Welcome to a friendlier Pelican Hill

On the heels of Sept. 11 and golf’s subsequent decline in rounds

played, especially on some of Orange County’s high-end courses,

Pelican Hill Golf Club has decided to take matters into its own hands

and manage itself.

After years of being operated by Western Golf Properties, Inc.,

Pelican Hill distinguished itself with two award-winning Tom

Fazio-designed courses -- both with wide views of the Pacific Ocean,

Newport Harbor and Catalina Island, and, on days like Tuesday,

Wednesday and Thursday, the sights go forever. No wonder they thought

the world was flat.

Since Pelican Hill opened its Ocean South resort course 11 years

ago this month, the club had always offered special amenities like

car washes in the parking lot, and, later after the clubhouse was

built, a first-class restaurant.

But something funny happened along the way. Pelican Hill’s chiefs

the past few years have been “golf” people, so Irvine Co.-owned

Pelican Hill went out and hired a “hospitality” expert. Meet

Hansjoerg Maissen, Pelican Hill’s new general manager.

“The club has always had all these wonderful people here

associated with Pelican Hill, but I think what they were looking

forward to was somebody with different experience, somebody with a

different set of eyes to complement what they were already doing, so

I’m not the same thing,” said Maissen, whose background includes an

extensive management record at five-star resorts around the world.

Customer service has its price and for Pelican Hill, which now

offers memberships for discounted play, the aim is to peak in the

areas away from the golf course, while elevating the level of service

on the golf course.

For example, instead of a marshal pulling up in his cart and

asking if everything’s OK, the new Pelican Hill marshals will do just

about everything except shine your shoes. As Maissen insists, they

are now suggested to say something to the degree like “good afternoon

... how is your round going? Do you want anything? Do you need your

clubs cleaned? Do you need more sand (to repair divots)? Maybe they

can take the garbage off their cart. We just want to be a little more

aggressive.”

The world’s lost art of customer service, except for at high-end

resorts and restaurants and the like, is coming to Pelican Hill.

“I think that everything has always been here, but maybe it has

not always brought the customer to the top level that it could be,”

said Maissen, an avid golfer. “I’m not reinventing the wheel here.

We’ll just reemphasize the things that we do and maybe we’ll be more

aggressive in hospitality.”

Maissen, who arrived last month, was hired also as general manager

at Oak Creek Golf Club, the public user-friendly Fazio course in

Irvine.

In the past, Pelican Hill’s owner had employed a Director of Golf,

with Bobby Heath being its most recent. Now, Maissen serves as GM for

both courses owned by the Irvine Co., while the golf professionals

and superintendents go about business as usual. Well, sort of.

“It doesn’t make any difference if it’s a resort, a hotel or a

golf course,” Maissen said. “It always comes down to satisfying the

player who wants to come out here, and while not having an actual

background in the golf business, I do have a background in what

quality is and what luxury is and what a customer wants for his

money. I have a great eye for details.”

Maissen, who is fluent in five languages and has worked in the

five-star hotel industry in Monte Carlo, London, Athens and Geneva,

was president and managing director of Bachman Springs Hospitality in

Tombstone, Ariz., where he was heading the creation of a luxury

development that included a Fazio-designed golf course, spa and

resort.

*

UC Irvine athletics and the Private Tennis Club Association will

present the fourth Grubb & Ellis/Wilson Sporting Goods Myron McNamara

Golf Tournament Monday at Jack Kramer’s Los Serranos Golf Course in

Chino Hills.

Proceeds benefit the Myron McNamara Scholarship Fund for UC

Irvine’s men’s tennis program. The late McNamara coached the

Anteaters’ men’s tennis team to NCAA Division II championships in

1972, ‘73, ’75 and ’77.

The event will begin with check-in at 10 a.m., followed by an 11

a.m. shotgun start in a four-player scramble format. After golf is a

hospitality tour, dinner and silent auction. The cost is $150 per

player or $500 per foursome. Details: (949) 824-2046.

*

The 2002 Toshiba Senior Classic on the Champions Tour (formerly

the Senior PGA Tour) was captured by Hale Irwin in a rout on his way

to another money title.

Irwin also won the Charles Schwab Cup with 2,886 points, 799 more

than runner-up Bob Gilder. Irwin took the lead in the Cup points

standings after winning the Toshiba Senior Classic March 10.

*

Former back-to-back Newport Classic Pro-Am winner R.W. Eaks

shattered the driving distance record on the Champions Tour when he

averaged 295.1 yards per drive this year.