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Carl is originally from Walpole, New Hampshire where he
developed an interest for the sport of golf an early age. "I grew up across the
street from Hooper Golf Club and started playing golf in 1975 at the age of ten.
Every summer I would work and play at the course and I did everything from
working in the pro shop, on the course for the grounds crew, and even bartending
for social events - all skills that come in handy at the golf course".
Carl is a graduate of the Professional Golf Management
program at New Mexico State University in Las Cruces, New Mexico. The PGM
program at NMSU combines a four-year business degree in Business Administration
(Marketing Major) with most of the credits required for PGA membership. "When I
was at NMSU there were only three programs in the country and now there are over
20. The PGM program was the perfect program for me, as I always wanted a
business degree and PGA membership. The curriculum included incredible contacts
for internships. My first internship was at Southern Hills Country Club in
Tulsa, Oklahoma - the host of the 2007 U.S. Open, my other internship was at
Doral Resort in Miami, Florida".
After attaining PGA membership, Carl learned the 'business
of golf' when his first PGA Head Golf Professional position was at the Crystal
Springs Resort in northern New Jersey, just one hour away from NYC. Crystal
Springs has six championship golf courses that host over 200,000 rounds of golf
annually. Carl was the PGA Head Golf Professional at Black Bear where he managed
over 50 employees, 250 golf outings and 45,000 rounds per season. One highlight
that Carl mentions from Black Bear includes the award of 1998 PGA National
Teacher of the Year to David Glenz. Carl adds, "I've always been and still am a
student to become the best 'coach' possible in golf and I learned so much from
Dave and being roommates with a couple of his instructors didn't hurt either".
Carl's professional career progressed even further when he
had the opportunity to be the PGA Head Golf Professional at Glenn Dale Golf Club
in Maryland, just outside Washington, D.C. Glenn Dale has a rich history of
hosting major golf tournaments and was designed by the resident architect of
Augusta National, the legendary George Cobb. While at Glenn Dale Carl assumed
more responsibility in member program development, merchandising, and especially
junior golf. Glenn Dale is also the home of the Troy Beck Golf Academy and with
the support from family ownership; Troy runs one the premier junior programs in
the country. Carl points out that besides working at a club that had many
characteristics of Augusta being associated with the Shields family (owners) and
Troy was a tremendous learning experience.
In addition to working in golf, Carl brings valuable work
experience from working in the customer service industry. As a full time
student, Carl worked full time throughout college at the local Hilton hotel in
Las Cruces, New Mexico which provided constant 'Hilton Priority One' customer
service training. On top of this Carl adds three seasons of work at a five star
ski resort in Colorado where customer service training was also priority number
one.
Carl works together with his wife Colleen who manages the
pro shop and the merchandising. Colleen brings a strong background in retail and
enjoys playing on Ladies Night. Carl lives locally with his wife Colleen and
they are proud to announce the birth of their first child, Carl Francis Fitz IV
who was born on March 6, 2008. |
