Country Club of Johnston County

Getting To Know: Country Club of Johnston County

An Insightful Interview With Robert Borsos, Pro Shop

By Brian Weis

Whether you have played a course 20+ times a year or looking to play the course for the first time, insights from an insider can help enhance your golf experience. Below is an interview with Robert Borsos who shares some valuable tidbits about the course, memorable holes and must eats and treats at the 19th.

Give Our Readers An Overview of the Golf Course/Property
The Country Club of Johnston County is a scenic, Ellis Maples designed course conveniently located just off Interstate 95, exit 90 in historic Smithfield, NC. Our 18 hole gem features smooth, fast Bermuda greens, tree lined fairways and challenging holes.

If Someone Was Looking To Golf In The Area, Why Should They Play Your Course?
The course is extremely playable for all skill levels and a lot of fun to play in all weather conditions.

What Tips or Local Knowledge Would You Provide To Help Them Score Better At Your Course?
The course is located along beautiful Holt Lake and the greens tend to break toward the lake. Strategically located ponds should be respected and avoided.

Recent Awards or What You Are Most Proud About The Course?
The course receives high praise from members and guests for it's pristine conditioning year around.

What Is The Signature, Most Talked About, or Most Photographed Hole?
Number 13 is considered to be our signature hole. A wonderful 417 yard, dogleg left along a tree lined fairway with out of bounds left and a well placed bunker right demands a accurate drive. The second shot requires a precision iron to a bunker guarded green with a beautiful pond and fountain, on the right. The large kidney shaped green offers challenging but fair pin locations.

What Is Your Favorite Hole? Any Tips to Play It?
Number 8 is a scenic tree lined dogleg left that requires a position shot off the tee (or an aggressive lofted wood over the trees) and a short iron, downhill, to a well bunkered green with many interesting pin placement options.

Must Have Dish or Drink after the round at the 19th Hole?
A cheeseburger and a beer are a great finish to a satisfying round.

Who Holds Course Record and What Was Their Score?
The course record 60 is held by PGA Tour Pro Neal Lancaster on 12/29/02. Neal learned the game and honed his skills playing the Country Club of Johnston County course. The round consisted of a brilliant 7 under par 29 on the front nine and a great 6 under par 31 on the back side. The 12 under par round included 2 eagles, 9 birdies and 1 bogey.

Back Tee Stats
Par: 72
Yardage: 6573
Slope: 132
Rating: 71.9

More Information
Country Club of Johnston County
694 Country Club Road
Smithfield, NC 27577
919-934-4544
WWW.ccjohnstoncounty.com

Revised: 01/21/2013 - Article Viewed 30,917 Times - View Course Profile

About: Brian Weis

Brian Weis is the mastermind behind GolfTrips.com, a vast network of golf travel and directory sites covering everything from the rolling fairways of Wisconsin to the sunbaked desert layouts of Arizona. If there’s a golf destination worth visiting, chances are, Brian has written about it, played it, or at the very least, found a way to justify a "business trip" there.

As a card-carrying member of the Golf Writers Association of America (GWAA), International Network of Golf (ING), Golf Travel Writers of America (GTWA), International Golf Travel Writers Association (IGTWA), and The Society of Hickory Golfers (SoHG), Brian has the credentials to prove that talking about golf is his full-time job. In 2016, his peers even handed him The Shaheen Cup, a prestigious award in golf travel writing—essentially the Masters green jacket for guys who don’t hit the range but still know where the best 19th holes are.

Brian’s love for golf goes way back. As a kid, he competed in junior and high school golf, only to realize that his dreams of a college golf scholarship had about the same odds as a 30-handicap making a hole-in-one. Instead, he took the more practical route—working on the West Bend Country Club grounds crew to fund his University of Wisconsin education. Little did he know that mowing greens and fixing divots would one day lead to a career writing about the best courses on the planet.

In 2004, Brian turned his golf passion into a business, launching GolfWisconsin.com. Three years later, he expanded his vision, and GolfTrips.com was born—a one-stop shop for golf travel junkies looking for their next tee time. Today, his empire spans all 50 states, and 20+ international destinations.

On the course, Brian is a weekend warrior who oscillates between a 5 and 9 handicap, depending on how much he's been traveling (or how generous he’s feeling with his scorecard). His signature move" A high, soft fade that his playing partners affectionately (or not-so-affectionately) call "The Weis Slice." But when he catches one clean, his 300+ yard drives remind everyone that while he may write about golf for a living, he can still send a ball into the next zip code with the best of them.

Whether he’s hunting down the best public courses, digging up hidden gems, or simply outdriving his buddies, Brian Weis is living proof that golf is more than a game—it’s a way of life.