For the Members
C hampions R et R eat
at a glance
Club Concierge
Tuesday - Saturday
9:00 am - 6:00 pm
Sunday
9:00 am - 3:00 pm
Grille House
Tuesday - Saturday
Breakfast 7:00 am - 10:00 am
Lunch 11:00 am - 3:00 pm
Dinner 5:00 pm - 9:00 pm
Sunday
Breakfast 7:00 am - 10:00 am
Lunch 11:00 am - 3:00 pm
Halfway House
Tuesday - Sunday
10:00 am - 5:00 pm
Golf Shop
Tuesday - Sunday
7:00 am - 6:00 pm
Practice Facilities
Tuesday - Sunday
7:00 am - 6:00 pm
Fitness Center
5:00 am - 11:00 pm
As we turn the wet and wood-splintered page on 2024, it's natural to reflect on the past year. Champions Retreat had many opportunities to shine when confronted with profound tests of fortitude while holding fast to the primary focus: the exciting road ahead.
2024 presented heartfelt challenges, but the Champions Retreat team demonstrated remarkable resilience. I am so proud of our team for sharing their strength, stamina, and heart with our membership and each other. The embrace of a culture of high performance and the refusal to settle for mediocrity began before Hurricane Helene and provided the motivation we needed during the most difficult times.
After a successful spring, the hot summer highlighted areas for improvement on the course, prompting swift action. Barry and his team implemented a comprehensive plan, including immediate sodding of underperforming areas and a long-term strategy encompassing annual aeration, top dressing, and tree maintenance. Hurricane Helene tested our resolve, but we swiftly enacted "Plan A," investing millions in the removal of nearly 2,000 fallen trees, stump excavations, and detailed relandscaping. We also repaired the bunkers, cart paths, bridges, and other property damage in a mere six weeks, reopening all 27 holes for you and your fellow members.
Last, but certainly of equal importance, the thoughtful formulation of a world-class operations team was a key priority in 2024. We were blessed to start the year with Barry and Mike leading our golf operation. The addition of Chef Aksel and Meagan Schuetter stabilized and ignited a new generation of our F&B operation. As most of you are aware, we recently added Samantha Zabel to guide and bolster your enjoyment of the club through member events and elevated cottage experiences. You will soon meet Josh King, who is starting this month as our new Director of Food & Beverage. He has an extrodinary skill set and is one
of the most contagious leaders I have ever met. With the operating team now in place, let’s fasten our seatbelts and look toward the road ahead in 2025.
First and foremost, we are committed in the new year to the cultural practices and resources needed to consistently deliver extraordinary playing conditions on our three courses. We have the equipment, an extremely skilled team, an agronomic plan, and, most importantly, an unrelenting resolve to focus daily on every detail. While we strategically evaluate our long-term opportunities in our clubhouses, we will invest in high-leverage immediate improvements.
Just around the corner, you will see new furniture in the Grille House. We are also making a few structural and less visible improvements to ensure the long-term viability of our buildings. The Golf Shop is receiving a complete makeover with new fixtures and a much needed lighting package.
Exciting changes are also happening in the Cottages. While Sarazen is currently undergoing a complete interior renovation, Hogan and Carnoustie are seeing significant exterior renovation projects. We are also thrilled about the addition of Demaret, our newest eight-bedroom cottage, which will be completed by Masters Week.
Most importantly, on behalf of the 100+ team members at Champions Retreat, we are all excited and committed to serving you in 2025 and delivering lifetime memories and extraordinary experiences at your club.
BRAD SHUPE General Manager
MEMBERSHIP
I don’t know about you, but this time of year is always a time where I reflect. It is a time where things from the year begin to settle, and fresh ideas, resolutions, and creativity begin to rejuvenate in anticipation of the new year.
I would be pressed not to say that this was quite an extraordinary year here at the Club when it came to Membership. It was a year of evolution, fresh ideas, connectivity, and culture. Under our new ownership, our team was committed to bringing advancement in our technology, buildings, programming, and dining to elevate the full Member experience. We leaned in with persistence to further create a space where Members cannot only connect easily with each other across property, but also connect with their families, friends, clients, or colleagues. With the addition of our new Club Experience Director, Samantha Zabel, I am so excited to see what’s to come for our Member experience going forward! As a membership, we also went through Hurricane Helene, where we learned that not only is the Club a place of connection, but for many it was a place of safety, comfort, companionship, and service. Our resilience as a staff and membership community is something to really be proud of.
Finally, I want to thank each one of you for your commitment and advocacy of your Club. Over the last year, upwards of 80% of our new welcomed Members came from a Member referral or a guest experience. I like to explain to prospects and new Members that our culture is that of the same kind of “cool” and comes from the heart of within. This again rang true throughout 2024! You continue to build a Membership community that is filled with warmth, laughter, and charm. It’s been a pleasure to watch it grow.
Thank you for your continuous support and sharing all your moments and milestones with us. I am honored to be your Director of Membership and look forward to a bright and happy 2025!
KELLY PICKARD Director of Membership
BOURBON DINNER
FEATURING THE OLD FORESTER WHISKEY ROW SERIES "THE FIRST BOTTLED BOURBON"
Mark your calendars for the first Club event of the year in The Grille House! Join us on Saturday, January 18th at 6:00 PM for an evening of exquisite bourbon and small bites, expertly paired with The Old Forester Whiskey Row Series. Created in 1870, Old Forester is the only bourbon continuously distilled and marketed by its founding family—before, during, and after Prohibition. The Whiskey Row Series invites bourbon lovers to savor the rich history of Old Forester with each unique expression.
THE WHISKEY ROW
Old Forester 86 (The Classic)
Old Forester 1870 "Original Batch" 90 Proof
Old Forester 1910 " Old Fine Whiskey" 93 Proof
Old Forester Statesman 95 Proof
Old Forester 1897 "Bottled in Bond" 100 Proof
Old Forester 1920 " Prohibition Style" 115 Proof
More details to come...
JANUARY 3
Margaritas
FRIDAY NIGHT FLIGHTS
Starting in 2025, your favorite Tuesday Flight Nights are soaring into the weekend. Join us every Friday evening at the Grille House and explore a curated selection of spirits and specialty cocktails, allowing you to experience different flavors, styles, and regions.
Flight Nights are designed to expand your palate in a relaxed and social atmosphere. Enjoy learning about the origins and notes of each pour, all while enjoying dinner and great company. Kick off your weekend with this flavorful adventure and make Friday Flight Nights your new tradition!
Available during dinner every Friday night from 5:00 pm - 9:00 pm.
JANUARY 10
Bourbon
JANAURY 17 Tequila
JANUARY 24 Whiskey
JANUARY 31
Gin
GOLF NEWS
TIPS FROM THE PRO
Chipping can often feel like an endless battle for many golfers. In my experience, the main problem lies in golfers approaching the ball too shallowly, which can lead to early ground contact or, even worse, the infamous "darth blader" that zips across the green. When the swing arc is too flat, "the attack angle into the ball isn't steep enough. Many "golfers are apprehensive about being "steep," but that's not the reason they hit the ball heavy. Instead, they tend to lower their bodies too much during the downswing, bringing them closer to the ground and causing the club to strike the ground prematurely. Often, golfers set themselves up for failure when chipping with their spine tilted away from the target, the handle positioned too far back and their weight shifted to the trailing side. To improve, we should aim for a setup that encourages a steeper approach; weight on the lead side, spine slightly tilted toward the target, and head positioned just in front of the ball.
MIKE RYMER, PGA Director of Golf
THE ICE BREAKER PAR 3 TOURNAMENT: KICK OFF THE SEASON IN STYLE!
Get ready to tee off at the first golf event of the season – the Ice Breaker Par 3 Tournament! Registration opens on Saturday, February 1st. This exciting 27-hole event features nothing but par 3’s, with varying distances to challenge golfers of all skill levels. It’s an individual stroke play competition with 3 Flights, and there are awards for Flight winners as well as for the most birdies. Create your own foursome and enjoy the event with friends and fellow golfers!
WHEN: Saturday, February 22nd
TIME: 11:00 am Shotgun | Lunch 12:00 - 3:00 pm
FORMAT: Individual Stroke Play (Gross & Net)
COST: $90 per player (Members Only)
Be on the lookout for email communications on how to register. For any questions regarding this event, please contact the Golf Shop at 706.854.6970.
FEB
22
2025 Member Events
MEN LADIES FAMILY
ICE BREAKER TOURNAMENT
Registration opens Saturday, February 1st
The Ice Breaker Tournament is a 27-hole Par 3 event (27 par 3’s of varying distances). It is an individual stroke play event with 3 Flights. Awards are given for Flight winners and most birdies. This is a Member only event.
APR
25-26
MEMBER-MEMBER
Registration opens Tuesday, April 1st
The Member-Member Tournament is a flighted two-day event featuring multiple 9-hole formats (Alternate Shot, Better Ball, Aggregate, and Scramble). The winner of each flight will compete in the Tournament Shoot-out to determine the Overall Champion.
MAY
13
WOMEN’S MEMBER-GUEST
Registration opens Tuesday, April 1st
This is a one-day, 18-hole event. The format will consist of 9-holes of Scramble and 9-holes of Better Ball of Partners. The winning team will have the lowest combined score of the two formats.
JUN
5-7
MEMBER-GUEST
Invitations send out on Saturday, February 1st
The Member-Guest is a three-day event featuring five 9-hole matches and Championship Shoot-out. Teams are flighted by combined team index. The winning team in each flight will then compete in the Championship Shoot-out to determine Tournament Champion. Entry into this event is based on a lottery system. The lottery will take place on March 15th.
JUN 28-29
JUN
28-29
MEN’S CLUB CHAMPIONSHIP
Registration opens Thursday, May 1st
The Club Championship is a 36-hole, two-day Medal play event.
WOMEN’S CLUB CHAMPIONSHIP
Registration opens Thursday, May 1st
The Club Championship is a 36-hole, two-day Medal play event.
MEMBER MATCH PLAY
MAY-SEP
31-13
Registration opens Thursday, May 1st
The Member Match Play is a is a 64-player match play event with the tournament bracket divided into 4 flights. Matches are scheduled by the competitors and must be completed in a specific timeframe.
4
RED-WHITE-BLUE TOURNAMENT
Registration opens Sunday, June 15th
The Red-White-Blue is a Flag Tournament in which each competitor starts with a flag and their handicap plus par. The flag is placed in the ground wherever your strokes run out. Whoever’s flag is placed latest in the round wins.
PARENT-CHILD TOURNAMENT
1
2
30-31
Registration opens Tuesday, July 15th
The Parent-Child is a 9-hole, modified alternate shoe event. Fun food and prizes after play.
JUNIOR CLUB CHAMPIONSHIP
Registration opens Tuesday, July 15th
The Junior Club Championship is a one-day Medal play event.
SENIOR CLUB CHAMPIONSHIP
Registration opens Friday, August 1st
The Senior Club Championship is a 36-hole, two-day Medal play event.
FALL MEMBER-GUEST
18-20
2
3-4
Invitations send out on Saturday, February 1st
The Member-Guest is a three-day event featuring five 9-hole matches and Championship Shoot-out. Teams are flighted by combined team index. The winning team in each flight will then compete in the Championship Shoot-out to determine Tournament Champion. Entry into this event is based on a lottery system. The lottery will take place on March 15th.
8TH ANNUAL CR CUP
Registration opens Wednesday, October 1st
The CR Cup is a one-day, 27-hole Ryder Cup style event that pits members aged 50 and over vs. Members aged 49 and under. Competitors play Individual, Four-ball and Foursomes matches. 36 Members per team.
PROFESSIONAL-MEMBER INVITE
Registration opens Saturday, June 1st
This is a two-person event which pairs a PGA Professional with a CR member. Two-day stable ford and is open to the first 30 teams.
TURKEY SHOOTOUT
28
13
Registration opens Saturday, November 1st
The Turkey Shoot-out is a 9-hole, 4-person Cross-Country Scramble. This is a Member only event and is open to the first 60 to register.
NIGHTMARE BEFORE CHRISTMAS
Registration opens Saturday, November 15th
The Nightmare Before Christmas is an 18-hole, 4-person scramble event. Players are challenged with “Nightmare” pin positions. This event is open to Members only and limited to the first 88 players to register.
COURSE UPDATES
As we approach the end of the year, it’s a great time to reflect on the progress we’ve made at our golf course. There have been many positive changes, and we’ve seen significant improvements. This year, we experienced typical rainfall and mostly normal weather. I mention this because we are always working in partnership with Mother Nature. While we would love to take credit for the course conditions, our efforts are only as effective as the weather allows. A clear example of this is the ideal spring weather we had, contrasted with the hurricane damage we recently encountered in October.
In the spring, we were fortunate to have dry conditions throughout April, particularly during the Augusta National Women’s Amateur and Masters Week. This allowed us to maintain excellent course conditions for our Members, guests, and tournament participants, ensuring an enjoyable experience for all.
During the summer, we shifted our focus more toward cultural practices, and for the first time in several years, we had the resources to complete many essential tasks. We were able to aerate and dryject the greens twice this year. While aeration is a common practice during the summer months, dryjecting is less familiar. Dryjecting is a form of aeration, but it differs in its approach. Traditional aeration involves creating holes in the playing surface to allow sand to be incorporated into the soil. In contrast, dryjecting uses a tool that injects sand into the soil without removing any material. This is done by blasting high-pressure water into the profile, which creates channels for the sand to follow, improving surface drainage, diluting organic matter, and enhancing gas exchange within the root zone.
With the resources available, we were also able to perform several key practices on our fairways, including aeration, dethatching, and top dressing. These practices will yield benefits similar to those we expect from the greens aeration program, and we will begin to see improvements on the fairways as well. Lastly, we completed two rounds of aeration and top dressing on the teeing grounds.
In July, we initiated several big improvements to the course, including new teeing grounds on holes 3 and 4 (Bluff), a new fairway bunker on hole 7 (Bluff), 10,000 square feet of cart path repairs. We also installed subsurface drainage on hole 1 (Island) fairway and tee complex and addressed sinkholes caused by decomposing stumps. Additionally, we repaired bridges and removed over 100 trees to enhance sunlight on the playing surfaces. Once these major projects were completed, we resurfaced certain areas with new turf, installing approximately one acre of sod, which has since taken root successfully.
All of these projects were completed by early September, allowing us to focus solely on course conditions as we prepared for our fall golf events. On Wednesday, September 25, our team finished the final details in preparation for the Fall Member-Guest tournament and began getting ready for what we expected to be 50 mph wind gusts and rain. However, on Thursday, September 26, we received 18 inches of rain over a 24-hour period, and unfortunately, the weather prevented our participants from completing the event. In the early hours of Friday morning, the hurricane arrived, drastically changing our landscape for the foreseeable future. We woke up to homes, yards, roads, and the golf course littered with fallen trees. Though the impact is still fresh in our minds as we continue to recover, we’ve made significant progress in just three months. Over 1,400 trees wereremoved, more than 500 linear feet of bridges were repaired, over 20,000 square feet of concrete was restored, nearly 10 acres of grass were replaced, 935 tons of topsoil were added, 5,440 bales of pine straw were applied, and 2,000 tons of sand were replenished in the bunkers. None of this would have been possible without the help of five contractors and the hard work of our dedicated agronomy team.
In addition to debris cleanup and course repairs, our team also applied herbicides to control winter weeds and seeded the surfaces with winter ryegrass. The germination has been successful, and we are confident that we will have a good playing surface throughout the winter months. As I write this letter, we are also in the process of applying paint to the fairways, a task that will continue throughout the winter as needed.
This year has been incredibly busy, and I’ve only highlighted the key points. Looking ahead to 2025, we’re anticipating great weather and course conditions. Many of the same cultural practices will be carried out during the summer months. However, there are a few additional items to prepare for. Due to the timing of the year, the areas that were resurfaced following the storm may be slow to emerge from dormancy in the spring. Additionally, there are areas on the perimeter of the course that were not resurfaced, which will be addressed in late spring next year. More repairs to the cart paths are also still needed. It will take a full growing season to restore the course to its pre-storm condition.
I would like to express my sincere gratitude to our team for their dedication and hard work throughout the year, as well as to all departments for their continued support. We look forward to another successful year in 2025.
March 30 - April 3 | Augusta National Women’s Amateur
July 7-18 | Course Closed for Aeration
August 12-14 | Course Closed for Aeration
BARRY REWIS Director of Agronomy
THE PERFECT VENUE
As 2024 comes to a close, I would like to extend my warmest wishes to you and your families for the upcoming holiday season. With the New Year just around the corner, I’m thrilled to start gearing up for another unforgettable Masters Week here at Champions Retreat!
Looking ahead, we are pleased to offer Champions Retreat as the perfect venue for your private events. With versatile spaces, stunning backdrops, and exceptional service, we can host a wide range of gatherings—from corporate meetings to weddings and social events. Our dedicated team is committed to ensuring every detail runs smoothly, allowing you to focus on creating unforgettable memories.
Please feel free to reach out for any Masters or event booking needs. Wishing you and your loved ones a joyful holiday season and a 2025 filled with happiness, peace, and good health.
KAYLA ROUTSON Sales Manager
We sincerely appreciate you and your families for being a part of our annual Brunch with Santa & Mrs. Claus on Sunday, December 22nd. It was a joy to see so many smiling faces and share the holiday spirit together. We hope the event added a little bit of magic to your season, and we look forward to creating more memories with you in the new year.
