SITUATION

Pinehurst Resort is the largest and most historic golf resort in the country. Of its eight golf courses, the most famous is the historic Pinehurst No. 2. In recent years, Pinehurst No. 2 began to slip in the rankings so the resort decided to freshen it with a Coore & Crenshaw restoration. The changes were dramatic, changing the course from a manicured masterpiece to a rugged, sand-ridden tract. Resort executives were anxious about how this would be received – both by the golf world and consumers.

OBJECTIVE

Our job was to launch this newly restored course in as favorable a light as possible and encourage people to come play it.

SOLUTION

In addition to TV spots on ESPN and The Golf Channel and 2-page inserts in golf publications, we created a microsite to tell the story of the course, hole-by-hole. The results could not have been more favorable. Web traffic increased by 40%. Phone volume increased by 15%. And most importantly, the number of rounds and room nights hit numbers not seen in years.