North Carolina native Jim Sutton has been appointed general manager/chief operating officer at The Country Club of North Carolina (CCNC).
“CCNC is fortunate to have found an innovative industry veteran like Jim Sutton to lead us to our next levels of success as General Manager/COO,” said Club President Charlie Rivers. “Jim brings a broad range of skills and a commitment to service that will lead to memorable daily experiences for our members and provide clear direction and leadership for the club’s staff. We are proud of our North Carolina roots and ecstatic that Jim, a fellow North Carolinian, is coming home.”
Sutton became a CMAA-certified club manager in 2005 and a certified chief executive in 2014, one of approximately 350 managers who have earned that designation, worldwide. In 2014, he joined the CMAA Honor Society.
Most recently serving as the general manager at the Country Club of Charleston in South Carolina (2019-2024), Sutton led that club through the successful execution of the 2019 U.S. Women’s Open Championship. He expanded staffing in critical areas led the club through a period of rapid growth in operating revenues in his first four years, coinciding with the opening of a new wellness center, aquatics facility, new golf shop and an outdoor dining venue.
In addition, he guided the club’s board through a strategic planning process and the planning and implementation of the ongoing multi-year facilities improvement plan, which will include a renovation of the iconic Seth Raynor design golf course. The club contests the prestigious Azalea Invitational annually and hosted the Southern Golf Association’s 50th Southern Junior in 2022, the same year he was honored by the Carolinas Club Foundation with the Leadership Memorial Scholarship.
“Joining the team at CCNC and returning home to North Carolina is a personal highlight in my career,” said Sutton, who graduated with a degree in business from UNC-Chapel Hill in 1994. “I am grateful to the membership and Board at CCNC for their confidence in me, and I am honored to continue to improve upon the club’s well-earned reputation for its outstanding membership experience and world-class facilities. There are exciting conversations happening in the Board Room about the club’s future, and I’m eager to provide the leadership to execute that vision. I am also proud to continue CCNC’s longstanding commitment to supporting amateur golf, including hosting past and future Championships in partnership with the USGA.”
Sutton, a Wilmington, N.C. native, started his duties at CCNC in early May.
Prior to his tenure at the Country Club of Charleston, Sutton served as COO/GM at The Club at Longview in Weddington, N.C. from 2014-2019. There, he earned the Carolinas Club Foundation Club Manager of the Year award for 2017-2018. Under his leadership as president of the Carolinas Chapter of CMAA (2017-2018), the group won the association’s national awards for ‘Excellence in Education’ and the Chapter of Year in 2017.
Sutton also served as the general manager of River Hills Country Club in Lake Wylie, S.C. from 2012-2014 and The Carolina Club in Chapel Hill, N.C. from 2008-2012.
He currently volunteers time to serve on the Governance Committee for the National Club Association and remains active in CMAA.
Contributed/Courtesy photo.
