Update: Rose Hill’s golf course closes temporarily due to ‘issues with the state’
Update: An email sent Friday to Rose Hill residents said the community’s board of directors met with two potential operators, but has not signed a contract with a new company to operate the golf course. Rose Hill General Manager Crystal Higginbotham did not return a call and email for comment.
The golf course at Rose Hill Golf Club along U.S. 278 in Bluffton is closed to the public, and the company that has been in charge of golf operations will no longer operate it, according an email sent to Rose Hill residents Wednesday.
The president of Rose Hill’s board of directors learned Tuesday that Stephens Golf Group, the company in charge of Rose Hill’s golf operations, would no longer operate the course, the email said. A spokesperson for the S.C. Department of Revenue confirmed Wednesday that the retail license for Rose Hill Golf Club had been revoked.
But questions still remain about when and why the course is closed and why it has severed ties with its operator. Andrew Stephens, who owns Stephens Golf, did not return a call Wednesday.
A note given to Rose Hill golf course patrons this week said the course is temporarily closed due to “issues with the State of South Carolina.”
“We expect to re-open very shortly,” said the note, signed by “Andy Stephens.”
The email sent to Rose Hill residents Wednesday said the golf course superintendent and maintenance crews will continue working on the course as well as an irrigation project. The property owners association said in the email that it hopes Rose Hill residents can be back on the course by Friday.
“The golf course is owned by Rose Hill, but is separate from issues regarding Stephens Golf,” the email said.
In an email to a reporter Wednesday, Rose Hill General Manager Crystal Higginbotham said that under the neighborhood’s covenant, Rose Hill cannot operate its own golf course.
“We did not receive confirmation that Stephen’s Golf would no longer be operating the golf course till 4:30 p.m” Tuesday, the email said. “We are still learning all the information.”
Higginbotham did not respond to a follow-up email asking when the course officially closed.
In August, Stephens, owner of Stephens Golf, was arrested by the S.C. Department of Revenue and charged with operating the Rose Hill Golf Club without a retail license. The revenue department revoked the club’s retail license in September 2018 for $144,000 in unpaid sales taxes, according to the arrest warrant. Stephens was told to close the business and stop making sales.
But on June 17, a revenue department agent found the business open and made a retail purchase, according to the warrant. Stephens, according to the public index, was released on a $10,000 personal recognizance bond on Aug. 11 — the same day he was arrested.
The case is listed as pending, and there have been no public filings since September.
Last week, Stephens told The Island Packet and Beaufort Gazette that he was still operating Rose Hill and confirmed he was working out a deal to operate the course at Island West, which was expected to reopen in late spring or early summer.
But Thursday, after learning about Rose Hill’s closure, Island West HOA President Richard Myers said the HOA has asked Stephen’s Golf for details. A “position letter would be forthcoming,” Myers wrote in a Facebook message to Island West homeowners.
“We have not executed a contract with them and the Board is waiting on their communication before finalizing our position,” the message said.
In an email last week, a spokesperson for the S.C. Department of Revenue said, “The retail license that was revoked for Rose Hill Golf Club remains revoked. The case involving Mr. Stephens is ongoing so we are not able to comment further.”
At 1:21 a.m. Saturday, Rose Hill Golf Club posted on Facebook that “Due to unforeseen circumstances Rose Hill Golf Club will be closed through the weekend. We hope to open back up early next week and deeply regret the inconvenience on such short notice.”
This story was originally published March 24, 2021 at 3:12 PM.
