Member Profile - Davisson Family

Lori and Dan Davisson’s path to Upstate South Carolina is a familiar one. They were living in Chicago, grew tired of the winters, taxes and traffic and took off on a road trip through the Southeastern U.S. to find their perfect retirement spot.

That journey took them to Greenville in 2014, where they toured downtown and eventually ended up in the Tigerville area looking at homes in Cherokee Valley. There wasn’t much available at the time coming out of the economic downturn, but three years later, the Davissons made their move.

“We fell in love with the area back in 2014 and couldn’t wait to get back here,” says Lori. “We loved the mountains, sunny weather and it’s really not that far from downtown Greenville, the airport and other attractions. Dan is a big golfer and he loved the golf course, so Cherokee Valley was a great fit for us.”

Timing, as they say, is everything. The Davissons built a house at Cherokee Valley and Dan joined as a member in 2017 just as Matthew and Renee Jennings acquired the course and facilities from Brown Golf Management. The Jennings family lived in one of Cherokee Valley’s cottage while building a home in The Summit.

“Matt and his family deciding to live here and be a part of the community as well as own the golf course told us a lot,” Lori says. “We knew they were committed to making this a great golf club and community and that they were in for the long haul.”

While Dan was an avid golfer, Lori had other hobbies and pursuits. She hadn’t so much as picked up a golf club until some friends invited her to play in a wine and nine event at Cherokee Valley a few years ago. She told them she’d be up for the wine afterwards, just not the nine beforehand.

“They weren’t shy about telling me that’s not how it works,” Lori says, laughing. “I went out and played with them and I’ve been playing ever since.”

In fact, the Davissons play three or four times a week with friends, and sometimes Dan, a single digit handicap, will play even more. After a relatively short period (in golf years), Lori is now playing to a respectable 26 handicap index and just bought a new set of clubs.

“My favorite thing about the course is the fact that it’s mountain golf and my shots bounce off of mounds and hills,” Lori says. “I played a flat course the other day and just didn’t enjoy it.”

The Davissons say the only thing missing from their retirement life was a friendly neighborhood restaurant with top notch food and drink. When Core 450 opened at Cherokee Valley earlier this year, it was as if someone had answered their culinary prayers.