PORT ORCHARD – Three years ago, Shawn Cucciardi and Jeff Mehlert fulfilled their lifelong dream and purchased McCormick Woods Golf Course in Port Orchard, an accomplishment made sweeter by the fact that their families could participate in the business.
Cucciardi, the general manager, recruited his sister, Tiffany Schenk, to be the restaurant manager, and his brother-in-law, Scott Schenk, is the assistant superintendent.
Mehlert’s sister, Sheri Flood, is the golf shop manager, his brother-in-law, Scott Nicholson, works on the range, and his dad, Gerry Mehlert, is a senior golf professional. Mehlert’s wife, Suzanne, is the merchandiser for the golf shop.
“It’s amazing to own my own golf course, and to have your family here with you is just spectacular,” said Mehlert, the director of golf.
The family members didn’t earn their positions simply by connections, however. All of them contribute years of expertise in their fields to their positions. For instance, although Schenk is not a golfer, she has been in the restaurant business since she was 15.
“It was the perfect business to buy for the family,” Schenk said. “It’s worked out really nicely, and it’s the best scenery around.”
The 18-hole golf course sits on 162 acres and features a pro shop and a 20,000-square-foot clubhouse with an award-winning restaurant, The Clubhouse at McCormick Woods. Weddings, banquets and meetings are hosted in the restaurant, and its outdoor patio overlooks North Lake.
The course is lined with towering firs and cedars, and features a series of lakes. McCormick Woods hosts hundreds of tournaments a year, Mehlert said.
An upscale housing development also is located near the course.
Both Mehlert and Cucciardi have been self-proclaimed “golf rats” since early childhood.
“I started working at a golf course when I was 7 years old, cleaning carts, bathrooms, caddying, doing maintenance work, pretty much every feasible task you can do at a golf course,” Mehlert said. “There’s not too much I don’t enjoy about golf. It’s social and challenging and always different each time you play.”
At 20 years old, Mehlert was the youngest head golf pro in the Northwest at the time, he said. He also has worked as a head golf pro in Gig Harbor and with the Tacoma Park District. Mehlert runs the Northwest Junior Golf Tour and coaches young kids.
Cucciardi worked for the Professional Golfer’s Association for 10 years and majored in business administration and golf management at Methodist College in North Carolina. He said his passion for golf began early.
“I was very competitive at an early age, and golf is a challenge because it’s a game you can never perfect. I’ve been a golf rat since I was 3 years old. It’s more than a game for me; it’s a tool for business,” Cucciardi said.
While both men enjoy playing the sport, they also enjoy the business aspect of their operation and are involved with their customers’ lives.
“This is a unique industry because it’s very centered on customer service, and you can really pay attention to customers’ needs,” Cucciardi said.
Mehlert said the staff members treat customers the way they would treat their families.
“Our customers become our extended families. We become involved with their charities and interests. We want them to have a spectacular experience here,” Mehlert said.
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