Paradise in the Pines

From the battlefield of Iraq and Afghanistan to the plush confines of The Country Club of North Carolina, Joe Steadman has quite the story to tell. Throughout it all, the one common denominator and glue that has kept him going is the game of golf. From his youth growing up in upstate New York to his current role as the director of instruction at CCNC, Steadman has been a student of the game and hi...

Cassy Tully could be considered the female version of LeRoy Neiman. Her artwork celebrates the style, captures the memories, and preserves the legacies of majestic golf courses, prestigious properties, and private patrons. Her championship golf art includes works for the USGA, PGA of America, Veteran Golfers Association, and the Arnold Palmer Foundation. She created official artwork for the 2020 R...

Survivalist, Ninja, the Black MacGyver! His name is Hakim Isler, the nation's premier professional African-American survival expert. He is most notably recognized for his appearances on Discovery Channel's Naked & Afraid, Naked & Afraid XL, and FOX's Kicking & Screaming. A man of many skills, Hakim is a decorated combat war veteran, Ninja sixth degree black belt, certified close-protec...

Our U.S. Open series of podcasts continues this week with Angela Moser. She was the lead designer of Pinehurst No. 10, the resort's newest golf course in nearly three decades. While Tom Doak receives credit as the main designer, Moser played a daily and intricate role in building and shaping the course which opened in April to rave reviews. Moser is immensely talented as a landscape architect and...

If you watch WRAL-TV weekdays in the morning, or at noon, you've seen him. If you play golf in the Pinehurst area, you may have seen him walking our area courses (he's easy to spot as a lefty). Jeff Hogan has called the Raleigh area home for six years and while he's a trusted news source at the Big 5, he's also an avid golfer and loves to tee it up inside the Home of Amercian Golf every chance he...

Ryan Lavner is living his best life and dream job as a golf reporter for Golf Channel and NBC Sports. In our continuing series of Paradise in the Pines podcasts recorded on-site at the 2024 U.S. Open at Pinehurst No. 2, Lavner talks about his career on the road covering the PGA Tour and other aspects of the golf industry. We also learn how he fared playing No. 2 for the first time and whom he rate...

Our special on-location U.S. Open podcast series continues this week with someone who has perhaps the most memorable tie to the championship. Mike Hicks was the long-time caddie for Payne Stewart and had a front row seat for all the drama that unfolded during the final round of the 1999 U.S. Open. In this episode of Paradise in the Pines from Pinehurst No. 2, Hicks recalls that epic final round, P...

Ann Ligouri is an icon in sports broadcasting. Host, executive producer, and owner of the award-winning Sports Innerview cable series, an original sports talk show host on WFAN New York and the Golf Channel, Ann covers golf from the major championships to various PGA Tour and LPGA Tour events. Ann is a recipient of the Met Golf Writers Association's Winnie Palmer Award among a long list of car...

Imagine playing in your first PGA TOUR event and it just happens to be at the U.S. Open. Oh, and its also in your hometown! That's exactly what's happening to Southern Pines native Michael McGowan. The son of former PGA TOUR player Pat McGowan and grandson of the legendary Peggy Kirk Bell, McGowan grew up around Pine Needles Lodge & Golf Club, played collegiately at UNC and is now pois...

If you visit or reside in the Pinehurst area, or Moore County in general, you likely have seen the work of Bob Koontz and his team from KoontzJones Design. As a landscape architect and planner, some examples of his team's work include USGA's Golf House Pinehurst, Golf Pride's Global Innovation headquarters, Pinehurst No. 10, Morganton Park (where the new Target resides), and the new Gr...

Dan Van Horn is the President and Founder of U.S. Kids Golf. What started as a father simply trying to make golf easier and more enjoyable for his kids has become the world’s leading provider of kids’ golf equipment, tournaments, and development best practices in the world. Since 2018, U.S. Kids Golf has been recognized as one of the Top 100 Businesses in golf by the National Golf Foundation. In 2...

Will commercial flight service ever return to the Moore County Airport? We may know soon according to the facility's new director, Rick Cloutier. He was named director in the fall of 2023 taking over from long-time director Ron Maness. Cloutier brings a wealth of aviation experience to his new role and steps in as the airport plans to welcome players and corporate execs from around the country...

Dr. Tom Dorsel is Professor Emeritus of Psychology, a clinical/sport psychologist, and author of the best selling book, “GOLF: The Mental Game.” He currently works with golfers in both Hilton Head and Pinehurst. With major championship golf season upon us in 2024, what better time than to talk about the most challenging six inches in the golf game - the space between the ears! Dr. Dorsel has publi...

Dan Van Horn is the President and Founder of U.S. Kids Golf. What started as a father simply trying to make golf easier and more enjoyable for his kids has become the world’s leading provider of kids’ golf equipment, tournaments, and development best practices in the world. Since 2018, U.S. Kids Golf has been recognized as one of the Top 100 Businesses in golf by the National Golf Foundation. In 2...

Robert Hayter is a landscape architect by trade, but there is no one title that defines him. Hayter possesses a wealth of knowledge not only about his trade, but also about a number of topics which made for one of our most interesting Paradise in the Pines episodes. Among his accomplishments, Hayter co-authored Pinehurst's first unified development ordinance and Moore County's plan for hig...

If you visit or reside in the Pinehurst area, or Moore County in general, you likely have seen the work of Bob Koontz and his team from KoontzJones Design. As a landscape architect and planner, some examples of his team's work include USGA's Golf House Pinehurst, Golf Pride's Global Innovation headquarters, Pinehurst No. 10, Morganton Park (where the new Target resides), and the new Gr...

forthcoming

Mitch Capel is a storyteller, poet, recording artist, actor and author born in Southern Pines. Since 1985, he has been bringing stories to life and delighting audiences throughout the United States with his warmth, wit and compelling storytelling style. As a youth, he was inspired by “The Life & Works of Paul Laurence Dunbar." The genius of Dunbar’s work coupled with the joy in his grandm...

This is one podcast you want to check out! Warren Lewis is a chef, entrepreneur, world traveler, wildlife photographer and true Renaissance man. More affectionately known in the Sandhills as "Chef Warren" and proprietor of the impeccable dining establishment in Southern Pines that bears his name, he is always into something. And whatever it is, Lewis does it with verve, energy, passion a...

The son of a farmer and a school teacher from Richmond County, Tom McInnis was raised on traditional values and beliefs. As a reigning fifth-term North Carolina Senator, McInnis is in the midst of an effort to secure a sixth term as he serves constituents in Moore and Cumberland counties. While the CVB does not endorse candidates and is non-political, Sen. McInnis efforts have impacts on the touri...

Happy New Year! We hope you all had a great holiday season and welcome to 2024! This episode of Paradise in the Pines is our look ahead at 2024. As we celebrate two years and 45 episodes in, we take a look back over the last year and share some highlights from past guests, including a little of what to expect in 2024. Enjoy, be sure to search for Paradise in the Pines on your favorite podcatcher,...

Taylor Clement is the newly elected mayor of Southern Pines. Aside from being mayor, she is a wife, mother of three, entrepreneur and business owner. The thread through all of those attributes is a passion for the town of Southern Pines and a vision for the future inside one of most rapidly growing areas of North Carolina. Check out this latest episode of Paradise in the Pines as Clement talks abo...

Bill Fields is an award-winning golf writer and journalist from Southern Pines who got interested in writing about sports as a boy in North Carolina sharing the sports section of The Greensboro Daily News every morning with his father. His writing continued through high school and later as editor of The Daily Tar Heel as a student at UNC. Throughout a multi-decade career, Fields has written for da...

Talk about insider politics, Brian Lewis is the ultimate insider at the N.C. General Assembly. As a lobbyist and the owner/principal for New Frame, he and his colleagues gauge the bipartisan pulse of our lawmakers in Raleigh. Among many political topics and issues, Lewis is a huge friend and advocate of the tourism industry as he possesses a vast knowledge of hotel occupancy tax legislation and it...