Joe Wanninger
Google
Seven of us spent four nights at Pinehurst, staying at the Carolina Hotel and playing #7, #8, #9 (rained out after 5 holes), #2, #4, and #10. The golf courses were in fantastic shape, especially considering Hurricane Helene came through the morning of our afternoon round at #2.
Even though it's just opened, #10 is going to be a special golf course. And, unlike some/most of the other courses, it's actually easy to get a refreshment on the course. This was really the only disappointing part of the golf part of the trip -- we went hours without seeing a beverage cart, a water cooler, or a refreshment station on some of the courses. Considering the price and the reputation, they really need to do better.
I can't say enough good things about the food program at Pinehurst. It's fantastic. I honestly wasn't paying much attention to the prices, but I know every dish I had at any of the dinners was excellent.
The staff was generally great also. They try to anticipate what you want or need. They get you shuttled to and from places. Your clubs show up at the right place, on time. It's a pretty well-oiled machine.
THAT SAID....
Our group likes to ship clubs to resorts using Shipsticks. We all pay for FedEx boxes, even if we put a travel bag inside the box. The idea of just having an open suitcase on a FedEx truck/plane/whatever never sits well with any of us. As expected, our clubs (in boxes) were ready for us when we arrived and the front staff was helpful getting us checked in.
On Sunday when we left, we played #10 and returned to the Carolina Hotel. We all put our clubs into travel bags, gave the guys our bags and paperwork, and VERY SPECIFICALLY asked them to put the bags inside FedEx boxes. We were assured that this would happen.
Fast forward to Tuesday of the next week, when I returned home to see my travel bag, without a box, sitting on my front porch. The pockets were open, a few items inside were broken (and I'm going to, I guess, take that up with Shipsticks).
It's awful that the people up front told me specifically that they'd put it in a box, knowing full well they had absolutely zero intention of doing so. I would have taken my clubs on the plane if I wanted them to come without a box. The gentlemen who took our clubs obviously didn't care a single bit.
His simple act of indifference and laziness soured me completely on what had been a great golf experience. I'm having to go through my bag and remember (or guess) what I'd put in there. There were broken things. This was completely avoidable, and completely the fault of the resort.
The service otherwise was fantastic -- as it should be if you pay $7,000 for five days at a resort -- but man...I'm so disappointed in the "last mile" of this trip. Such an unforced error by the Pinehurst team.