There was a real chance the Greenbrier had reached a point of no return. The owners of the famed and historical resort were lame ducks in search of a sale, management was in limbo, the staff who had not already been let go were threatening a strike . . . again. Sitting with both cheeks flush on an economic hot seat, a luxury resort was sending warnings to their loyal customers--if you still decide to come see us, we might not have enough staff to serve you. As crazy as it seems, the Greenbrier was better described as the Brownbrier, but that wouldn't be right either because that would've indicated there was still some sense of color. The situation was so bad, even Detroit was collectively sympathetic to White Sulphur Springs.Boy, how things have changed. After a triple decker cake of good news, the Greenbrier's big frown has been turned upside down. In May the Greenbrier was
And so I say, good for the Greenbrier. The more I come across sub par service, mediocre courses and bad business models, I'm sure the game of golf needs a correction phase. Private courses are going to resort courses, resort courses are going public and public courses are closing. The trickle down is tough, but I think it's necessary. And the laws of natural selection stimulate strength over the course of time. Which is where golf will get to eventually--a game more affordable and thus, more accessible. As it should be.
But the Greenbrier is not a place that should go away. It's too cool, with too much history and too much good golf. The last time I was there was with Tom Watson. I asked him why he liked the Greenbrier and he said he appreciated the fact that it was a splash of formality in an otherwise informal society. I suspect Justice and West will lighten things up a little bit. But hopefully they don't change too much. I love the place. If you're in the area you have to tour the famous bunker, do the off-road driving school, go bowling, feed a falcon or play Old White (built by C.B. Macdonald and Seth Raynor in 1914 and was redone by Lester George in 2006). That being said, I wouldn't be upset if the floral design theme in the main hotel jumped the train company, CSX, that was the old owners.
Maybe now that the Greenbrier is getting healthy, they will offer their sympathetic friends in Detroit a special discount.
--Matty G.
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