The Valley Evolution

Families arrive at Valley Country Club for many reasons…

By Jim Bebbington

Jeff Sandman – retired attorney, avid golfer, and 80 years young – had just finished a 9-hole round at his home course of Valley Country Club when he took a moment to consider what the club means to him.

“I’ve been a member for 41 years; president twice, and this is my third time on the board of directors,” he said. “I think that’s indicative of the fact that I love this place. The things that stand out to me are the membership. We are very family-oriented.”

Valley Country Club in Centennial has made family the centerpiece of its future. A multi-million-dollar initiative over the past several years was driven by the goal of making the club the best home away from home for its members.

It has been working.

“What we have been finding is that younger people are attracted to us because of our location, the golf course, and the facilities,” Sandman said.

The club’s board brought on Troon two years ago to help manage the operations. General Manager Brenton Rice feels that it was the final piece of the puzzle. Membership Director Saige DiBella has sold 50 new memberships in the past year.

“Valley Country Club is entering one of the strongest chapters in its 70-year history, something I believe wholeheartedly in. I think we have really solid momentum,” Rice said. “I think there’s true alignment between the members, the committees, the board, and now management.”

All clubs have facilities – golf courses, pool complexes, restaurants, racquet courts and the like. But the members and the management set the tone for the kind of atmosphere people feel when they are there. Is it welcoming?

At Valley Country Club, “Something that we’ve really emphasized, especially with our new members that have come and joined the club over this last year, is the family environment that we’re providing,” Rice said. “It’s the welcoming second-home feeling that we’re trying to provide for our members. We’ll also be able to execute on that elevated experience that they’re hoping for when they’re coming to the club. I would say probably about 80% of our new members this last year were fit young families with small children. So (we’re making) a heavy emphasis on our youth programming and just growing opportunities for members to make this their daily stop and really emphasize the family culture.”

The club has expanded its drop-in day care offerings in order for parents to be able to use the facilities free of care. The new aquatics area opened last summer with an array of pools from adults-only to high-fun slides and splash pad. The outdoor dining pavilion – The Bird’s Nest – around the perimeter was updated too and during last summer events that used the pool as a centerpiece brought hundreds of people out each time.

At last summer’s Fourth of July celebration and fireworks show the membership turned out in the hundreds to the point where furniture from inside was brought outside.

The golf course remains a cornerstone for the experience. The course has evolved in recent years with the nines being reversed, and can offer everything from a welcoming learning environment to a tough test for the best players. The club’s director of agronomy, Brooks Dodson, has served for three years and become an expert at keeping the busy course in top condition throughout the year.

In addition, they have partnered with the Denver Racquets Club to provide staff for their tennis and pickleball facilities, which has brought stability and improved their members’ enjoyment of the racquet complex.

“We found a solid partnership there,” Rice said.

Rice is very proud of the staff. He arrived a year ago and inherited many good people throughout the organization. He said his primary role with them is to be clear and honest about what they are all trying to accomplish for their members.

“Trusting each other is a big piece both within the staff,” he said. “We all take ownership of the club. We all take ownership of the process. And we all operate as one. I think communication is a big piece of the culture now as we try not to let anybody, including frontline staff, be in the dark about anything.” Membership Director Saige DiBella has seen the transition first-hand. As Troon management went into place, she said, she saw an immediate benefit from the broad number of applicants that Troon was able to generate for nearly any opening. In addition to Rice, a new head chef was brought on within the last year.

“I mean it’s amazing what it’s opened up for our team, the possibility of having those options and the allocation of knowledge from Troon on down,” she said.

As DiBella has spoken with prospective new members she is often asked what sets the club apart. She comes back not just to a family atmosphere, but one that backs it up with service.

“I feel like that’s what I speak on the most when I’m talking to prospective members,” she said. “Especially because we do have a drop-in kids space downstairs where we have essentially babysitting on hand for our members during busy golf weekends and evenings during dinner service, which is a huge perk. Between summer camps or athletics programs for golf and rackets for juniors, aquatics, swim teams, swim lessons, there’s everything for the kids to do on top of kid-oriented events.”

The club’s 70th anniversary is coming in September, and plans are underway for a celebration that brings the best of what has come before together with the new members who will shape the club’s future.

And for members like Sandman, he couldn’t be happier with the blend.

As a member for more than 40 years, Sandman enjoys the club himself. He and his wife used the club when their daughters were small, and now sees the club’s new direction continue the family tradition.

“My daughters grew up here and now I have a daughter and son in law who are members,” he said. “It’s the friendliest club around.”