Private Club Radio Show

407: Finding Fulfillment - Ryan Brennan on Legacy, Leadership, and English Bulldogs

• Denny Corby

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What does it take to stay at the top of your game for 20 years in the same club? Ryan Brennan, GM at Manasquan River Golf Club, spills the secrets! From mentorship lessons that shaped his career to balancing family life with the nonstop world of club management, this episode dives into it all.

Ryan shares how he turned “greener grass” offers into long-term loyalty, the perks of a 10-minute commute, and why collaboration and culture are at the heart of a thriving club. Oh, and if you’re a bulldog lover, you’ll love the connection here—because Ryan’s all about those lovable wrinkly pups.

Packed with wisdom, humor, and a few stories about managing a clubhouse that dates back to 1776, this episode is a must-listen for anyone in hospitality or leadership.

Don’t miss this one it’s got legacy, mentorship, and a dash of bulldog charm!


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Speaker 1:

Hey everybody, welcome to the Private Club Radio Show, where we give you the scoop on all things private golf and country clubs, from mastering, leadership and management, food and beverage excellence, member engagement, secrets, board governance and everything in between, all while keeping it fun and light. Whether you're a club veteran just getting your feet wet or somewhere in the middle, you are in the right place. I'm your host, denny Corby. Welcome to the show. In this episode, I am chatting with Ryan Brennan, general manager at Manusquan River Golf Club, and this is a fantastic episode for a couple of reasons. So one we got to do it in person. I was doing a show. Ryan brought me in to do my show at Manusquan River Golf Club for his members and after I was all set up and things were ready to go, we sat down in his office for a fun chat. So we talked for about 20 minutes and what a fantastic story. He's been at the club for 20 years at the same club. Yes, you heard that right, same club, 20 years. So we talk about balancing career and a family. We talk about learning from his former boss, his mentor and who helped him look to see the bigger picture, and we talk about what that's like you know why he stuck around and how he stuck around, instead of kind of chasing the quote unquote greener grass, quote-unquote greener grass and how, with all that time and such. That when you have that time and that legacy there, how you keep things fresh for the members and the staff and how him and the club are adapting and evolving and where the club is going and the history of the club Really really cool. The clubhouse dates back to like 1776. No big deal, right, and they still have some of the original clubhouse in there. Really really cool. So this is just a wonderful episode all around.

Speaker 1:

Ryan's a good dude. It's a great story. So many nice little nuggets and wisdom here and and and the piece du resistance. He is also a English bulldog lover and former owner and I have an English Bulldog and when you own an English Bulldog they're just a wild breed, they are a hoot. And I found other English Bulldog owners. There's like this weird connection there. Now we're just starting to sound weird. But no, he is also an English Bulldog owner. So double, triple, quadruple kudos, double thumbs up. That made this episode even better that we connected on that. The episode is actually crap. Just the we and I just connect it really well on Bulldogs. No, I'm kidding, but this is really good.

Speaker 1:

I'm excited to get to it. Do me a favor. I'm on the finishing touches of the club entertainment guide that I'm putting out on all things club entertainment tips, tricks, insights from other club professionals. There's a couple of exercises in there. It's going to be good. If you would like early access, email me. Subject line entertainment guide to hello at privateclubradiocom and I'll make sure you get one of the first copies released. Big thanks to some of our show partners Kenneth's member vetting golf life, navigators in concert golf partners, as well as myself, the Denny Corby experience. Enough about that. Let's get to the episode. Private Club Radio. Let's welcome to the show. Ryan Brennan, have you really been here for 20 years? Yeah, yeah, was this like your first job? Was this your first?

Speaker 2:

everything. It was my third job, yeah, so 20 years. I was hired when I was 24. I thought within four years that I would leave here to become a manager on my own, and it wasn't as easy as I thought. Yeah, and thankfully, I was hired by my mentor, who became a father-like figure and, through my years here at the club, when I thought it was maybe time to leave, I started having kids and started to build a family. And then, when I learned that Mike was probably going to be retiring in 2024, doing some quick math in my head I started to turn down every job interview that was offered to me. Then, as my kids got involved in the sports and I became their football, baseball and basketball coach, it became evident that there wasn't enough money in the world for me to leave here. I live about 10 miles away, oh, so it's just a really good scenario.

Speaker 2:

I've mastered the art of coming to work and sometimes coming back and forth three or four times in a day to make sure that I don't miss anything.

Speaker 1:

No, that's a great place to be in Now. At what point were you like that's a really good plan? So when did he know he was going to retire in 2024?

Speaker 2:

I think that Mike did a really good job mentoring me and kind of letting me know along the way that when the time was right for me to leave, that he would support that, and then, maybe 10 years ago, he started to plant the seed into my head that this is a great club and, although there's other great jobs out there, just be careful of what you wish for, because the grass isn't always a greener, and the one thing that he wasn't able to get back was lost time with his family. Thankfully, the industry has changed a lot, but this used to be a job that was 9 to 10, tuesday through Sundays, no questions asked, and as it's evolved a little bit, it's definitely improved and I think that the message was that just understand that if you leave here now for something better, that you're probably going to be working even more hours than you're working now and you have it so good here and the membership loves you and trusts you it takes a pretty big part.

Speaker 1:

It's hard to admit that a fault like that and to warn you, it takes a lot.

Speaker 2:

Yeah, I think that the most B4 me in this business have given up a lot and I think that when I first told my wife that I was going to get involved in club management, I had accepted the fact that I was never going to be able to attend one of my kids' games. And honestly, I think, like I said, that there isn't enough money in the world to have you go work at a club that's an hour away or 45 minutes away, or to have to move your family. I'm legitimately 10 minutes away. Not only have I been able to attend almost everything, like I said, I've been able to coach. That's awesome.

Speaker 1:

I know club managers that have separate houses. They will just have a whole new place and they'll go home every week or whatever their schedule is I'm like holy cannoli.

Speaker 2:

Yeah, so that was I never in the cards. And I also think that although I started here as a 24, I never really thought of this as a career. I thought of it more just as a job and I think if you at times you could chase the carrot and you can go from club A to club B to club C and I was always, through how well I did here, was always able to afford the lifestyle that I always wanted without that atop a salary. So I think that everything now on top of this has just been gravy. Where'd you go to school for? I went to school for business management, okay, and through a complete accident got a job at a country club serving potatoes out of a chafing dish during the holiday season through a friend.

Speaker 1:

So what else were you doing in your 20s? So like bring it back, you're 24. How did it?

Speaker 2:

all come to be. Yeah, so I guess in college, at the time of a student in Westchester County, I guess, like most of us did, you went to some classes, you went to the gym, you went to the tanning salon, you went to the nightclub in Manhattan a little bit of a different club than I'm currently working at, but that was the lifestyle and then got a job by accident at a club. And then, through my first Boston mentor, she tried to educate me that this might be a good fit for you, with your personality and with your work ethic, and I assured her when I was in college that I would not be working nights, holidays and weekends. And now, 24 years later, I've worked every single night, holiday and weekend since that day.

Speaker 1:

What, what position did you start here as?

Speaker 2:

I was hired as the director of food and beverage, and then I was promoted to clubhouse manager, and then I was promoted to a general manager of clubhouse operations, which was probably just a title that my boss gave me in order to entice me to stay motivated and excited enough. I think I was the only general manager of clubhouse operations in the country. But you have to learn that titles in this business are just titles and I think that it's important to, regardless of the title, that you have always be working to achieve a job or two higher than your current title.

Speaker 1:

Yeah, Now that's a question I've asked a bunch of people is, you know, just as something from my own curiosity it's like you know, is there an ego thing that comes into play sometimes? Because you'll see some people they'll go from you know whatever position the general manager down to AGM, and then others they might go like general manager to director of food and beverage to move around. And I think what you don't realize sometimes is that a certain club, the food and beverage manager, has a bigger job than a GM at a different club. So it's all just relative.

Speaker 2:

I think that there's large clubs and there's small clubs and regardless of the title, you're either the number one or you're not, and I think that the difference between that assistant job that I had for 19 years here and sitting in this chair, there's just a little bit more pressure and everything comes through this chair and, fortunately, when you're the assistant, you push everything up to this chair. So I think that the two jobs couldn't be more different.

Speaker 1:

At what age did you start getting involved with the CMAA?

Speaker 2:

So I was very fortunate and very lucky to get involved at an early age. Now, at 44, I'm the New Jersey Club Foundation president and I've got about another month left of being the president of that. And probably from when I was 28 until last year I was heavily, heavily involved and I at times used to question how come certain managers weren't more involved, who were on the board. And I've learned that lesson very quickly because now, at 44, although it's been amazing to serve and I've been fortunate to be the chapter president and the foundation president and the current National Wine Society president I think everybody should give back.

Speaker 2:

But then there comes a time and place when your three children were involved in a lot of activities and there was a time when they were five, six and seven that at times I would give up going to their games or coaching for events through a club management. But as of late I haven't attended anything that was the same day as a practice, because I think that we work so hard in this business and as much as we like to be involved in their activities, there's some days that you just can't be there. And to not be there for a day because you have to volunteer and give back is something that I wasn't willing to do.

Speaker 1:

What have you done for your local? Have you done like all the board positions, like pretty much everything?

Speaker 2:

Uden. I think that there's people that get involved and there's a doers and there's those that just enjoy being. I think that I'm happy that, for the time that I was involved, I think that there's nobody that can say that I didn't give 100% of my effort and time, and I think that one of the good things about being an assistant here for all these years is that the club was managed by Mike and time. Yeah, and I think that one of the good things about being an assistant here for all these years is that the club was managed by Mike and myself, so I had a little bit of extra time at times to give back to the club management. What are some?

Speaker 1:

of your biggest learnings and takeaways from being involved with your chapter for so long.

Speaker 2:

Yeah, I think that a CMA is something that if I wasn't a part of, I probably wouldn't be where I am now Going to college for business management and, like most kids that go to college, we just went to college and then you found your job on accident when I learned at an early age at 25, that the club was going to pay for me to go to Atlanta and Michigan State and Cal Poly and then to annual conferences at Anaheim and Hawaii and New Orleans, and I think I've been now to 23 conferences and have probably traveled most of the country through my experience in club management.

Speaker 2:

And I think that it was such a cool experience to graduate college and then graduate with your master's in business but to not learn anything about the profession that you're in, and the professional organization does such an amazing job just motivating and educating everybody with the tools and knowledge that you need for the job. But I think that the best thing about the CMA is that the context that you have through your friends and peers is endless. And if we were working at the Marriott or the Hilton and you tried calling up the competitor down the block, the Hyatt they probably wouldn't help you much. And there's 13 clubs south of the Driscoll Bridge here in Jersey and we call the managers of those clubs the Jersey Shore Mafia and it's an amazing thing that you can pick up the phone at any time. We have probably three Jersey Shore Mafia dinners a year where we just get together and break some bread and have a good time.

Speaker 1:

I like that. That may or may not be the episode title, probably not. I can't do that because the rest of the gang isn't here and I can't be blowing up your spot. Rest of the gang isn't here, yeah, and I can't be blowing up your spot. Oh, that is good, that's good. What, oh man? It's so unique that you've been at the same club for 20 years. It's almost unheard of, because I feel like it's that like one and a half to two years, then it's like four years, then you have like some like tenors and then you have the rarities. Is there a club for people who stay more than like 15 years at a club?

Speaker 2:

Within the CMAA, there is a recognition for those who have been at their same club for 25 years. Although I like recognition, I can promise you that's not the reason why I've been here. Still, I just think that my mentor, michael Zusak, did such a good job of pushing the envelope and just every year just achieving more and just the pushing to improve, and I felt very comfortable working with Mike. He was one of the most challenging managers probably in the history of the business. How so? He just demanded a lot from you and at times his motivation techniques for some were hard to understand.

Speaker 2:

But I think that, being born in 1980, I'm probably one of the last people that was born and raised in a society where you work for someone and you take care of them to the best of your ability.

Speaker 2:

And I always did everything to support and to make Mike look good, and I think that his praise and his recognition, although didn't come as often as some people might give, I think that you generally felt love and probably at the age of 28 or 30, I started to look at him as a father figure.

Speaker 2:

Some people tend to need that father figure in their life.

Speaker 2:

I didn't, because my mom and dad are my best friends in the world and, honestly, the best parents. But just working for a person that you respected his ethics and his loyalty and just how hardworking he was and he always put the club first and it was very inspirational. I think that as we look to the future of the club business, I think that I'm so fortunate to be in a club that has great policies and procedures and I take great pride in taking care of the employees who take care of the members and we've always had a really strong work ethic here in work culture. But we've enhanced the employee experience since I began this job in January and I've seen more collaboration amongst all the department heads than I probably have seen in the last 20 years here combined and I think that when you give back and you really spend a lot of your time taking care of the team and not micromanaging and letting them do their job, then in turn they're much happier in work and then they have a better chance of giving back to the members.

Speaker 1:

Are you the rarity here at the club, or are there other people who've been here for?

Speaker 2:

extended periods. So I, just as one of the employee incentive and recognition programs that we're trying to build here, we hosted our first 20-year employee luncheon here at the club. I think that we had 13 attendees over here.

Speaker 1:

Oh snap, that's awesome.

Speaker 2:

Yeah, so I think that anywhere from 35 years to 20 years, we have employees here at the club.

Speaker 2:

So I think one of the reasons why Manitowoc River has been thriving for many years is that Mike set the expectation that you don't have to leave and that this is a club that will keep you engaged and happy for many years. And at a point, our golf pro, our superintendent, our chef, our manager and the assistant we're all here for a very long time and clubs tend to, every three years, have to fill a position of golf pro or a controller. We've been, we've been a blessed here that that we probably have had, um, no more than two people at all those positions, and currently I think that our golf pro has been here for 10 plus years, our superintendent 10, 10 plus years. Uh, two of the managers in the food and beverage program have been here for 20 years. Wow, um, so I think there's that that there is is a track record here of a lot of longevity. I mean, you're living on the shores of Southern Monmouth County. This is a very desirable place to live and I think that it's just a special place.

Speaker 1:

And you have. I mean it's a cool club. Part of the club's been a part of the building is 300 years old Original house of the club is 1776. That's so cool yeah.

Speaker 2:

Mounts, whatever is the old Osborne farmhouse. We just celebrated our 100-year anniversary two years ago and excited for the next 100.

Speaker 1:

Yeah, that's cool and you have some fun plans for the club. Aren't't you working on some new expansion stuff, some new design?

Speaker 2:

stuff. Yeah, the board just hired a masking planning company the first time. They were going down this process and just looking to improve the facilities here at the club.

Speaker 1:

In the past it's just been kind of like, oh, we'll just do a project.

Speaker 2:

Yeah, the club has, over the last years years, has really invested in the golf course and has put a lot of emphasis in building great membership and a great leadership team here at the club. I think that the facilities is just one thing that we've been lacking here.

Speaker 1:

Yeah, what sort of fun stuff are you excited for, or that the club's excited for, with this new plan?

Speaker 2:

Yeah, I think that some people don't. I think that there's members here that are happy with the way that things are, but I think it's just important to continue to evolve and to be able to give the membership the best experience here possible. And I think that when you look at a lot of the clubs in this area that over the last five to ten years they've improved their facilities and I think that we're just going to look to just enhance the member dining experiences.

Speaker 1:

That'd be cool. Any cool particular projects that you're more excited about.

Speaker 2:

Yeah, our Riverview Grill and a terrace was added onto the club about 11 years ago and I would foresee that the first phase giving those just a little bit of a more modern facelift, expanding some outdoor dining areas, repositioning the bars to have views of our beautiful waterfront and just to be a little bit more functional. What do you love about what you do? What do you love about what you do? I think that hospitality is a business that some can thrive in and some probably could not.

Speaker 2:

My wife worked as a coat check girl for about six hours in hospitality and it's just not for everyone Just hiding stuff in people's pockets. And I think that one of the best things about clubs is that, although you're here a lot nights, holidays, weekends and you miss a lot of family events, when you have a membership of 650 families it is honestly like seeing your friends and aunts, the weather and the food. This is the kind of place that when you are born and raised within the club and you get married and have three children and the membership watches you progress from the assistant manager into the number one manager in the club just the gratification that you get and they definitely treat you like a family and you can just feel the love, which is huge that's cool.

Speaker 1:

Thanks for being on the show. Awesome, yeah, thanks, appreciate it. Hope you all enjoyed that episode. If you did share it with someone who you think might also enjoy it, give it a five-star rating with a review. It means the world. Actually, if you are on Apple Podcast right now listening and you've listened to a few episodes and you're enjoying the content, I would love it, love it, it would mean the world. If you took a couple seconds and gave a review. That's this episode. I'm your host, danny Corby. Catch y'all on the Flippity Flip.

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Denny Corby

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