by Karen Brune Mathis
Managing Editor
Rocky Staples is a familiar face at country clubs in Jacksonville, and not just to members and staff.
Guests at any of the more than five clubs he has managed or served no doubt have met him as he walks the properties, checks in on events, greets everyone he sees and does whatever needs to be done.
“I like being on the floor,” said Staples, who joined the San Jose Country Club as general manager 14 months ago.
Staples said it was his personality and his preference to be with the people, versus behind a desk, although he puts in the office time necessary to run a club with more than 1,000 members.
“I’ve always been a people person,” he said.
Staples said he knows how important it is to be the face at the door, representing the club.
As general manager, he is the chief operating officer and reports to the club’s board of governors. He manages all aspects of the club, including activities, policies, the budget and products and services, including guest satisfaction.
Staples, 54, came to Flagler College in St. Augustine from Albany, N.Y., on a partial golf scholarship.
For the most part, he stayed in the area and made his living in the food and hospitality industry.
He became food and beverage director at the new Marsh Landing Country Club near Ponte Vedra in 1987, and a year later was its assistant general manager.
In 1989, he was named general manager of Deercreek Country Club and in three years added the title of executive director.
In 1998, he became general manager of The Oak Bridge Club at Sawgrass and soon was promoted to regional manager of National Fairways Inc., which oversaw Oak Bridge, Hidden Hills Country Club in the Fort Caroline area and the St. Augustine Shores Golf Club.
In 2000, he was hired as general manager of Deerwood Country Club, where he ran the operation until he joined San Jose Country Club in February 2010.
He comes by the golf and country club environment naturally. His parents met at a golf course in Maine, where his dad worked in the golf shop and his mom worked in the restaurant.
Staples grew up in Albany, N.Y., and his mom taught him to play golf. He grew up caddying, as well as playing baseball and basketball and he skied.
His grandparents owned a restaurant in Maine, where he worked when he had time.
Staples moved back north after college with a hotel job, but he missed Florida. He had worked as a bartender in St. Augustine and along the way met developers Paul and Jerome Fletcher.
Staples sent them his resume.
The Fletchers were part of the group that developed Marsh Landing, and Staples came back to North Florida. Here he remains.
Staples, a single father, has passed along his love of athletics. His 18-year-old daughter, Becca, is a high-school senior who plays softball and was a cheerleader.
She’s headed to Flagler College where she wants to study communications and sports management.
Staples arrives at work at 7:30 or 8:30 each morning. “I walk the entire property when I come in,” he said.
He talks each day to as many of the 160 full- and part-time employees (up to 200 in the summer) as he can. He comes in on Saturdays and other times as needed.
“It’s about service,” he said.
356-2466