, the younger members and families who represent coming chapters in the club’s history.
There are many special ways to light up weddings held at Tucson CC, from the decorated trees in the mesquite grove to the spectacular fireworks coordinated by Building Superintendent—and certified pyrotechnician—Troy Finley.
But in TCC’s case, there’s plenty of available evidence to show that many exciting new traditions have continued to emerge at the club, even as its older ones have been preserved—and also to show why any inclination to characterize the club as “sleepy” or “old line” would be way off base.
TCC’s General Manager/COO, Donald E. (Don) Beaver, Jr., CCM, CCE, does admit he was preparing to draw on his 30-plus years of experience in dealing with generationally based member conflicts (skills honed at well-heeled properties such as Riviera and Metarie country clubs, before he arrived at TCC in 2005), when he was approached in 2009 by an older member on the opening day for Tucson CC’s renovated pool facility (see photos, “Pools with Purpose,” C&RB, November 2010).
“Do you hear all that noise?” the member asked Beaver, pointing to the pool complex.
“Yes,” Beaver said, as he began to formulate a diplomatic response for why all the squeals of delight should not only be tolerated, but seen as good for the overall health of the club. But before Beaver could say anything else, the older member had his own reply to his question: “It’s awesome!”
There was also nothing “old line” about the desire of another TCC member in his 60s—James Sakrison, who served as club President during the period the $1.1 million in pool area improvements were made—to be the first one down the club’s new water slide. And certainly, there’s nothing “sleepy” about the killer fireworks displays that are now routinely part of weddings held at Tucson CC, thanks to the club’s Building Superintendent, Troy Finley, who became a certified pyrotechnician so he could provide that special service (and also blast off eight-inch shells as part of a $10,000 4th of July spectacular that draws 1,000 members and guests).
Throughout every TCC department, evidence abounds of similar efforts to continually freshen offers and take anything but a conservative approach to providing exciting and innovative activities and services for members:
Director of Golf Michael Haywood, PGA
Golf—As a club that regularly holds U.S. Open qualifying events and counts pros from both the men’s and ladies tours among its membership, along with some of the country’s top amateur players, Tucson CC has a solid golfing profile that would seem to require little effort to sustain. But the club’s Director of Golf, Michael Haywood, PGA, is hardly one to sit back on any assumed laurels.
Haywood, however, is glad to stand back, while wearing a helmet and jumpsuit with a velcro target on its front, to let kids blast away at him with special clubs and balls used in the Starting New at Golf (SNAG®) program. TCC began holding SNAG Junior Camps for kids five to eight last December, after Haywood, who serves on the PGA Board of Directors, and other pros on the TCC golf staff became certified instructors in the program.
“It’s been a tremendous hit,” Haywood reports. “I’ve seen it used effectively in Europe and Asia, but not too much in the U.S. It’s a great way to help bring the youngest kids into the game and get them excited, while still giving them some useful instruction. The clubs alone make it easy for them to get started—put your left thumb on yellow, your right thumb on red, and all of a sudden, you’ve got a grip.”
Director of Golf Michael Haywood, PGA, knows how to dress for the part—even if it’s as the human target for the “SNAG” version of the game played by kids starting out in Tucson CC’s player development program.
The SNAG camps are just one component of a comprehensive player development approach that Tucson CC offers, through programs covering all ages, skill levels and special needs like fitness-based instruction.
Haywood also makes extra efforts to promote how Tucson CC’s players are putting their instruction to good use, using his self-developed desktop publishing skills to fill bulletin boards and walls in the club’s locker room and pro shop with posters showing photos and scores from club outings and events.
The club’s golfers are also benefiting from improved course conditions, thanks to increased efficiencies and better quality control made possible by a new $1 million, 6,500-sq. ft. golf course maintenance facility that opened last year. Tucson CC’s Grounds Department, headed by Golf Course Superintendent Tim Vondra, had been working out of an old adobe building that was on the property before the club was founded.
Director of Tennis Benny Morentin
Tennis—Director of Tennis Benny Morentin has 11 courts—eight of them lit—at his disposal, as part of what he feels is “the best facility in the city.” So why does he sometimes put six players on a court at the same time? It’s all part of The Workout, a popular tournament-style program introduced by Morentin after coming to TCC two years ago. Six players participate in The Workout to play three separate games in 2 1/2 hours, starting with “The Monster,” a spirited three-on-three competition. Rotating doubles play, and a fast-paced scoring game that awards points for various shots, round out the workout from The Workout.
Aquatics—As reported in the feature article on successful pool redesigns in C&RB’s November 2010 issue, TCC’s new pool facility proved to be a home run when it opened in May 2009, generating 400% increases in both guest and snack bar revenue, and helping to double the size of the club’s swim team. Under the continued direction of Aquatics Director R. J. Lundstrom, there’s been no slowing of the momentum—Beaver reports that, to his pleasant surprise, the second season of the new pool has proved to be bigger than the first.
The new pool complex has also helped to generate new membership interest, reports Membership Director Terry Olsen. “That’s always where I begin the tours now,” she says. “And almost every time, you’ll hear the parents say, ‘This would be a great place to have the kids’ birthday parties.’ ”
(Tucson Country Club has 425 regular equity members who have full privileges and hold certificates of ownership. The value of the certificates floats in a market-driven range, with a ceiling of $30,000 and a base of $8,000. Members can’t resign from the club until their certificates are sold. The club also offers six other categories of non-equity membership, including an Activity membership geared to those interested in tennis, pool and dining/social activities. The initiation fees for all of the non-equity categories can be applied to the cost of buying a certificate, should a member in one of those categories want to become a regular member.)
Food & Beverage—As every chef finds when coming to a new club, there were some well-established F&B traditions at Tucson CC that Executive Chef Kenneth Foy needed to fit into his plans upon arriving in 2006. Foremost among these was “4-Bit Fridays,” a long-standing club tradition (so long-standing that it started when four bits, or 50 cents, meant something). The event, built around offering reduced-price cocktails in a Happy Hour setup, is held on the first Friday of every month, except December.
The food provided with the discounted drinks was always pretty much a secondary consideration—until Foy became part of the show. Now, members come as much for the menu as for the drinks and socializing—and they’re coming out in such numbers that in-season, when as many as 180 have turned out, the event is now held in the clubhouse’s banquet hall.
Tucson Country Club has 425 regular members who hold equity certificates that can be sold at market value, and 325 additional members in six non-equity categories.
The space is needed as much for Foy’s food as for all of the people, because he seeks to have “as many action stations as possible.” The menu involves a lot of high-end culinary name-dropping—crab Louie, steak Diane, oysters Rockefeller—as well as duck breasts, shrimp rolls and many other delicacies. “It’s a lot of prep, sometimes with as many as 400 pieces [of a dish],” Foy says.
Foy has also worked with Clubhouse Manager Clayton Robideau to expand the quality and variety—and popularity—of TCC’s Sunday breakfast buffet, while enhancing its value. What once only drew from 20 to 30 people on Sunday morning now routinely brings in four times as many, and on some days up to 160. The added draw comes from being able to pay just $9.95 to get fresh-squeezed orange juice and choose from selections that include a full omelette bar, waffle station, carved ham station, eggs benedict, corned beef hash, grits and more.
Robideau and Foy also launched a series of wine dinners earlier this year, with the first of four that are planned for 2011 selling out to its 60-person capacity, at $90/person. And at the other end of the culinary sophistication spectrum, the club’s “Thanksgiving to go” offer had its third successful year, with Foy reporting that from 40 to 50 members took advantage of the opportunity to come to the kitchen, many after eating Thanksgiving dinner at the club, to pick up an aluminum 400 pan filled with a quarter-pound of turkey, a quarter-pound of ham, a quart of gravy and a quart of mashed potatoes, for $22. “It’s a must for those who believe Thanksgiving’s best part is the sandwiches later that night, or the next day,” he explains.
Events—At the same time the TCC team continues to brainstorm for ways to build on the events that have already proved popular with the membership (“human hamster” balls and laser tag were new add-ons this year for the elaborate carnival that has grown to be part of the 4th of July Fireworks extravaganza), new events are always being added to the lineup as well. Robideau brought an ensemble from the Tucson Symphony Orchestra to the club for a well-received Christmas concert last year, and a second spring concert is now being planned.
An annual Veterans Day program put together by Olsen and Banquet Coordinator Cindy West, to give the many veterans within the membership, from conflicts ranging from World War II to Afghanistan, an opportunity to meet has grown steadily in its three years—and in one case brought together two members who had unknowingly served in the same branch at the same time and in the same place.
“There’s no end to the kinds of connections you can help people make in a club like this,” Olsen says, “if you first try to get to know more about your members, and then use what you know to find more reasons for them to come to the club and be with others who have similar interests and stories.”
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