As we enter our seventh year behind the microphone, it’s still remarkable to say those words out loud: seven years of conversations, insights, and shared experiences across the private members club and hospitality landscape. What began as a passion project has grown into a trusted forum for club leaders, operators, and professionals who care deeply about the future of our industry.

There is no better way to kick off the first Beyond The Baselines podcast of the year than with a thoughtful and wide-ranging conversation with Jeff Isbell. Jeff brings a grounded, operator-first perspective that resonates strongly with where clubs find themselves today — balancing governance, culture, staffing realities, and evolving member expectations, all while staying true to their mission and identity.

In this episode, we explore themes that will define much of the year ahead: leadership presence, communication across departments and boards, and how racquets, hospitality, and project management increasingly intersect within a modern club environment. These are the same issues that surface week after week in our work with clubs, boards, and executive teams — and the same topics that sparked such strong engagement during The Monday Morning Club Quarterback. That series will return next fall, but the conversations never really stop.

What continues to energize this podcast is the community around it — from professionals navigating career moves and immigration questions, to general managers and board members trying to make thoughtful, sustainable decisions for their clubs. We hear from you regularly, and those real-world challenges shape every episode we produce.

As always, we welcome the dialogue. If you have thoughts sparked by this episode, questions about the industry, or simply want to connect, feel free to reach out at beyondthebaselines@gmail.com or call 508-538-1288. We are always willing to listen — and when appropriate, to help.

Thank you to our listeners, partners, colleagues, and the many clubs and professionals we are fortunate to work with. We are proud to be private members club consultants, and even more grateful to be part of such a thoughtful, evolving industry.

Here’s to a strong year of conversation ahead — and to starting it with Jeff Isbell.

The private club world and the boutique resort world often feel like parallel industries—adjacent, similar, yet fundamentally different in culture, expectations, and operations. Every so often, we meet a leader who straddles both worlds daily, offering a rare perspective on how racquets programming evolves when a facility must serve two distinct audiences at once.

In this week’s BeyondTheBaselines.com podcast, we sit down with Dave Neuhart, Director of Racquets at Innisbrook Golf Resort on Florida’s Gulf Coast. Innisbrook is not your typical resort. While it welcomes a steady flow of guests who stay for a week or two and move on, it also maintains a robust year-round membership. The result? A racquets environment that blends the pulse of a resort with the continuity of a private club.

Dave walks us through how he manages this hybrid model—running programming simultaneously for resort guests and full-time members across pickleball, racquetball, table tennis, tennis, and soon, padel. From themed live-ball sessions built around holidays to the planning of club championships, he shares how he keeps both groups engaged without compromising the identity of either.

We also dive into the strategic side of racquets management. Dave discusses the growth of league play at Innisbrook—seventeen teams strong—and how his “Awesome August” initiative boosted participation with four weeks of tactics-and-strategy sessions and creative prize incentives, capturing 60 percent of all league players.

Finally, Dave offers insights into reporting into a corporate ownership structure under Salamander Investments, and what profit-and-loss scrutiny means for departments that straddle hospitality and sport. We even explore the broader industry landscape, including the acquisitions of Peter Burwash International and Cliff Drysdale Management by Troon, and how such consolidations may shape the future of racquets operations nationwide.

It’s a thoughtful, engaging look at what it means to operate at the crossroads of resort hospitality and private club culture.

In the next episode Beyond The Baselines Podcast, we sit down with Maxwell Shteyman, Director of Culinary and Clubhouse Operations at Montammy Golf Club, to discuss how innovation in food and beverage can sometimes go too far.

“Too much fusion leads to confusion—and to a messy plate,” Max says with a smile. In a world where every dish seems to chase the next trend, Shteyman believes that simplicity and clarity still reign supreme. Food, after all, mirrors life: the more ingredients and variables you add, the more complex—and often problematic—the outcome becomes.

But this episode goes beyond the kitchen. Max believes that food and beverage in private clubs is in deep transition. He suggests that the traditional role of Executive Chef may be nearing its expiration date. Instead, he envisions a model where each dining outlet has its own director, all reporting to a single Culinary Director—a structure that reflects today’s diversified member expectations and multi-outlet club environments.

Mentorship, too, plays a central role in Max’s philosophy. Leading younger staff in hospitality requires patience, vision, and courage. As he notes, “There will always be those who can’t or won’t work as a team—and sometimes, dismissals are simply part of maintaining excellence.”

It’s a candid, insightful discussion about the future of private club dining, the art of leadership, and the delicate balance between creativity and clarity.