Sports
Atlanta Athletic Club Created For Big Events
The Johns Creek facility will be hosting the PGA Championship for the third time. The task is made easier by the club's three primary staff members.
From its very inception, the Atlanta Athletic Club in Johns Creek, which will host the PGA Championship Aug. 8 to 14, was created to host major championships.
The Atlanta Athletic Club will become only the fifth club in the country to have hosted at least three PGA Championships when it serves as the venue for the upcoming event. The club also hosted the event in 1981 and 2001, as well as the U.S. Open in 1976 and the U.S. Women's Open in 1990. They know how things are supposed to run during a big event.
“It’s part of the history of the club,” said General Manager Chris Borders. “It goes back to Bobby Jones.”
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The legendary Jones, considered by some to be the greatest golfer in the history of the game, served as president of the Athletic Club. He insisted the venue be committed to serving as host for big events. The Athletic Club will host the U.S. Amateur Championship in 2014 and has made it known that the club wants to host another PGA Championship and is desirous of a Ryder Cup.
“We’re very much at home hosting major championships,” said the Atlanta Athletic Club’s Tom Adderhold, the general chairman for the 2011 PGA. “It’s part of our history, which begins with Bobby Jones, and it’s something we’re comfortable with.”
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The staff and officers at the Atlanta Athletic Club set a gold standard for excellence in most areas, including hospitality and service. Visitors who come to the PGA Championship will be greeted warmly and should expect to have a great experience.
“We’re fairly comfortable because we’ve done it before,” Borders said. “It’s exciting, but it’s not overwhelming. And the PGA has a great staff and they know what they are doing.”
The three club employees who will have the most impact during the week are Borders, director of golf Rick Anderson, and director of golf courses and grounds Ken Mangum. The trio has worked together since 1989, a span that includes hosting the 1990 U.S. Women’s Open and the 2001 PGA Championship.
Borders started working at the Atlanta Athletic Club in 1975, left for two years to manage another metro Atlanta facility, and returned in 1989. He is recognized nationally for his accomplishments. Borders is a council member for the National Club Association, a group of leaders who assist in addressing the needs of clubs.
Anderson was on staff at the Athletic Club in 1981 and worked the 1981 PGA Championship that Larry Nelson won. He left in 1984, but returned in 1989 as director of golf. Anderson holds the title of PGA Master Professional and was Director of Golf at the Atlanta Athletic Club when the PGA Championship was held there in 2001. Anderson is an astute student of the rules of golf and is a member of the PGA Rules Committee.
Mangum came to the Athletic Club in the fall of 1988, just a few months prior to the other two men. He knows the demands of creating championship conditions. He’s been working for 10 years on a plan to have ideal fairways and greens when the best players in the world return. Mangum is a member of the Golf Course Superintendents Association of America and the Golf Course Superintendents Association of America.
The three men credit their staff for helping attain and maintain the level of excellence expected at the club. “You’re only defined by the people you’ve got working for you,” Borders said. “And we’ve got some good people.”
