Beware: He’s Infectious Martin Winters (Col ’95) spreads passion for golf at Birdwood
Martin Winters (Col ’95) wasn’t exactly born with a putter in his hand.
But he was toting a golf bag about the time most kids were wobbling around on training wheels.
Winters lived by Holston Hills Country Club in Marion, and from the age of 7 he and a buddy would routinely end their school day by scrambling off the bus, darting home to get their clubs and dashing to the course as quickly as possible.
"We would play this three-hole loop, and typically we could never finish that last hole before his mom or dad would be yelling, ‘It’s time for dinner!’ So that would end our round."
That boyish, infectious love of the game has endured into adulthood and feeds his enthusiasm as director of golf operations at Birdwood Golf Course. And though he wears many hats—agronomist, business manager, environmentalist, instructor—nothing feeds his soul like sharing his passion with new or young golfers.
"It’s fun to see someone who’s never been around the game and take them to a new level. And, hopefully, they appreciate it and love it as much as I do," he says.
Earlier this month, Birdwood hosted the Virginia State Golf Association Junior Match Play Championships, and Winters relished having the state’s finest young players on the same course where the U.Va. teams practice and compete.
Being a collegiate course is one reason Birdwood, which is owned by the University of Virginia Foundation, has developed a unique status since opening in 1984. It’s open to the public but has private memberships; it’s part of the four-diamond Boar’s Head Inn resort yet encourages play by U.Va. students.
"You certainly can’t stereotype our clientele," Winters says. "We’ll have researchers from Asia, pair them with a first-year student and then a guest who’s just coming from Pebble Beach. It’s a neat mix."
The course occupies about 200 acres of a 500-acre parcel of rolling hills that adjoin a wooded sanctuary just west of Charlottesville. The natural beauty is enhanced by Birdwood’s membership in the Audubon Cooperative Sanctuary Program. Certification entails reducing chemical use, increasing natural areas, maximizing water recirculation—even having special concrete pads for washing equipment.
"I have always been environmentally conscious—it’s near and dear to my heart," says Winters, an environmental sciences major at U.Va.
The University also is near and dear to his heart; both parents and one sibling have degrees from U.Va. It didn’t take him long after coming to Charlottesville in 1991 to get to know Birdwood, and by his third year Winters was working on the course.
"I picked up range balls, cleaned up baskets, washed carts and other things," he says. "I guess I did a good job because I moved into the pro shop."
He credits Doug DuPont, former Birdwood pro, and Judy Bell and the late Bill Battle, both former USGA presidents, with helping him succeed. Now he’s passing along motivation on many levels, from volunteering with the Special Olympics to being a brand-new father.
In fact, Winters made sure his son would come as close as possible to being born with a putter in his hand.
"I was fortunate enough to go to the Masters this spring, and I knew my wife was pregnant so I bought a little putter," Winters says and grins. "So our child already has a putter."
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