Cherry Valley nabs top honor

Skillman, N.J. – Cherry Valley Country Club has been named Course of the Year for 2005 by the New Jersey Golf Course Owners Association. The NJGCOA will present Cherry Valley Country Club with this award Oct. 10 at the Forsgate Country Club.

“We are thrilled to receive this prestigious honor,” says Tom Hurley, general manager of Cherry Valley Country Club. “Our goal at Cherry Valley is to provide our members with the finest, family-friendly private club experience in New Jersey. It is truly rewarding to be recognized for our first-class golf course, top-notch facilities, and exceptional amenities as well as our club’s dedication to the community.”

As the New Jersey state winner, the private, member-owned Cherry Valley Country Club is now among the nominees eligible to receive the National Golf Course Owners Association Course of the Year award that will be announced at the organization’s national convention in New Orleans Feb. 7 through 11, 2006.

According to the NJGCOA, the following criteria were used to evaluate and select the course of the year: exceptional quality of the course; exceptional quality of the ownership and management; outstanding contribution to the community; and significant contribution to the game.

“Cherry Valley Country Club is a member-owned club and has been a member of our association for two years,” says Olive Taylor, executive director of the NJGCOA. “It is a wonderful Rees Jones golf course, a great family club with full recreational amenities and a true example of a country club being an integral part of the community that it serves.”

Cherry Valley Country Club has been a fixture on the landscape of Somerset County for more than 15 years.

Cherry Valley is maintained by golf course superintendent Steven Wirth, whose 22 years of experience as assistant superintendent at Baltusrol, including preparing the course for two U.S. Men’s Open Championships and a U.S. Women’s Open Championship, has contributed greatly to the success he has enjoyed at Cherry Valley.

In addition to its golf course, Cherry Valley Country Club – named the “2001 Club of the Year” by the New Jersey Section of the Professional Golf Association – also plays host to numerous community events and charitable activities.

Cherry Valley Country Club will serve as host for the upcoming 2005 NJPGA Section Championship Sept. 19 to 22.