Provident Bank Client Profile: Roxiticus Golf Club

Keith Buscio, Vice President, Director of Public Relations, Provident Bank, recently sat down with Mike Doyle, Immediate Past President, Roxiticus Golf Club, to discuss the Bank’s commitment to the club.

KB: Tell us about Roxiticus Golf Club.

MD: Roxiticus is a unique family club that is a quiet respite from the everyday hustle and bustle of the real world. It offers fantastic golf, racquets, swimming, fine dining, and a multitude of social events, in one of the most picturesque settings in all of New Jersey.

The name Roxiticus comes from the Algonquin Indians. It means “meeting place” since many Indian trails converged on Roxiticus golf grounds. By the turn of the 19th century, a wealthy investment banker, Walter Bliss, purchased the property to build his family estate high in the Somerset hills on what was referred to as “Millionaires Mountain.” This is located between what is now Bernardsville and Mendham Township. In 1966, the estate was purchased by Bern Shanley, former special advisor to President Eisenhower, who converted it into a boutique family golf club. Today, the golf club is over 50 years old and has over 350 members. 

KB: What challenges did you encounter while managing Roxiticus that Provident Bank was able to help you with?

MD: After the financial crisis in 2008, the demographics supporting golf clubs changed dramatically.  The model of providing a comfortable place for dad to play golf and socialize with his friends was no longer viable. In order to compete for tightened discretionary income and attract new members, clubs needed to provide a resort like experience for the entire family. That meant a full slate of offerings with top-notch facilities.

We recognized that we needed to totally upgrade and expand our facilities, including clubhouse, kitchen, locker rooms, pro shop and other areas on the property. The membership overwhelmingly approved the improvement plan in July of 2015.  When it came to financing the improvements, we spoke with a number of banks within the club’s footprint.  Provident Bank offered innovative solutions tailored to Roxiticus from the very start of the process.

KB: How did Provident Bank demonstrate its brand promise of “Commitment You Can Count On” to help overcome these challenges and enable Roxiticus to succeed?

MD: Provident’s team took the time to fully understand our business plan and its financial metrics, as well as the club’s financial condition. They proved to have a clear understanding of our vision for the new and improved golf club. Provident’s approach was not a one size fits all.  They had the resources and the know-how to structure a financing package to meet the needs of the club.  From the time we broke ground in the spring of 2016 through the project’s completion in the fall of 2017, they were a supportive partner every step of the way.  A project of this magnitude was bound to experience some pitfalls and delays, but Provident never wavered and worked with us along the way to maintain funding to meet the needs of the project.

Since the project was completed, we have welcomed over 100 new families to Roxiticus and our new member pipeline continues to be robust.  Currently, our membership ranks are near capacity.  Having a trusted and supportive banking partner like Provident is critically important to our success going forward.