WHITE COLUMNS COUNTRY CLUB - Key Persons
Job Titles:
- Regional Director of Racquet Sports
Alejandro Garcia joined The Manor Golf and Country Club staff in August of 2009. Developing and participating in tennis programs and events, he is working to increase member participation by actively promoting high caliber private and group lessons, junior programs from beginner to national rank players, tennis tournaments, and ALTA and USTA leagues. He leads a staff of 30 professionals in all 3 clubs and looks forward to growth, his tennis program has been awarded as national team of excellence. Alejandro previously served as Director of Tennis at the TCA/Midtown Athletic Club in Atlanta from 2005 - 2009. At Midtown, he successfully led a team of ten tennis professionals and acted as a positive role model for the program.A Master Certified Professional, Alejandro was an All-American singles and doubles player at Abraham Baldwin College, where he also served as Assistant Coach. Originally from Venezuela, He was top 5 in the nation and top 35 players in South America in his junio...
Job Titles:
- Master Tennis Professional
Alida Jakovenko joined The Manor Golf and Country Club team in August of 2017. She assists the Director of Tennis with the growth of the Adult Program in the mornings as well as the High Performance Junior Academy Program in the afternoons. Alida has over 13 years of coaching experience with two years as the assistant coach for the University of Buffalo women's tennis team. In addition to coaching Division 1 tennis, she has been teaching/focusing on 10 and Under Tennis, as well as juniors and adults.Alida started playing tennis when she was seven years old in Timisoara, Romania. She became a top Junior player for her country before going to play on the WTA tour, reaching a top 300 singles ranking. Alida was then recruited to play for Florida State University where she played #1 Singles and Doubles during her collegiate career.Alida has two wonderful daughters, Emma and Maia, whom she has been coaching since they were three years old. Alida is a Certified PTR Professional.Contact Ali...
Job Titles:
- Chief Financial Officer
- Treasurer
Andrew Lacko has served as our Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer since November 2019. Prior to that, he served as Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer for Regis Corporation and has extensive experience leading Finance, Corporate FP&A, U.S. and international Business Unit Finance, Corporate Development and Investor Relations functions at multiple Fortune 500 companies. He has a proven track record of building and developing high performing, results driven finance teams and leading financial transformations, business optimization initiatives and large/complex corporate development transactions. His past roles include leadership positions at Hertz Global Holdings, First Data Corporation, Best Buy, Northwest Airlines and UnitedHealth Group. Lacko holds a Bachelor of Science in Business and Master of Business Administration from Carlson School of Management in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
Ashton Bowers, a Manor Elite Academy student, is the first Atlantean junior player to qualify for a Grand Slam after Coco Gauff. Ashton joined the Elite Tennis Program in 2018 and is currently ranked #47 in the world.
We are extremely proud that she qualified to play in the 2023 Australian Open Juniors. What a huge achievement and testament to the dedicated programming the Tennis team has developed to help mentor and steer junior players.
Job Titles:
- Hills Golf Committee Chair
Job Titles:
- Chief Information Officer
Brian Koch joined Invited in August 2021. Prior to Invited, Brian served as the Chief Information Officer for Diamond Resorts and was responsible for IT strategy and operations, supporting 10,000 associates and hundreds of sites and affiliates. Brian also worked with top leaders in the resort industry, such as Wyndham Destinations and Wyndham Vacation Ownership. Brian is an executive leader in global information technology with extensive experience developing and executing IT strategies in alignment with corporate objectives. He has successfully built global teams during all business cycles, including high growth, downturns, and acquisition integration. Brian has an established record as a business leader and holds a bachelor's degree in decision science from Indiana University.
Job Titles:
- Charity Classic Committee Chair
Job Titles:
- Executive Vice President of Club Operations
Chuck Feddersen has served as our Executive Vice President of Club Operations since January 2018. He previously served as Executive Vice President of Golf and Country Clubs, and Senior Vice President of the Business, Sports and Alumni Clubs and led the Atlanta golf region following the acquisition of Sequoia Golf. Prior to that, he served in multiple regional vice president roles in the Golf & Country Club division and in multiple operational roles during his career of more than 25 years with Invited.
Job Titles:
- Charity Classic Committee Chair
Job Titles:
- First Assistant Golf Professional
David Pillsbury was named CEO of Invited in June of 2018. He has held numerous leadership roles in the golf industry over the past 30 years, starting his golf career at American Golf Corporation (AGC). At AGC, Pillsbury led innovations including the formation of American Golf Country Clubs, the Private Club Member Platinum Program, the Nike Golf Learning Centers, centralized tee time reservations, and much more. After American Golf, Pillsbury became GM of Nike Golf, responsible for all U.S. operations, marketing and sales. Following Nike Golf, Pillsbury was President of PGA TOUR Golf Course Properties Tournament Players Clubs (TPC's), and he was then promoted to President of PGA TOUR Championship Management including THE PLAYERS, and Executive Vice President of PGA TOUR Tournament Business Affairs. Most recently, he held CEO roles in the healthcare and consumer products industries. Pillsbury received his MBA from the USC and his BA from the University of California, Berkeley.
Job Titles:
- High Performance Tennis Professional
Edina is a former professional tennis player from Romania. Her career highest singles ranking of No. 54 WTA was achieved in April 2008. She has competed in the Main Draw of all 4 Grand Slams and has made it to the 2nd round in all of them. In March 2010 she reached the semifinals of singles in Acapulco, Mexico losing in 3 sets to Venus Williams. She had victories over numerous top players like Roland Garros finalist Sara Errani, US Open semifinalist Angelique Kerber, World No.1 doubles player Roberta Vinci, US Open Champion Samantha Stosur and former No.1 Jelena Jankovic. On the ITF circuit she has won 18 singles and 12 doubles titles. As a junior she reached a career high of No. 7 ITF. In 2000 she won Eddie Herr International Championships and made the final of the prestigious Orange Bowl Championships, losing to Vera Zvonareva.She coached professional tennis players such as:Melanie Oudin Cici Bellis Louisa Chirico Ellie Halbauer She also coached numerous college tennis players s...
Emily Decker has served as our Chief Legal Officer since May 2019. Prior to that, Ms. Decker served as Senior Vice President, General Counsel and Secretary for Buffalo Wild Wings, Inc. from 2011 to 2018, providing departmental oversight for Legal, Enterprise Risk Services, Government Relations, Corporate Social Responsibility and Philanthropy. While at Buffalo Wild Wings, she also helped create and implement strategies to grow the company and provided legal counsel in developing brand strategy. She holds a J.D. from University of Michigan Law School and a B.A. from Duke University.
Job Titles:
- Director of Junior Tennis
Job Titles:
- Master Tennis Professional
Javier Blanco joined the Manor Golf and Country Club Staff in September 2009. Javier helps the Director of Tennis guide the growth of the Tennis program. In addition to the adult program, Javier's current focus is growing our junior/adult program and introducing junior tournaments to the Manor. He came from TCA/Midtown Athletic Club in Atlanta, where he served as Head Tennis Professional from 2008 - 2010. Before Midtown, Javier worked in Florida for over 14 years as an assistant tennis director at the Extreme Tennis Academy and The Nick Bollettieri International Tennis Academy. Javier had the opportunity to work with world class tennis players like Maria Sharapova and Alexandra Stevenson among others. In Venezuela, Javier was a top 10 Nationally Ranked player during his junior years. He has been a USPTR Certified Professional since 1992.Contact Javier at javier.blanco@clubcorp.com.
Job Titles:
- Entertainment Committee Chair
Job Titles:
- Office Manager & Member Accounting
Job Titles:
- Member Experience Coordinator
Job Titles:
- Golf Course Superintendent
Job Titles:
- Racquet Sports Committee Chair
Job Titles:
- Office Manager - Member Accounting
Matt has extensive experience in Private Clubs, as well as significant tenure with Invited, where he has served at several Invited properties. Matt is a member of the Professional Golfers' Association of America and the Club Management Association of America. He and his wife Ashley are the proud parents of 2 children, Dylan and Jackson.
Job Titles:
- Master Tennis Professional
Maya Mammetgulyyeva joined the Manor Golf and Country Club in November of 2018. Her primary duty is to assist the Director of tennis in various programs the club provides. As an independent instructor, she has successfully coached various private sessions that led her clients to win intermediate high school and alta kids matches. Her main focus has been junior development. Previously, Maya assisted in summer tennis camps at Brenau University and Chattahoochee County Club.Maya's coaching style emphasizes the importance of basic details that make a huge difference during play. She will focus on footwork, grip, and style development. Also, she will teach the concepts of weapons and patience in the game.As a former college tennis player, she had a 17-2 record at Fresno City College and played top 3 lineups at Brenau University all three years in NAIA. In addition, was selected in the NAIA, all-conference southern states first team all three years. She is a PTR Certified Professional.
Meg Tollison has served as our Chief Membership Officer since 2020 and is responsible for transforming the Member experience using data driven strategies focused on Member engagement and retention. Meg has responsibility for all aspects of the Member journey and leads a team of talented Member Experience leaders with a relentless focus on delivering experiences that exceed expectations and member satisfaction. Her career at Invited spans more than 29 years and previous roles include Chief Marketing Officer, Senior Vice President Marketing, Vice President Membership Services and Programs, and Director of Membership Operations. She received a degree from the University of Texas.
Job Titles:
- Director of Member Experience
Combining fresh, high-quality ingredients with simple straightforward preparations Chef Michael creates dishes that satisfy all palates. Born in a suburb of New York City, Michael discovered his fascination for food and cooking at an incredibly early age. His first taste of the restaurant industry was at his aunt's restaurant in Vermont. At 15 was hired at a local restaurant and truly began his culinary journey. Michael attended the world-renowned Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, NY, and graduated with honors. Since May of 2020, Michael has been using the culmination of all his experiences to give the members of White Columns Country Club an amazing dining experience.
Job Titles:
- Member Experience Director
Peter Kent - Chief Commercial Officer
Peter joined the Invited team in November 2021. Before joining Invited, Kent served as Chief Commercial Officer for ILITCH Sports and Entertainment managing commercial aspects of the Detroit Red Wings, Detroit Tigers, 313 Presents, and Olympia Development. At Ilitch Sports, Kent managed all aspects of sales, pricing, revenue management, strategic partnerships, sponsorship sales, and more. Kent also worked as Regional Sales Manager at Nike Golf back in 2002. He then joined Dave Pillsbury, our CEO, four years later at the PGA Tour. In total, Kent spent 11 years with the PGA Tour as Senior Vice President Global Business Development/Tournament Revenue. He managed global sales efforts for all properties/tours under the PGA Tour umbrella. Early in his Tour career, Kent helped lead retail business for the PGA Tour and TPC properties.
Job Titles:
- Membership Experience Director
Job Titles:
- Member Experience Manager
- Member of the Member Experience
Rachel Greim is the newest member of the Member Experience team but she's no stranger to golf courses! Having worked at both Stonebriar Country Club and FORE! Golf, LLC, Rachel is pleased to join the team at SBRCC. Rachel recently graduated from Texas Tech (where she earned not one but TWO bachelor's degrees!), enjoys developing relationships with new people and has a knack for digital content design. You may check out her work via our social channels. In her off time she enjoys collaborating with non-profit organizations, performing & teaching dance and fostering dogs.
Job Titles:
- Facilities Maintenance Manager
Job Titles:
- Chief Operating Officer
- President
Robert (Bob) Morse has served as our President and Chief Operating Officer since September 2020, and was Chief Operating Officer from January 2019 to August 2020. Prior to his role at Invited, Morse served as President of Hospitality for Caesars Entertainment Corporation in Las Vegas, where he was responsible for development, implementation and execution of Caesars hospitality strategy throughout the company's network of resorts. His experience throughout his vast nearly 30-year career in the industry also includes executive operations positions managing sales and marketing, human resources, information technology, hotel accounting, design and construction and the opening of new properties. Bob holds a B.S. in Hotel and Restaurant Administration from the University of Massachusetts.
Job Titles:
- Assistant Food & Beverage Director
Job Titles:
- Executive Vice President - Operations City & Stadium Clubs
Job Titles:
- Chairman of the Membership Committee
Job Titles:
- Chief People Officer
- Chief People Officer for Invited
Sherry Vidal-Brown serves as the Chief People Officer for Invited and brings experience from the hospitality and service industries including American Airlines, G6Hospitality, Accor, FedEx Office and Caliber. Her passion for talent management and diversity focuses to drive cultural change to improve the employee experience. Sherry is a strategic leader who drives change to accelerate growth and achieve business objectives. In addition to Sherry's responsibility for HR, she has overseen internal and external communications and corporate social responsibility departments. She is passionate about creating a culture that delivers a great experience for its customers and employees. She holds a doctorate in psychology from Texas A&M, as well as an MBA in Marketing/Management from The University of Houston and an undergraduate degree from Baylor University.
Job Titles:
- First Assistant Golf Professional
Job Titles:
- Chief Development Officer
Tom Bennison has served as our Chief Development Officer since 2018. Prior to that, he served as Senior Vice President, Business Development and in various other roles primarily in new business acquisitions and development throughout his 25+ years at Invited. He has more than 30 years of experience in the club business. His education includes a degree in liberal arts & sciences and additional studies in economics and finance.
Job Titles:
- Master Tennis Professional
Vitek Wild joined The Manor Golf and Country Club staff in August of 2011. Vitek teaches all levels of players - Jrs, & Adults. Vitek has over 20 years of teaching experience and specializes in high level tennis players. From 2008 to 2011 he taught with Alejandro & Javier at TCA/Midtown Athletic Club in Atlanta. All 3 pros have been working together for 15 years.Originally from Prague, Czech Republic, Vitek's success in tennis began early with a world ranking as a junior by the international Tennis Federation. He came to play his collegiate tennis in the U.S. at Bowling Green State University in Ohio where he still holds the record for most combined singles and doubles wins. Vitek also holds the distinction of being Alejandro's doubles partner! He is a USPTR Certified Professional.Contact Vitek at vitek.wild@clubcorp.com.
Vladimir Anokhin joined the Invited team in September 2021. Prior to that, he served as a Chief of Staff and Head of Product Development for Diamond Resorts, a portfolio company of Apollo Global Management. Prior to that, he served in progressively expanding Investment Banking Coverage roles in Real Estate, Lodging and Leisure group at Credit Suisse across Moscow, London and New York offices. Mr. Anokhin holds a Master of Business Administration degree from Columbia Business School of New York, New York.
Hailing from Venezuela but raised in Spain, Williams has grown up amidst a rich tapestry of cultures. With a vast and diverse journey that has taken him across the globe, including notable stints in England, the UAE, Jamaica, Spain, and Costa Rica, Williams brings a wealth of experience to his new role. Having spent the last 8 years in the USA working with Troon in esteemed country clubs, he is well-versed in delivering high-end service and premium experiences. Thrilled to be part of the Invited family, Williams has aspiring plans for the Club. His vision revolves around creating an opulent and exclusive atmosphere. He aims to surpass expectations by anticipating members' needs and offering extraordinary events and amenities. From gourmet culinary experiences to world-class golf and tennis facilities, Williams is committed to elevating the club to unparalleled heights. The future of Manor Golf and Country looks bright under his leadership as we embark on this exciting new chapter.