Santa Rosa Golf & Country Club has been voted Best Golf Course in the 2011 NorthBay biz readers poll.
In 2010, NorthBay biz welcomed guests to Santa Rosa Golf & Country Club (SRGCC) for the magazine’s annual Best Of the North Bay event. We had so much fun, we’re back again this year. In another repeat, SRGCC is again voted Best Golf Course by NorthBay biz readers.
Last year’s event introduced many to the club’s nonmember event capabilities. Whether it’s a Wine Country wedding, corporate meeting, special event or golf tournament, SRGCC offers the style and sophistication of an exclusive, private club—including delicious food, well-appointed rooms and sweeping golf course views—but there’s another side to this fabulous facility that only members are privy to. It includes fine and casual dining, a pool, fitness center, a variety of social events (such as comedy, music and dinner theater) and, of course, lots of golf.
“The members determine what they want the club to be,” says General Manager Don Floriani. “We send an annual survey to all our members, and we take their input very seriously.”
That’s not an overstatement. SRGCC is a member-owned club, meaning its 440 proprietary members elect a nine-member board of directors that work with Floriani to oversee everything from course maintanance and fitness class offerings to marketing and new-member outreach. In addition to these owner/members, SRGCC also welcomes a variety of other membership levels, including social (with access to events, dining facilities and the pool only), athletic (add the fitness center and limited golf), junior (for kids) and young executive (for ages 21 to 38). The course is also used by the Piner and Analy high school teams and Sonoma State University for its annual invitational.
So how does a club with limited membership take the trophy for Best Golf Course? By offering an experience that others can’t. First, the surroundings: “It’s a parkland setting,” says current board president Mick Menendez. “You look out and see a tree-lined course; there are cows in the field nearby, and you see vineyards as opposed to a row of condos or houses.”
“You don’t have to worry about your shot breaking a window,” laughs head professional Jeff Ogden.
Established in 1916, the club moved to its current location in 1956, and Alistair Mackenzie protégé Jack Fleming designed the 18-hole, par 72 course. It’s walkable, playable in about four hours and accessible to all levels of golfer. Two years ago, the club hired course superintendent Jeff Sutherland to oversee and maintain the course, and by all reports, he’s doing a great job. “The greens are in excellent condition: smooth, beautiful and fast,” says Ogden. “Anyone will tell you that’s the make or break of any course.” In addition, all greenside bunkers are newly rebuilt.
“It’s not the longest course, by today’s standards, but it’s plenty long,” Ogden continues. “And it’s deceptively easy, but we have a lot of challenging holes. I’m not sure we have a signature hole, though number three is definitely our hardest—it’s one of the toughest par fours in Sonoma County. But it’s the overall experience. It jumps up and bites you.”
“What I hear a lot—particularly from guests of members—is that this is an excellent everyday course,” says Floriani. “They mean it’s always a little different. It doesn’t get boring.”
If you’re a member, prepare yourself for a number of fun tournaments and golf events, including separate evening business leagues for men and women, a social senior league, the three-day Vintage Crush member invitational, get acquainted scrambles (where you’re teamed with members you don’t already know) and “Hit and Giggle” after dark play (with glow-in-the-dark golf balls) for couples.
Even if membership isn’t for you, the pro staff is available to the public for lessons, including a state-of-the-art video computer system for swing assessment. There’s also a fully equipped pro shop filled with the latest golf equipment, fashions and accessories, and the only full practice hole in the county. It’s a destination worthy of an award—or two.
“We certainly apprectaite the support from our members who voted and for the support they’ve given the club,” says Menendez. “It means they recognize what a tremendous resource it is, and that makes me proud. We do everything in our power to maintain it at the highest level.”
