In his blood

Following in his father’s footsteps,
Burton Page adds Rowley CC to his portfolio

By Bob Albright

With a bustling golf course and a equally busy banquet facility already under his watch, some might expect Burton Page, 67, to be looking for ways to simplify, not complicate his life as we head into the 2009 season.

Yeah, right.

For many, of course, that would indeed be the case. When you grow up the son of one of the greatest multi-taskers the North Shore has ever known, George Page, adding another busy nine hole course to the fold does not exactly constitute breaking news.

“At one time we had 11 hotels,” Page recalled with a smile of his father’s expansive empire which also included numerous golf courses, most notably the old Colonial in Lynnfield, the crown jewel of the bunch.

“We built New Seabury and also had Lynnfield Centre (Reedy Meadow) and Unicorn which was an 18-hole golf course back then,” Page continued from his office at the Hillview Country Club where he has run the food and banquet services for the last two decades. “We had Attleboro CC and we were very involved in the Country Club of New Hampshire as well.”

While the plans to develop that property into a full time golf and ski resort with a hotel were never realized, that was the exception to the rule as Burton watched his dad parlay a small real estate business in Wakefield into a golf, hotel, and resort kingdom unparalleled locally. Given that background, it’s really not that surprising that Page added Cedar Glen to his management umbrella in recent years and this year assumed the reins at the old Rowley Country Club from Windover Development.

Looking to put Rowley on the map

Page had some preliminary discussions with Windover when it first acquired Rowley in 2006, but the development company opted to run the course themselves with the idea that its proposed residential development was imminent. With the real estate market still languishing, however, the Manchester-by-the-Sea-based company has now turned things over to Page for at least the next two years which is great news for local golfers.

“We’ve secured a two-year lease, but hopefully it will be longer,” said Page. “Personally, I would like to see it stay as it is because it’s a great golf course.”

The most obvious change golfers notice will be to the prodigious sign off of Rt. 133. This year the course will be known as “Carriage Pines Golf at Rowley Country Club.”

There was much confusion after the course changed its name to simply “Carriage Pines” after the proposed residential development last year. It left many to wrongly surmise that one of the most popular nine-holers in the area had indeed fallen victim to the economy.

Other than the new name and implementing his own management style, Page says he will stick with the old, “if it ain’t broke don’t fix it” mantra as far as the rest of the operations at Rowley go. Back in the clubhouse to run the day-to-day operations is Scott MacDonald, and returning to keep the course in tiptop shape is one of the best in the business, veteran super Paul Lever. Those looking for a beer, something to eat, and an always-engaging atmosphere can still wander right next door to the popular and privately owned Back Nine Tavern.

Structurally, Page says, other than some overdue work to the bunkers he has no other plans to alter the course which many view as one of the most challenging public nine holes on the entire North Shore.

“It really is a great course,” he reiterates. “We just want to let more people know about it and promote it more as a destination. It’s a little off the beaten track, but we think people will want to make the trip to golf the toughest nine hole public course in the area. Our job is to make sure they know about it.”

Putting his stamp on Cedar Glen

Page assumed the management reins at Cedar Glenn three years ago from George Pike and recently inked a new 10-year deal to run the popular nine-hole track in Saugus. It has always been a favorite among the senior set for its accommodating layout, and Page saw the potential to make the course one that all players could enjoy.

“There needed to be some new atmosphere created there,” he said. “There just wasn’t any new business coming through. It just needed some TLC and we’ve worked hard on the TLC part.”

To help attract new golfers, one of the big things Page did was to put in four new tees to accommodate the longer hitters.

“It was a course that really was set up a little too short,” he noted. “We’ve added to the par-5 and we have added to three other tees so that these young kids who come in and want to bang it 300 yards, it’s there for them now.”

Page’s connections to the course are strong. Longtime Cedar Glen owner Martin DeMatteo and George Page were great friends.

“In fact all the gravel that was taken from Colonial’s 17th fairway went to Logan Airport and Martin did all the transporting of it,” he said with a grin.

Golfers at both Cedar Glen and Rowley should not be surprised to see the affable Page show up at their respective courses early and often. He says one of the biggest traits he has taken from his dad is to be fully immersed in all aspects of the business.

“My father was always ‘hands on’ and involved in everything,” he said of his father who was quite an avid golfer before he hurt his back lugging hoses to help water the greens at Colonial.

“Even when we had six or seven hotels and four golf courses he was right on top of it. After college (at Cornell) it was my job to keep tabs on all of them and each week he would tell me something that was going on at each of them that I didn’t know.

“Like him I spend a lot of time doing hands on work. I’m involved and I like to stipulate that. Maybe I should delegate more stuff out, but I like to work it like he did.”

Still splits the fairway

Despite that hands on approach, don’t be surprised to see Page on the tee at a fair amount of senior competitions this summer including the Mass Senior Amateur at Salem CC in August. Along with learning every part of the hospitality business growing up at the Colonial, Page was very quick to pick up the ins and outs of getting around a golf course with the best of them.

He still remembers his trademark win at the New Hampshire Open in 1966 at Nashua CC as an amateur as if it were yesterday -- including his final drive on the 18th that ended up two fairways over.

“I was playing it safe,” he said with a chuckle. “I didn’t think I was going to win it, I was just hoping to be competitive.”

With that win, Page became one of just three amateurs to claim the Granite State title and the victory still serves as the highlight of an eventful career that saw Page win the Eastern Collegiate Championship while at Cornell, numerous major four-ball competitions as well as the state junior in 1958 where he bested his familiar rival Barrie Bruce of Beverly. Ironically, that same year he nearly met Bruce again in the finals of the state amateur at the nearby Country Club, but dropped his semifinal match on the 18th hole to Bobby Kirouac, while Bruce won his and defeated Kirouac in the 36-hole final the following day.

“It would have been the first time that happened,” Page said of the potential second championship showdown with Bruce. “Bobby and I were all tied coming down the 18th and he put his shot in the bunker while I was over the green so I was feeling pretty good. But Bobby put his shot right near the pin and I three-putted. Go figure!”

Last year, the Lynnfield resident returned to Nashua for the New England Senior championship and the grandfather of three finished in the middle of the pack.

“I’m a little too old for amateurs any more, but I still enjoy the senior events and it was really fun returning to Nashua some 40 years later,” he said.

Even when, and if, he retires, it’s clear that the Page legacy will live on. A father of four, his youngest son is headed off to Johnson & Wales College next fall where he will study – you guessed it – food management, while one of his daughters is already on board at Hillview. It’s just the normal progression it seems. The Pages may turn, but this book stays the same.