North Carolina club puts culture and elevated service at its forefront.
It takes a strong team, planning, and training for a golf facility to be recognized as one of the friendliest in the country. And that’s exactly what’s in place at Woodlake Country Club in Vass, N.C.
So, when it was announced that Woodlake was no. 2 on GolfPass’ “America’s 25 friendliest Public Golf Courses – Golfers’ Choice 2026,” it wasn’t a total surprise.
“Our staff from top to bottom goes above and beyond, so I won’t say I was surprised, but at the same time, I was surprised when I got the email,” said Jeff Crabbe, general manager at Woodlake Country Club, which has been open for a little more than two years after a complete renovation. “It was validation of the hard work that the staff puts in every day.”
The article’s sub headline reads: “Like a restaurant or small business, golf courses rely on good service to keep loyal customers coming back round after round. These courses did it best in 2025.”
Among the Woodlake reviews on the Golfpass website, one customer states: “All the staff were super nice and very helpful. The layout is beautiful, and the facilities were top-notch. Can’t say enough about it. Highly recommend it.”
Woodlake Country Club is already a compelling story. In 2016, Hurricane Matthew devastated the area, basically wiping out the lake that was next to the golf course. The course had to be reimagined, and with the help of Bobby Jones Links, it’s better than ever and continuing to improve, especially when the lake is restored in the near future. It’s a private club with some limited public play. And while the members are certainly treated as VIPs, guests who come in for public play or golf packages can expect to see that same treatment as well.
But this isn’t about just being friendly at Woodlake; it goes far beyond that. There’s an intention not only at Woodlake, but also at all the facilities managed by Bobby Jones Golf Links, which is based in the Atlanta area.
In fact, there’s a specific training tool, referred to as the “Member Journey” — or “Customer Journey” for public facilities — that each team member experiences. Allyson Kahl Darling is the vice president of experiences for Bobby Jones Links. She travels to each of BJL’s roughly three dozen facilities, overseeing the programs and initiatives that focus on team member experiences and member and owner experiences.
“The Member Journey is our service delivery map. We customize one of those for each of our properties because each property is different,” she said. “One thing that I think sets us apart from a Bobby Jones Links perspective is our training philosophy and where we like to focus. Of course, when we hear training, we’re thinking of technical training, standard operating procedures, and things like that. And we do all that. But most of that is actually done on the club level, meaning that the department heads are training their teams. “The Member Journey is our service delivery roadmap. We customize it for each property because every club is unique,” she said. “What truly sets us apart at Bobby Jones Links is our training philosophy and where we place our focus. When people hear ‘training,’ they often think of technical skills and standard operating procedures—and we absolutely cover those areas. However, most of that hands-on, technical training happens at the club level, where department heads lead and train their own teams.”
“I focus on what we call service training. Our service training program is dedicated and designed around the full guest experience and member journey. We emphasize thoughtful and consistent care from the very first interaction to the final farewell. So, we’re trying to walk through that journey with a member and elevate those touch points so we can be sure our team is being genuine, that we’re interacting, not just pushing people through the club.” “We focus on service training specifically. Our service training programs are intentionally designed around the full guest experience and the entire member journey. We emphasize thoughtful, consistent care from the first interaction to the final farewell. Our goal is to walk through that journey from the member’s perspective and elevate each touchpoint—ensuring our team delivers genuine, meaningful interactions rather than simply moving people through the club.”
Kahl Darling pointed out that it can be as simple as making sure that when a golfer or member walks through the door that they can see a staff member immediately, and the staff member makes eye contact, smiles, and comes out from behind the counter. Kahl Darling emphasized that it can be as simple as ensuring that when a golfer or member walks in, they immediately see a staff member who makes eye contact, smiles, and steps out from behind the counter to greet them.
Of course, first impressions are so important, which is why customer service begins at bag drop, where the attendants do more than load up bags on carts. They interact, in many cases, getting to know the customers or members by name. For example, they are taught to look for cues, like a bag tag that might denote a team they root for, which makes for a great talking point. The idea is to relate to customers, get to know them and their needs, know when to give extra attention, and when to back off.
“Our more experienced staff members take our newer team members under their wing and take time to teach some of the work ethic best practices that help yield a great customer experience,” Crabbe said. “We’re constantly coaching them up. The points of contact we really want to drive home – customer service, are a constant for our team: from the parking lot to the golf shop to the first tee.”
Of course, all of this extends into every part of the operation, from the golf shop to the restaurant and back to the bag drop after golfers finish their rounds, as the outside staff unloads their bags and cleans clubs.
But beyond the specific training, Crabbe says they simply have good people. In one example, a player who booked through GolfNow, drove an hour and a half from Greensboro, N.C., only to realize he forgot his putter. When checking in for his round, he informed golf shop attendant Baxter Billingsley of his dilemma. Crabbe was standing nearby.
“Without even looking at me, he (Billingsley) just said, ‘Hey, I’ve got my clubs in my car; let me go grab my putter,’” Crabbe recalled.
Crabbe said the golfer offered to pay, or at the very least leave his driver’s license. Instead, Billingsley said, according to Crabbe, “No, I don’t need anything. When you get finished, just bring it back.”
“It was just thinking on your feet and doing the right thing,” Crabbe said. “That was a cool thing.”
But back to the training. Again, none of this happens by accident. According to Kahl Darling, here are the highlights of the Member Journey training:
- Bobby Jones Links service training is designed around the full guest and member journey. We emphasize thoughtful, consistent care and concern from the very first interaction to the final farewell.
- Our training reinforces that every touchpoint matters – whether it’s a warm greeting upon arrival, attentive service throughout the experience, or a sincere thank-you at departure.
- Team members are coached to engage with guests in a genuine, warm, and friendly manner.
- We do focus on operational efficiencies; however, we do try to create authentic connections rather than scripted exchanges.
- We do this by focusing on awareness, anticipation, proactive service, and empathy.
- The purpose of all our programs is to ensure guests and members feel welcomed, valued, and cared for at every step, resulting in experiences that are not only seamless but also memorable.
Kahl Darling said she wasn’t surprised that Woodlake got its due. “They definitely earned it, and we’re very proud of our team and our partnership with them.”
For Crabbe and his staff, it’s all about having a service-first attitude and culture.
“It doesn’t matter what your title is; Woodland Woodlake Country Club is on all of our titles,” he said. “So, we do whatever we can to encourage people to come here and want to come back.”
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