Carl Schwartzkopf, a former professor in the PGA Golf Management Program at Coastal Carolina University, is donating his house in the Coastal Heights neighborhood near campus through a planned gift to the University. As part of his gift agreement, proceeds from CCU's eventual sale of the property will be used to establish the Carl H. Schartzkopf Program Fund, which will benefit the General James Hackler Golf Course at the University. The gift supports the University's I'M IN endowment campaign, which has a goal of increasing CCU's endowment $20 million by 2020. To date, more than $17 million has been raised. Learn more about the campaign at I'M IN.

The proceeds will support future renovations of the Hackler Course's forward tees and golf cart paths or the course's most urgent need, as determined by a committee comprised of leaders from the golf course and the golf management program. The Hackler Course is a public, 18-hole golf facility located adjacent to the campus. Coastal's PGA Golf Management Program is one of 18 programs in the U.S. accredited by the PGA of America and is housed in CCU's E. Craig Wall Sr. College of Business Administration.

"The Hackler Course holds a very special place in my heart," Schwartzkopf said. "I have played countless rounds of golf there through the years, and our house sits close to the sixth tee. In addition, two of my former students, Chuck Johns, director of golf, and Allison Butler, director of sports turf maintenance, are now involved with managing the facility. It is satisfying to know that my support will help contribute to the well-being of the course in the future."

Schwartzkopf, a retired U.S. Navy veteran, earned a bachelor's degree in agronomy and turfgrass management from Michigan State University in 1971. He returned to MSU in the late '80s and earned a master's degree in agricultural communications.

He began his career in golf course management at Oakland Hills Country Club in Bloomfield Hills, Mich. At the time, he was one of the first course managers with a college degree in turf management. In 1972, he was hired by the U.S. Golf Association (USGA) and spent the next 10 years advising courses on best practices. He later was named national director of the USGA. Schwartzkopf then returned to Michigan and joined a brokerage firm that bought and sold golf courses in the United States and the Caribbean.

In 1989, Schwartzkopf moved to South Carolina, where he taught golf course management courses at both CCU and Horry-Georgetown Technical College for the next 14 years. He served on the Horry County Council for more than 10 years before retiring in 2014. While he was on the council, CCU President David A. DeCenzo appointed him to serve on the University's Campus Master Plan advisory committee.