Four-year-old Crescent Growing Up Fast

By JOHN KILGO

The third hole at Crescent Golf Club in Salisbury is a combination of the beauty and the beast. Golfers stand on the tee and look out at a fairway that features bunkers right and left. A well-placed tee ball to the right center of the fairway leaves a good look at the green as the hole meanders back to the left.

It's a gorgeous setting for a golf hole. But you'd better hit two good ones in order to have a chance reach this green in regulation. Tee to green from the white tees measures 425 yards, while the blue tees make it a formidable 453 yards. The long, undulating green is tucked into a quiet corner of the course that is both peaceful and beautiful. While putting, golfers likely will be serenaded by bells from nearby Milford Hills Methodist Church.

It reminds one of Pinehurst.

Crescent has come a long ways since it opened for play in August 1998. The Crenshaw bentgrass greens have been good almost from the day the course opened for play. The biggest improvement lies in the condition of the fairways and the way the rough is evening out. The sprinkler system at the course, which initially covered 65 percent of the playing area, was expanded in November 1999 to cover 95 percent. It has made a vast improvement in course conditioning.

"I'm certainly not taking credit for it," said golf professional Ross Desmond, who came to Crescent from Keith Hills in Buies Creek in December 1999, "but the course has improved tenfold since I've been here."

Desmond, a gregarious man who loves to joke around with the golfers at his course, is quick to give credit to course superintendent Newt Billingsley.

"He has more energy than anyone I've seen," Desmond said. "He goes non-stop all the time. His attitude and dedication are largely responsible for the course's excellent condition. He's the man who makes this place tick."

Desmond and Billingsley make an interesting pair. Billingsley proudly wears his University of North Carolina hat while working on the course. Desmond, on the other hand, cheers for Duke. It makes for some interesting basketball arguments during the winter months.

Architect John B. LaFoy built a course at Crescent that golfers of all persuasions can enjoy. Low handicappers who want a test can find it by playing from the blue tees measuring 6,822 yards. The white tees offer a more playable course at 6,311 yards. Seniors are invited to tackle the course from the gold tees at 5,767 yards. The ladies' tees measure 5,163 yards.

Crescent welcomes you with a long par 5 that is straightaway and offers a good chance at par. The second is a dogleg left par 4 that is a challenge but far from impossible. Then, the third hole, the course's No. 1 handicap hole, will test your game.

Crescent features long greens that can accommodate three pin locations. For the most part, LaFoy left the fronts of the greens pretty much open, which encourages the playing of many different shots to the flag. There are 34 bunkers on the course and LaFoy placed them in spots where they appear to be in play, but in reality they catch mostly poorly hit shots.

Crescent is constructed so that golfers can see what's in front of them. Only two blind shots are on the course – the second shot on hole No. 1 and the tee shot on No. 14.

"We think the course is playable for all golfers," Desmond said. "There are some golf courses in our area that are easier than Crescent. But golfers should find a tee location here that suits their game and gives them a chance to enjoy the 18 holes. Our fairways in the summer are some of the best you'll find anywhere, and our putting surfaces are superb."

Desmond emphasizes to his staff that he wants the golfers at Crescent to feel at home. The clubhouse eating area features ham and cheese and turkey and cheese sandwiches the year-round. Hot dogs and chicken salad are added in the summer months.

Desmond also has been known to throw his golfers a change of pace. On Memorial Day, July 4 and Labor Day last year, he brought his grill from home and cooked hamburgers, hot dogs and grilled chicken for the golfers. "At the turn, golfers saw the head pro out there cooking sandwiches," Desmond said. "That was pretty neat."

While trends often change at courses as they age, Crescent at the current time has many seniors playing Monday through Thursday. Not many women golfers play the course, but Desmond expects that to change. Pace of play has been good, averaging about four hours and 10 minutes a round.

It's obvious that golfers are finding this course and then coming back for more. Crescent had 26,000 rounds of golf played in 2000, which was a 10 percent increase from 1999.

"It's a very competitive situation for courses now," Desmond said. "Golfers expect a competitive price, a good product, and they want to feel as if they're welcome. The demand isn't what it used to be. We're almost over-saturated with golf courses now. It's hard to go 50 yards in the Charlotte market now without seeing a golf course. Golfers expect a good course and a good pace of play at a reasonable price."

Desmond says most of his golfers arrive from Lexington, Greensboro, High Point, Salisbury, Kannapolis and Concord. The number of Charlotte golfers playing Crescent is growing by the week, Desmond says. He tells of two friends – one who lives in Charlotte and the other in Greensboro – who meet at Crescent, play 18 holes and then go their separate ways.

The Yadkin Valley Seniors play at Crescent, as do the Catawba College men's and women's golf teams.

Crescent is a daily fee golf course. Green and cart fee is $42 on weekends, $35 on Friday, $32 Monday through Thursday. Golfers who tee off after 3 p.m. on weekends get a rate of $30. Seniors play and ride weekdays for $22.

Some excellent tournaments are coming to Crescent in 2001, including U.S. Amateur qualifying on Aug. 7, the Carolinas Mid-Amateur qualifier on Aug. 21, North Carolina Amateur qualifier on June 5, and the Keith Hills Amateur qualifying on May 6.

Desmond and course superintendent Billingsley allowed the rough at Crescent to grow last summer to three and a half inches. Even for the best players, it was a challenge to hack the ball out of that cabbage. The rough will be challenging again this summer, but not quite as much so as last year.

"We want this to be an excellent golf course, and at the same time we want it to be a friendly place for the golfers to come," Desmond said. "Our staff calls as many of them by their first name as we can. I like to joke around with the golfers. It's paying off. We got a Christmas card from one gentleman last year who thanked us for our friendly staff. Another man sent Christmas greetings and said he was impressed because we all called him by his first name. Our goal is to make this a good experience for the golfers."

It seems to be working. In a competitive golf environment, rounds at Crescent are increasing. That brings a smile to Desmond's face. A friendly man who is married with two daughters, one 3-years-old and the other 11 months, the pro says of his golf staff: "We must be doing something right."

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