June 4, 2008: Nettle Creek Welcomes New Golf Professional
Morris, Ill. -- Morris native Kurt Nolen, who served as Nettle Creek Country Club’s assistant pro in 2003, has returned to Nettle Creek in the dual role of head golf professional and assistant manager.
     "We are delighted to have Kurt on board," says Nettle Creek GM John O’Connor. "He has great people skills and is an outstanding instructor who enjoys teaching the game."
     For Nolen, the golf bug bit early. He grew up in a neighborhood adjacent to Morris Country Club where, at age 11 or 12, he scored his first golf industry job: picking up range balls for the pro. By 13 or 14, Nolen had learned about Ferris State University’s pioneering professional golf management program and settled on a career in golf. At age 16, Nolen followed the Morris C.C. pro to Nettle Creek. He worked at Nettle as a cart attendant for two years before heading to Big Rapids, Mich., home of Ferris State.
     After graduation, Nolen worked as an assistant pro first at Nettle Creek, then for two years at Kishwaukee Country Club. He was the head golf professional at Marengo Ridge Country Club for three years before his "homecoming" to Nettle Creek.
     Nolen is enthusiastic about the opportunity, and the course. "Nettle Creek has a great layout and is golfer-friendly," says Nolen. "It requires the use of all the clubs in your golf bag—you’re not limited to a driver and a wedge, all your clubs come into play out here."
     Nolen confirms that he enjoys giving lessons and feels he especially excels at teaching women and juniors, two critical groups to involve if the game of golf is to sustain and grow its participation rate. "I’m currently in the process of planning junior golf programs to begin in July," notes Nolen.
     Meanwhile, Nettle Creek is gearing up for a successful season. The facility is hosting a number of large groups in upcoming days, including the Grundy County Chamber of Commerce Friday, June 6; the IBEW Union on Saturday, June 7; and the Grundy County Sheriffs on Monday, June 16. The onsite Gables Restaurant, with indoor and patio seating, offers phenomenal 19th hole fare and continues to draw local residents for lunch and dinner, including a regular Friday-evening fish fry.
     "Nettle Creek has the most attractive rates you're going to find anywhere in Chicagoland for this caliber of course," O'Connor says. "We're only 20 minutes from Joliet and 30 minutes from the Naperville-Bolingbrook area. For this kind of experience, with rates peaking at only $49 including cart on weekends, we are well worth the drive. And we run coupon specials on the Web and in print on a regular basis, so golfers seldom pay that peak rate."

December 3, 2007: GolfVisions to Lease Nettle Creek Country Club
Morris, Ill. --  Often, the new year means an opportunity to start anew. Nettle Creek Country Club will do just that on January 1, 2008, when GolfVisions, Inc. assumes operations at the 18-hole championship layout located near Interstate 80 just 20 miles west of Joliet.
      “Nettle Creek is a terrific course that will benefit from the operational, accounting and marketing expertise our firm brings to all of our leased and managed facilities,” says Tim Miles, Sr., president of GolfVisions. “We’ll enhance the maintenance program at Nettle Creek and put our own special touches in place, but we foresee a seamless transition in terms of service and ongoing operations.”
     Key staff, including head golf professional/assistant manager Pat Selock and golf course superintendent Pat Norton, will remain in place to support incoming general manager John O’Connor, a GolfVisions veteran. GolfVisions will also continue and expand upon Nettle Creek’s membership program, honoring all 2008 memberships sold to date and enhancing the value of membership with loyalty incentives.
     Bill Norton was part of a group of four local businessmen who purchased Nettle Creek in the early 1990s. In 1999, he and wife Rosemary bought out the original partners. The Nortons had been seeking an opportunity to divest of the significant day-to-day responsibilities associated with managing the course. GolfVisions, which operates seven other courses in the Chicagoland area via lease or management contract, offered that opportunity. GolfVisions’ lease agreement begins January 1, 2008. “Nettle Creek is a top-drawer course,” Norton says. “Rosemary and I feel confident that GolfVisions has the knowledge and experience to make the overall golf experience even better than it is today and build upon our existing success to attract more golfers to Nettle Creek.”
     Miles likewise praises Nettle Creek. “It’s a very challenging course with big, beautiful bunkers, generous fairways, nice undulating greens and good length,” notes Miles. “We’re really pleased to add Nettle Creek to our portfolio and bring GolfVisions’ total to nine public courses across the Chicago metro area. This addition makes it even more feasible for us to offer some attractive rewards to people who play multiple GolfVisions facilities.”
     Besides Nettle Creek, GolfVisions also operates the following courses in northern Illinois:
• Settler’s Hill Golf Course, Batavia, Ill.
• Foxford Hills Golf Club, Cary, Ill.
• Oak Grove Golf Course, Harvard, Ill.
• Village Greens Golf Course, Mundelein, Ill.
• Hunter Country Club, Richmond, Ill.
• HeatherRidge Golf Course, Gurnee, Ill. (9 holes)
• Deer Valley Golf Course, Big Rock, Ill. (9 holes)
GolfVisions also operates Pennbrooke Fairways in Leesburg, Fla.