By Tara Fischer

Staff Writer

(July 31, 2025) Ocean Pines Golf Club is a destination activity on the Eastern Shore, according to an annual online poll conducted by OceanCity.com.

The Ocean Pines Association’s golf course was named as a 2025 winner in a Best of Ocean City poll open to locals and visitors for voting. The accolade was reported on OceanCity.com, an online magazine highlighting restaurants, bars, activities, hotels, and excursions within the resort town and its surrounding areas.

John Viola, OPA’s general manager, said that the community’s golf club was named as one of the best courses on the Eastern Shore at Ocean Pines’ Board of Directors meeting on Saturday, July 26.

Viola credited the recognition to the association’s decision to invest in the course, rather than make cuts to its budget, which the general manager said had been the model in the years preceding his arrival.

“It was six, seven years ago when we all came in and said we were going to invest,” he said. “So instead of cut, cut, cut, which happened three or four years before that, we invested. It’s a credit to the board, the association. We got the results. You cannot cut the golf budget 3% each year, and then expect the place to do well.”

Viola added that the decision to prioritize the amenity’s budget has yielded success in recent years.

“Golf is in the black,” he said. “It was in the black the last two years, and it’ll be in the black this year.”

Viola notes that hiring Justin Hartshorne, the Ocean Pines Golf Club’s superintendent, has contributed to the amenity’s success, which the course enjoys today.

“It was five years ago that we hired [Hartshorne],” the general manager said. “It was probably one of the best things we did.”

According to Viola, when the golf superintendent was onboarded, the OPA staff and the golf team implemented a five-year plan that prioritized maintenance and course enhancement. Since then, membership in the sport has increased and has consistently performed well financially.

Staff have since kick-started a new five-year plan, with a course irrigation project to replace a 50-year-old failing system at the center. Earlier this spring, the initiative’s first phase was completed, which included work on the pump station, the first and ninth holes, and the driving range. A second stage of the project will see irrigation improvements at holes four and eight. This portion of the endeavor is expected to begin in October and continue into the winter. In May, OPA’s Board of Directors unanimously approved $810,500 for the upcoming portion of the project.

Viola also credited the course’s recent success to the hiring of Bob Beckelman, the amenity’s golf professional, who was appointed in 2022. The community’s general manager said that the decision to bring Beckelman on board was rooted in the professional’s commitment and experience in customer service.

These efforts, OPA officials maintain, have led to the golf club’s prosperity. Community leaders reported at this week’s meeting that membership for the amenity is up for the third consecutive year and that golf club sales have seen an increase. Those interested in getting fitted for clubs can contact Beckelman.

According to OPA Board of Directors President Stuart Lakernick, the course’s monetary success continues to generate revenue for the community, ultimately benefiting residents.

“I want to highlight that the critical investment in the golf infrastructure is paying off in spades and keeping our investments low,” Lackernick said. “It’s an economic engine that’s keeping everything running.”