Paradise in the Pines

Julia Pine grew up wanting to be a Sportscenter anchor on ESPN. While that didn't come to fruition, her love for sports and wanting to be a part of it in some way has always been a passion. Her career path led her to the Southern California Golf Association, where her strong work ethic, dedication, and perseverance gave her the shot to work for the United States Golf Association (USGA). She no...

James Walker Tufts founded Pinehurst Resort in 1895. For more than 130 years, the Tufts name has had an active role in the history and shaping of our globally recognized destination. Rick Tufts is part of that family lineage and was born and raised in Pinehurst, where he still lives. In this episode of Paradise in the Pines, Tufts talks about his family legacy, growing up in Pinehurst and how he p...

All Richard Mandell has ever wanted to do is be a golf course architect. Among names like Bill Coore, Ben Crenshaw, Gil Hanse and Tom Doak, Mandell has been working since 1992 to find his own niche and name among those creating courses for all of us to enjoy the game. In this episode of Paradise in the Pines, Mandell talks about his love for Donald Ross designs, his passion for golf course archite...

For as long as she can remember, Julia Golden has known that she wanted to be a singer and a songwriter. Now, at the age of 19, her years of performing have taken her from small Moore County venues to the stages of Nashville, and most recently to network TV, where she appeared on the latest edition of NBC's "The Voice." In this episode of Paradise in the Pines, Golden talks about her...

If it weren't for Starworks, the annual Pinecone Pathways Program in Moore County would not exist. But Starworks is much, much more than glass pinecones and North Carolina's biggest scavenger hunt. It is a nonprofit organization that promotes community and economic development by providing outstanding artistic educational programs. Joe Grant is Starworks' new executive director and he has a vision...

William Mangum knew what he wanted to do with his life when he was 8 years old. Admittedly, not the best student, Mangum found peace and prosperity with the graceful strokes of a paintbrush. Decades later, he is recognized as arguably one of the finest landscape artists in his home state of North Carolina. Born in Pinehurst, Mangum's love of the Tarheel State is evident in his paintings, which dep...

Cricket Gentry was raised at the feet of a legend. Her father, John Derr, was a famous broadcaster and was head of CBS TV and CBS Sports. Derr also covered 62 of the first 66 Masters golf tournaments, most from his perch above the 15th green at Augusta National. Gentry grew up around a who's who of celebrities from stage, screen and sports. Now, as a long-time resident of Pinehurst, Gentry lov...

It has been quite a year for Moore County's neighbor to our south down in Richmond County, NC. First, in the spring, the roar of racing returned to the historic Rockingham Speedway as The Rock welcomed back NASCAR to the famed one-mile oval. Then, in the summer, Amazon Web Services (AWS) announced the largest business deal in North Carolina history with a $10 billion plan to build a data cente...

Alex Podlogar is living his best life. Combining his love of writing, media, PR, and golf at arguably the nation's premier golf resort, you may not see his face very often, but his words have eloquently and uniquely documented some of the most memorable moments at the Cradle of American Golf for the last 13 years. In this episode of Paradise in the Pines, Podlogar talks about his path to Pinehurst...

The Home of American Golf couldn't be prouder that the World Golf Hall of Fame has returned to its original home in Pinehurst. Located at the USGA's Golf House Pinehurst campus, the WGHOF also includes the USGA Experience. The unique locker room design of the WGHOF provides a fun insight into the careers of legendary players and other inductees who helped shape the game of golf. It's d...

Kellyann Miller was born and raised with Pine Needles Lodge & Golf Club literally as her backyard. Part of the family that owns that venerable club, plus Mid Pines Inn & Golf Club and Southern Pines Golf Club, she opted for early career experiences in the big city with big brands in NYC, Austin and San Diego. But life, career and a yearning for a family of her own has led her back to South...

There is a lot happening in Moore County these days. Growth in Moore County is inevitable as a globally-recognized destination, and that creates significant opportunities for economic development. Natalie Hawkins heads up the Moore County Economic Development Partnership (MCEDP) and in this episode of the award-winning Paradise in the Pines, Hawkins touches on a number of topics including the ling...

If you follow Pinehurst Resort's social media channels, you've seen an endless array of amazing images and video content. The driving force behind all of that content is Matt Gibson. While you may not recognize his face, his mission is what he sees behind the lens. In this episode of Paradise in the Pines, meet Matt Gibson and learn more about how his unique storytelling style endears peop...

Following in the footsteps of a legend is never easy to do, but Andy Priest is ready for the challenge. With Jack Nance stepping down as executive director of the Carolinas Golf Association after 40 years, Priest actually returns to the CGA after serving as the leader of the Alabama Golf Association for nine years. Priest started his golf career in 1997 under Nance and returns with a vision for th...

While the Pinehurst, Southern Pines, Aberdeen area has its share of talented local chefs, we can now boast our very own celebrity chef! Leigh Orleans appeared on Season 22 of the hit FOX TV show “Hell’s Kitchen” and now calls Moore County home. On this episode of Paradise in the Pines, Leigh talks about how she survived Gordon Ramsey’s wrath, her love of everything culinary, and even shares a few...

We are very fortunate to have a very diverse and talented arts community in the Pinehurst area of North Carolina . Among the abundance of artists in a number of disciplines, Larissa Ann Ray has found a unique niche. It all started with a spark created by her work known as "Sergeant Reckless." From there, Larissa Ann Art has been driven by a sense of purpose, which allows her to pay it forward and...

forthcoming

The Pinehurst, Southern Pines, Aberdeen area of North Carolina is a burgeoning music destination. And no one has a better pulse of the local music scene and its potential like Baxter Clement, owner of Casino Guitars in downtown Southern Pines. Clement has spent most of his life in the music industry and has traveled the world to perform. But, Southern Pines and Moore County has always been home fo...

Tim Russell is the new executive director of the Sunrise Theater in downtown Southern Pines. His path to the stage at the Sunrise spans the globe from Australia to Hong Kong to Europe as a corporate executive. All along the way, he's always been a huge music fan and part-time musician. He's been a resident of Moore County for about 10 years, and when the chance to manage the Sunrise became availab...

If you are familiar with our annual Pinecone Pathways Program, you know how passionate people can be about finding one of the glass treasures. All of the pinecones in the program are handmade by glassmakers from Starworks in Star, NC in neighboring Montgomery County. The director of glass at Starworks is Joe Grant, who arrived in our area almost 20 years ago from Illinois. Three years ago, the CVB...

Golf doesn’t just bring people from all over the world to experience our world-class, Top 100 courses— it also attracts a variety of businesses connected to the golf industry. One of those is Dr. Savannah Gardner, a board-certified chiropractic physician and owner of The Movement Foundry in Southern Pines. Originally from Jupiter, FL, Dr. Gardner is also a Titleist Performance Institute Medical Le...

forthcoming

forthcoming...

Millions of people love to play golf, but there is arguably no one more passionate about playing golf on as many courses as possible than Greg Ohlendorf. And we're are not just talking any golf courses. Ohlendorf is the second person to play Golf Magazine's World Top 100 Courses and Golfweek's Top 100 Modern and Classic Golf Courses. He's also played in all 50 states, more than 1,0...

North Carolina ranks as the fifth most-visited state in the U.S., welcoming approximately 43 million visitors in 2023. The state's tourism efforts are driven by VisitNC, part of the Economic Development Partnership of North Carolina. Scott Peacock, the Director of Marketing for VisitNC, works alongside state tourism director Wit Tuttell and the VisitNC team to implement strategies that attract...