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5/29/2018 Congaree: A First Look At The Golf Club Built By Billionaires On A Model Of Philanthropy

https://www.forbes.com/sites/erikmatuszewski/2017/04/27/congaree-a-first-look-at-the-golf-club-built-by-billionaires-on-a-model-of-philanthropy/#2046ab242e39

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Congaree: A First Look At The Golf Club BuiltBy Billionaires On A Model Of Philanthropy

Erik Matuszewski , CONTRIBUTORFULL BIO

Opinions expressed by Forbes Contributors are their own.

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Golf and giving have always gone hand-in-hand. But at Congaree, a new golf clubsteeped in history in South Carolina’s low country, philanthropy is the ethos of anentirely new membership model.

The remarkable golf course at Congaree is ultimately the mechanism for this new philanthropic model.

Congaree

The 18th green at Congaree sits just behind the clubhouse and several of the property's old live oaks. [+]

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The low-key folks behind Congaree aren’t interested in attention; in fact they’vecompletely shunned the publicity or fanfare that typically accompanies a new golfcourse project. I only heard about the club’s unique vision from a mutual friend inthe industry and, intrigued, actively sought to learn more.

In a nutshell: Congaree, which is about 30 minutes north of Savannah, Georgia, isquietly growing an exclusive international membership and boasts a world-classcourse unlike any other designed by Tom Fazio that is destined to be considered fora coveted place in Top 100 lists. But that’s not the story.

The story of Congaree is one of hope, inspiration and giving. It’s a story of making adifference, both locally and globally, through golf and life lessons both on the courseand off. The membership process is old-fashioned: by referral only. And while thereis no initiation fee, Congaree’s “ambassadors,” as they’re called, are encouraged tonot only make a financial contribution to the charitable Congaree Foundation that’sseparate from the club, but to take an active role in interacting with youth andsharing their life experiences, both good and bad.

The exclusively private club built on a former 18th century rice plantation wasfounded by two of the 200 richest people in the U.S.: Dan Friedkin, chairman of TheFriedkin Group, a privately held consortium of businesses in the automotive, luxuryhospitality, golf and entertainment industries; and Robert C. “Bob” McNair, ownerof the NFL’s Houston Texans and chairman of The McNair Group. The two Texasbusinessmen own other successful golf clubs – Friedkin the Diamond Creek GolfClub in Banner Elk, North Carolina, and McNair the Golf Club at Briar’s Creek inJohns Island, South Carolina – but they sought something different, a new clubmodel with a sustaining purpose shared among its ambassadors.

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Its overarching mission is to offer educational, vocational and golf instructionopportunities to underprivileged and deserving youth, with current and prospectiveambassadors ranging well beyond titans of industry – from an NFL Hall of Famerand national championship-winning coach to a Hall of Fame recording artist and aGrammy Award-winning country singer. All share a love of golf and a passion forhelping others.

“We knew this was going to be a philanthropic club from the beginning,” says BruceDavidson, a co-director of golf for Congaree. “We discussed this and said, `Let’sbuild a club that’s different.’ We’re not trying to sell anybody anything, but what wewant is a network of people that commit to helping. So there’s a CongareeFoundation and just two `members’ of the club – Dan and Bob. Everybody else is aninvited ambassador. And they’re invited in on an annual basis. We want these peopleto come in and commit.”

To be sure, this isn’t a local country club where you set up a usual Saturday morningtee time.

Congaree, built on a 3,200-acre property dotted with longleaf pine and bottomlandhardwood forests, is the vehicle – and a special one at that -- to bring togethersuccessful, like-minded people passionate about making a difference.

Congaree

The par-4 15th hole at the Tom Fazio-designed Congaree.



Davidson, a PGA professional from Scotland who has worked with numerous PGATour and Champions Tour players over the years, says that prospective ambassadorshave to be willing to spend time with the “Congaree kids,” talking about theimportance of education, sharing life experiences and helping them prepare forcollege and get jobs. The person who would prefer to simply write a check for severalmillion dollars? That isn’t what Congaree is about. Simply put, if you’re hoping tojoin the club for you, you’re probably not the right fit for them.

“We want people to be here for the right reasons,” Davidson says. “Becoming anambassador means being involved and supporting a mission that transcends golf.”

Congaree

The tee shot on the uphill par-5 second hole.



Davidson and fellow co-director of golf John McNeely, another accomplished PGAprofessional and the president of Diamond Creek Golf Club, graciously took the timeto show me around the property at Congaree, which feels like a step back in timeeven though it’s just a half-hour from both Savannah and Hilton Head, and 90minutes from Augusta.

Named after an Indian tribe that once called the area home, the club is located inone of the poorest counties in South Carolina, a fact that is glaringly evident not longafter taking the Interstate exit for Coosawhatchie. On the rural road just off thehighway, it’s impossible to miss the dilapidated trailer homes with broken down carsand yards strewn with junk. Twenty-three percent of residents in Jasper County livebelow the poverty level.

There’s no sign or number to mark the entrance to Congaree, just a 5-foot tall brickwall and an unassuming white-washed wood gate. The gate opens inward to a one-lane gravel road that runs through a gauntlet of ancient live oak trees with Spanishmoss gently waving in their gnarled branches. The mile-long entrance road curlsaround a pond to a plantation homestead that dates back to the AmericanRevolution; the main house was rebuilt after being burned down during UnionGeneral William T. Sherman’s Civil War march across the South.

Congaree

The par-4 18th hole is protected by a pond and a considerable amount of sand.



Other historic buildings have been preserved and are situated about the property,including comfortable guest cottages and an old school house, all of which have beencompletely updated. There are 26 guest rooms in total, with accommodations spreadbetween various charming cottages and the inn.

The second cottage from the main house might be best described as the club’sversion of Augusta National’s Butler Cabin, with a rustic wood interior andfurnishings that reflect the property’s past. A warm and cozy golf shop sits near thefirst tee and a newly-constructed white-washed lodge is at the far end of a gravelroundabout, with a restaurant, bar and covered back porch that looks out on the golfcourse behind it. The quaint, two-room school house was fully restored (completewith a working bell in the steeple) and will remain just that, a future home for kidsboth local and international.

PHILANTHROPIC EFFORTS

Much of Congaree’s initial philanthropic activity will occur with a program the clubhas named the Global Golf Initiative.

One of the key figures behind the idea is Friedkin, who quietly might be the mostinteresting man in golf (with apologies to Miguel Angel Jimenez and the gentlemanin the Dos Equis commercials). Friedkin’s core business is Gulf States Toyota, a $8.4

Congaree

The gravel entrance road at Congaree is framed by Live Oaks that are hundreds of years old. [+]



billion car distributor serving more than 150 dealerships across five southern states.He also founded a next-generation entertainment studio which is producing majorfilm and television projects, and is chairman of a company that owns and operates aportfolio of luxury hotels and resorts (including the landmark Hotel Jerome inAspen, Colorado, that he bought for a reported $70 million). His net worth is $3.6billion, making him the 174th richest person in the U.S., according to Forbes.

Friedkin, 52, is an active conservationist -- a trustee of the Wildlife ConservationSociety, chairman of the Texas Parks and Wildlife Commission, and head of acharitable fund established to conserve millions of protected acres in Tanzania. Heowns one of the largest collections of vintage military war planes and not only flieshigh performance aircraft, but performs in air shows across North America andEurope with the U.S. Air Force and the Horsemen P-51 Mustang Flight Team.Friedkin is also active in a group called Project Recover that seeks to find theunderwater resting places of American military personnel and aircraft missing inaction since World War II.

Friedkin’s colleagues say he has an insatiablecuriosity, excels at whatever he dives into,prefers to keep a low profile, and is so brightthat he’ll have the answer to your secondquestion chambered before you finish the first.Golf is one of his passions – he carries a 6.9handicap with club memberships from Floridato California – and he saw the game’spopularity and reach as another opportunity togive back. Through the Global Golf Initiative atCongaree, Friedkin wants to identify 40 highschool students each year from around theworld who have demonstrated a commitment

to education and personal development, and who also might be good enough to playgolf in college but don’t have the financial wherewithal, parental support orknowledge to locate the right opportunities and navigate the various hurdles.

To find prospective participants, Congaree will turn to PGA pros – from the U.S. andGreat Britain to Australia and Thailand – who have been anointed as clubambassadors. World Golf Hall of Famer Mark O’Meara, a two-time major champion,and other former touring pros are among them. For four weeks, the “Congaree kids”will go through an intense college preparatory program: a mix of class work, fitnesstraining, counseling, mentorship, golf lessons and an extensive club fitting thanks topartnerships with Cleveland and Ping. Peter Millar apparel is among the club’s otherpartners.

The Friedkin Group

Dan Friedkin is one of the founding members [+]

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“No child will leave here with the wrong equipment,” said Davidson, a three-timeSenior British Open participant who has been a coach for O’Meara and fellow majorchampion Ian Woosnam. “We’re going to give them mock tests and meet withcounselors and talk about educational aspirations. Afterwards, our college counselorand golf counselor will keep tabs on these kids for their final years of school to makeevery effort to help.”

The initiative will start this June with six youngsters from the U.S. and six fromoverseas.

The local component is still in the development stage, but there’s no question theplan entails significantly helping an area in need. The couple of guidance counselorsin Jasper County are greatly overextended – there are 670 students in nearbyRidgeland-Hardeeville High School – and many kids rely on schools to supply themajority of their meals.

Whether it’s an afterschool program, motivational speakers, or helping to learn atrade or pursue higher education, Congaree and its ambassadors are ready to lendsupport.

During the under-the-radar construction process at Congaree, rumors floatedaround the community: a posh resort was coming to the old plantation or it was aprivate club that cost $1 million to join. When the ownership at Congaree met witharea educators – the school board, superintendent and principals -- to explain theirvision, they were prepared for backlash or opposition to their presence. They weren’tprepared for the reaction they got: tears of joy. Both Davidson and McNeely chokedup with emotion simply recalling those meetings and the response they received.

Congaree’s approach with area schools is: “How would you like us to help you?”

McNair, who returned NFL football to Houstonin 2002 and has an estimated net worth of $3.5billion according to Forbes, has undertakensimilar efforts elsewhere, including ascholarship program in Forest City, NorthCarolina, that’s sent more than 160 kids to localcolleges if they graduated high school with a Baverage. Among the Congaree ambassadorswho will also be involved is Peter Fluor, a Texasbusinessman involved in the energy,engineering and construction industries. Fluor,Houston Texans owner Bob McNair is one of [+]

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the first Congaree ambassador to hit a tee shot at the club, happens to be a single-digit handicap with memberships at prominent clubs such as Augusta National andCypress Point on California’s Monterey Peninsula.

“Through the network of all the people we have throughout the world, and wealready have quite a few, they’ve pledged to be there to help,” Davidson says. “That’sreally what Dan wanted to create – a network of influential people, special peoplewilling to step up to the plate if asked. While also joining one of the best golf coursesbuilt in the last 100 years.”

A FAZIO COURSE UNLIKE ANY OTHER

The remarkable golf course at Congaree is ultimately the mechanism for this newphilanthropic model.

Friedkin’s edict was to find a great piece of land that was accessible from the Easternseaboard. Davidson and McNeely scouted six to eight locations, but the inlandproperty that would become Congaree stood out – from its sandy soil perfect forbuilding a golf course to its peaceful hunting grounds and historic feel.

Erik Matuszewski

The view from behind the green at the par-5 12th hole at Congaree.

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When they saw it for the first time, the two men looked at each other and said, “PineValley,” immediately seeing the similarities to the New Jersey site home to one ofthe world’s best courses, not to mention the Pinehurst area that’s considered thecradle of American golf. When Fazio first visited, his response was similar: “Youguys hit the mother lode here.”

It took nine straight months of logging pine trees and grinding stumps to clear spacefor the course, which Fazio routed through oaks up to 300 years old. Numerousmature trees were carefully uprooted and replanted elsewhere around the course.

Congaree was built in the spirit of Heathland courses found in Britain or thesandbelt courses of Australia. It has a natural look, lends itself to the ground gameand plays firm and fast -- think Royal Aberdeen in a drought, Davidson says. Thefairways aren’t the only place where the balls will run; the greens are fast,challenging and roll true as a pool table.

“We always knew that we wanted to create a golf course for the ages,” says McNeely,whose extensive list of prominent club experience includes working under Masterschampion Claude Harmon at Winged Foot in New York. “I know everyone that

Erik Matuszewski

The par-3 14th hole is a brutish 255 yards from the back tee.



opens up thinks they’re going to be Augusta National, and different. That’s hard todo. We had an opportunity here to be close to what we wanted to do because of theway the land was, and because of the way it would play firm and fast.”

Friedkin and McNair’s aspirations were for Fazio to build a course unlike many ofthe overly lush designs favored throughout the U.S. today. He’s succeeded, andperhaps that should come as no surprise for an architect who impressively has 24courses (including Diamond Creek) ranked among the 100 best modern courses inthe U.S.

When O’Meara saw the first green at Congaree, he was struck by how much it lookedlike Royal Melbourne in Australia. Senior tour golfer Bobby Wadkins was there thesame time I visited and said the turf was so hard he was having trouble getting teesin the ground. Said Davidson with a smile, “I told him, `that’s one of the nicestthings I’ve heard.’”

There are no tee markers at Congaree, just discs on one side of the expansive teeingground that give the yardage of the hole. The plan, for now, is to keep it that way andlet players pick whichever yardage they feel like playing from that day. There arealso no cart paths, as Congaree is a walking property. The walking theme extendsbeyond the course, with members and guests encouraged to take advantage of all theidyllic walking areas between the cabins and the lodge, pro shop, inn and mainhouse. Ghosts from the plantation’s historic past are also rumored to walk theproperty.

http://golfweek.com/2017/04/17/top-100-modern-golf-courses-usa/



The brawny course is relatively flat, with a change of only about 30 feet from itshighest to lowest points, but there are still some cavernous bunkers and vast wasteareas, many of which have the sharp edges like those found in the Australiansandbelt. All sandy expanses at Congaree are deemed “natural areas,” soplayers are permitted to ground their club anywhere, anytime. Thebunkering is especially fearsome on the par-4 8th hole, which is 540 yards from theback tee. With a long carry off the tee, including a bite-off-what-you-dare line over amassive waste area, and then a raised green fronted by another vast expanse of sand,some visiting pros have already suggested the 8th hole at Congaree is the hardestpar-4 in the world.

In designing a course decidedly different from those he’s done in the past, Fazio wastasked with creating a balance of reward and punishment demanded by whicheverteeing area the golfer chooses. O’Meara, who won the Masters and OpenChampionship in 1998, says the shot values at Congaree are “unsurpassed.”

Erik Matuszewski

The rear of the main house at Congaree is backed by several of the property's guest cottages. [+]



The result is a strategic low country masterpiece, with a combination of brutish andrisk-reward par-4s, and picturesque par-3 holes. The 170-yard 5th hole, for example,features a green that’s devilishly pitched toward the pond in front. The course'sthree par-5 holes present good scoring opportunities, although the sloped green atthe sixth hole will make a player really work for a birdie.

While No. 8 will probably emerge to be the signature, great holes abound atCongaree, a par-71 layout that can stretch to 7,685 yards. The par-4 ninth in somerespects is reminiscent of the 16th hole at Pine Valley, while the finishing stretch offour straight par-4s from 15-18 is a terrific mix, ending with a testing approach overwater and sand to a narrow 18th green behind the clubhouse.

I discovered the importance of a strong ground game during my visit, forced to puttfrom well off the green -- up tightly-mown slopes and from collection areas – toomany times to count.

Many current and prospective ambassadors likely got a similar experience duringthe week of the Masters Tournament, with helicopters shuttling members and guestsinto the club from Augusta.

Among the gentlemen who slipped away from Augusta to visit Congaree was theflamboyant Irish business magnate, Dermot Desmond, the first internationalambassador to commit his support to the club. Desmond, who is perhaps Europe’smost high profile golf connoisseur, says the course at Congaree is “one of the bestI’ve ever played… It’s right up there with Pine Valley.”

Congaree

The second of two vast sandy waste areas that players have to navigate at the long par-4 8th hole. [+]



If people are leaving the Augusta area duringMasters week, you know it has to be forsomething special. And Congaree is just that:an exceptional club with an extraordinaryvision.

“We had to build a world-class club to pique theinterest of the people that you need in thisbusiness model, which doesn’t measure return

on investment in terms of dollars,” says Davidson. “If you were doing it purely as abusiness, then we’d all be in this for the wrong reasons. But Dan and Bob didn’twant to do that, they wanted to do this to make a difference, which is prettyamazing.”

A few years from now, it’s not a stretch to imagine some of the tour pros followingup their trip to the Masters with a stop at Congaree en route to the following week’sPGA Tour stop in nearby Hilton Head. An event similar to the renowned pro-member tournament at Seminole Golf Club in Florida is conceivable, especially withthe dedicated philanthropic mission of the club, which will soon become even moreaccessible with the expansion of the local airstrip six miles away.

Dermot Desmond was Congaree's first [+]

Congaree

The approach from the fairway at the 18th hole.



Gallery

Congaree: ThePhilanthropic GolfClub Built ByBillionaires

Launch Gallery20 images

During my tour of Congaree, Davidson briefly excused himself while we played thesixth hole. He took a call from one of the club’s ambassadors in Scotland, who toldhim about a teenage girl from Ireland who has excelled in the classroom and mighthave the ability to play at a U.S. college, but her parents don’t have the financialmeans to get her there. Before I’d even finished the hole, that young girlunknowingly was a step closer to being a “Congaree kid” and having her life change.

Yes, Congaree is undoubtedly a unique and special place -- in many ways, and manystill to come.

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