Member Clubs
Capozzi described conditions in much
more stark terms: The club was financially
bankrupt and within 45 days of shutting its
doors permanently.
“Even before they owned it, they brought
a lot of improvements: money, expertise,
all the things the golf course needs,” Quinn
said. “Now they own it and they’ve gone
full-bore for the Eastern Amateur and
member play. We’re looking forward very
much to the new ownership.”
As management seeks to rebuild the
club’s membership to where it once was—
Capozzi estimated there were more than
400 members at the club’s apex—he said
they’ll also take steps to make the course
more exclusive. Gates will again guard the
Crenshaw’s restraint and respect for his
elders will be in play as his design is put into
practice. He expressed interest in retaining
most features of Elizabeth Manor’s original
Dick Wilson design. “He’s a golf histori-
an,” Capozzi said. “He’s not a person who
likes to tear everything apart. The Wilson
design—he wanted to restore that, to make
enhancements to make it better.”
The club is also looking to reinstate what
had been an Eastern Amateur tradition:
champions jackets with the tournament
crest, commonplace during the days when
the tournament title was claimed by future
PGA legends including Crenshaw, Curtis
Strange, Lanny Wadkins and former PGA
commissioner Deane Beman.
“Our attention to detail and experience…
I hope they will know what we’ve done,
and we’re going to make Elizabeth
Manor a first-class place. ”
—Dan Capozzi
Elizabeth Manor will reopen with major
upgrades this spring.
the playoff. He then won a three-way playoff
with birdie on the second playoff hole.
Prior to the Shaubach group’s arrival, how
close was the course to closing? According to
Karl Quinn, a member since 1994 and chair-
man of the Eastern Amateur since 1996, it
was “a lot closer than what I preferred.”
Quinn—a past member of the VSGA’s
Board of Directors—was president of the
board in the early-2000s, but said he hadn’t
been involved in course operation for several
years. When he got back on the board in May,
he said the course was in serious trouble.
“Things were not looking good at all,” he
said. “Finances were not in good shape. I’m
not sure how long we could have survived
without them.”
vsga.org
tree-lined driveway, named for Parker, a
Wilson High School graduate and NFL Hall
of Famer.
Club membership had dwindled to
106 golfers, with a total membership
including other categories (pool, social,
etc.) of 250. Already, Capozzi said early
returns have been encouraging, with 150
rejoining the club since the management
group arrived.
With the dawning of 2020, manage-
ment has been looking to the club’s past
as inspiration for the future. In Decem-
ber, Elizabeth Manor brought in 19-time
PGA champ and two-time major win-
ner Ben Crenshaw, who Capozzi called
the “best golf course designer in the
country,” to consult on course improve-
ments. The man known to fans as “Gentle
Ben” brings serious design chops to the
table; he’s designed five of the world’s top
100 courses.
Crenshaw, a repeat winner of the Eastern
Amateur in 1971-72, loved the golf course
and the condition of its greens, Capozzi
said. “Walking the grounds, there were a lot
of memories.”
Both Capozzi and Quinn sang the prais-
es of the club’s greenskeeper, Jeff Whit-
mire, who has worked for Shaubach’s group
since he owned the Williamsburg course.
“Jeff has an amazing amount of expertise,
guiding them through all the changes and
conditions we had. He’s been fantastic,”
Capozzi said.
“He’s a real expert with all the new
fertilizers,” Quinn added. “We had a good
working group, but they didn’t have the
education and talent. He provided some
directions and they’ve done a beautiful
job ever since.”
Since acquiring the club, managers
have set their sights on the long term,
reaching out to prospective members as
they look to the 2021 renovation of the
clubhouse interior.
“I think what we’ve done at Williamsburg
has certainly proven what we hope to do
down here,” Capozzi said. “Our attention
to detail and experience…I hope they will
know what we’ve done, and we’re going to
make Elizabeth Manor a first-class place.
“We hope that those on the fence will
join us and be part of something special.”
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