Meet the golf course superintendents whose talents and passion are responsible for our meticulously maintained courses
Human nature and Mother Nature have played tug of war for millennia, and nowhere does that drama play out more than on a golf course. At The Cliffs, seven superintendents bring nearly 150 years of combined experience to refereeing that contest.
The job’s myriad responsibilities require someone who is equally passionate and, as most of them say, “insane”—or some version of that. So, let’s meet these guys who groom the gorgeous grounds.
Steve Shand | The Cliffs at Walnut Cove
Steve Shand started in the business when he was 10 years old, part of a three-man crew off the Maine coast. This year, he marks his 32nd in the industry, including a six-month internship at Augusta National Golf Club in 2004.
“We’re a landscape architect, plumber, psychologist, accountant, HR manager, electrician, and agronomist. Did I mention plumber?” says Shand, who has been at Walnut Cove for 12 years.
Yet the single most important part of the job is people, from each crew member to every member. What would drive someone to wear so many hats at work? “It’s passion for the property,” he says, “passion for the course.”
Jim Evans | The Cliffs at Keowee Falls
Jim Evans is sweeping a tennis court as he chats about being a golf course superintendent. “Yeah, yeah, yeah. The golf course isn’t the only place I show off my talents,” he says with his ever-ready, easygoing laugh.
Before starting at The Cliffs 14 years ago, the New Jersey native served as senior assistant superintendent for a decade at Augusta National Golf Club—where, incidentally, Steve Shand was once one of his interns. “I do the job because it’s more of an art and a science for me than it is for recognition,” he says.
Jed Fedor | The Cliffs at Mountain Park
Like most of the others, Jed Fedor started playing golf as a teen. He has spent more than half of his 25-year career at The Cliffs, which he joined in 2010.
“It’s not for everybody, but for those that have the passion for it and drive and motivation,” the Indiana native says. “You take pride in your work, and I think that’s probably what keeps everybody’s wheels going.” That, and the “multiple moments of touching peoples’ lives,” he says, “from players to protégés.”
These days, he especially relishes paying forward mentorship. “That’s just a sense of accomplishment, that you were able to teach them,” he says of his protégés over the years. “I have a little legacy behind myself, that I helped them down the path.”
Chad Prest | The Cliffs at Keowee Vineyards
Chad Prest points out that superintendents’ responsibilities run 24/7, 365 days a year because nature takes no breaks. “Just because you’re not there that day or that weekend or you’re on vacation, it doesn’t matter: your property doesn’t stop growing,” says Prest, who has been at The Cliffs for 11 years.
In 1999, the Massachusetts native moved to North Carolina, and he has spent most of his 25-year career in the Carolinas. “The most rewarding part is the appreciation from the members when you’ve got the course in great shape. It obviously makes you want to come back for more,” he says, adding, “It’s not a job per se, it’s a lifestyle.”
Cole Adcock | The Cliffs at Keowee Springs
The only native South Carolinian of the bunch, Cole Adcock grew up in Greenwood, where he would work at his grandfather’s nine-hole course. While attending Clemson University, he interned at Keowee Springs in 2010. He returned to The Cliffs in 2017 and was named Keowee Springs’ superintendent last year.
He adds a personal twist to the litany of professional challenges: “A lot of times, you’re your own worst enemy because you see things that a lot of people don’t. And you worry about it, stress over it. It’s like at the end of the day, it’s still a nice golf course, but you’re still, like, ‘Man, I wish I could …,’ you’re always going harder on yourself.”
Paul Lewis | The Cliffs at Glassy
The newest superintendent at The Cliffs, Paul Lewis joined in mid-June. But he started in the industry when he was 16, barely old enough to drive to work at the Metamora Golf and Country Club in his native Michigan.
In the business now for nearly 20 years, he says with a laugh, “It’s not the day that many have seen in Caddyshack.”
It was a superintendent back home who sparked his passion: “He saw something in me that I didn’t see in myself, but honestly that is part of the job of being a superintendent: always seeing the things that people don’t notice and nurturing them to create something special.”
Matthew Stevens | The Cliffs Valley
It didn’t take long for Matthew Stevens to realize that working in Asheville’s then-RCA factory wasn’t for him. In his late teens, he would sit on a stool through 12-hour shifts doing injection molding for cassette tapes and CDs. “It was awful,” he says, “but I learned stuff.”
He also worked at a golf course then, where he found his drive. Today, after nearly 20 years at The Cliffs, he maintains 177 acres: “You fall in love with this job, and you can’t get away from it.” Likewise, he adds, “All the other superintendents here are just so passionate to do the best thing for our little piece of the Earth.”
The push-and-pull of Mother Nature versus the brothers-of-the-links will never end. At the end of the day, though, their expertise ensures the balance between nature’s unpredictability and human expectations, fostering lush, pristine greens. As stewards of this delicate harmony, they exemplify the art of maintaining perfection in a constantly evolving natural landscape.
This story was featured in Cliffs Living magazine. To see more stories like this one and learn more about The Cliffs, subscribe here.
