Michelle Dougherty leading new team at Manchester (VT) Country Club
The Manchester (VT) Country Club, a private club and one of southern Vermont’s premier golf courses, has named Michelle Dougherty, CCM, as general manager/COO.
Dougherty brings more than 20 years of club management experience and headlines a new team at Manchester that includes Head PGA Golf Professional Peter Weatherby, Executive Chef David Dukeshire and Tennis Professional Keith Baisden. The newly appointed hires join veteran Superintendent Sean P Monahan, who has overseen the management of the Manchester (VT), course which in 2021 will host the Vermont Senior Championship, the US Senior Amateur Qualifier (2021), and the New England Senior Amateur Championship (2021).
“This is an exciting time for Manchester as we rejuvenate the club, upgrade our facilities, host some great events and introduce a slate of new programs,” Dougherty said. “Our dynamic and experienced team is focused on enriching the member experience and we’re eager to attract new families and members to what we believe is one of the best courses and clubs in the area and one of the more casual, welcome settings in a most beautiful part of Vermont.”
Prior to joining Manchester, Dougherty was the general manager at Brookstone Events and Golf in New Hampshire. She also held positions as assistant at The Quechee Club (Quechee VT); clubhouse manager at the Nashua Country Club (Nashua NH); director of operations at The Lanam Club i(Andover, MA); and clubhouse manager at The Concord Country Club (Concord, MA).
A 2009 graduate of Southern New Hampshire University she received her CCM designation in 2017 and is an active member of New England Club Managers Association, The Club Management Association of America and the American Legion Auxillary.
Weatherby joins Manchester from The Ekwanok Country Club, where he was the assistant professional for the past three years. He also worked at the Jupiter Island Club (FL), The Misquamicut (RI) Club and the Old Sandwich (MA) Golf Club.
“Our mission is to provide members with a warm, attentive, and well-organized golf operation day in and day out,” Weatherby said. “The first time I played Manchester was an incredible surprise. It is a hidden treasure and one of the finest courses in Vermont. It is a serious golf course, a player’s course that we are making fun for all. The proud history here will continue and support golf on all levels whether we host prestigious local and regional tournaments or introduce more family, fun events for all golfers to enjoy.”
Dukeshire, a graduate of the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, NY, received his degree in 2012.
Baisden, a PTR Professional, USPTA Elite Professional, started his tennis career as a young boy in a small town in southern Virginia. He competed in tournaments around the mid-Atlantic Region for years and as a junior player maintained a solid ranking throughout his career. Baisden played number one singles and was a district and regional singles champion his junior and senior years in Fauquier High School in Warrington, VA. Baisden began his coaching career 10 years ago at a small private academy in Napa Valley, CA.