The Matney Family
"The Matney family invites you to discover the Harbor Club neighborhood, we’re confident that you will fall in love with it, just as we did 20 years ago." Owner, John Matney
Read a letter from our POA President
Upon first visiting Harbor Club, John Matney immediately fell in love with the area. The challenging, yet friendly design of the golf course, small town feel with proximity to Atlanta, Athens and Augusta and a constant-level recreational lake certainly presented an attractive opportunity to pursue. "We played the golf course, toured the lake and it was one of the best properties we'd seen in the best location in the Southeast," says Matney of his first experience. "Property taxes are very low and reasonable and golf is year round. Here, we have a true four season amenity in the golf and the lake. The topography changes are nice and the ponds and Lake Oconee give tremendous backdrops. What's not to fall in love with, we thought."
The Matney sons, Ben, Josh, Justin and Brandon, have enjoyed the community just as much. The natural setting and acres of lake created a giant natural playground for them to enjoy on a regular basis. Aside from that, there were the days playing golf with baseball legend, Mickey Mantle, who made his home at Harbor Club for many years. “When the boys were younger, we spent a lot of time at Harbor Club,” recalls Matney. “They loved the community more than any other spot, even Disney World.” With the golf, ponds available for fishing, a 19,000 acre lake, hiking and acres of woods to explore, Harbor Club is an ideal setting for raising two boys. And it is that same experience that the Matney family works hard to create for each new family that joins the neighborhood.
Originally from Southwest Virginia, John Matney has served for over 30 years in the natural resource business. His investments in land and other business ventures stretch from Pennsylvania all the way to Virginia, Kentucky and Tennessee. And when not focused on his other pursuits, the 1600 acres comprising Harbor Club serves as a true passion to John.
As Harbor Club moves into its twentieth year, the Matney family continues to work hard, reinvest and help build a community of neighbors. They invested a great deal initially into making necessary improvements to the roads and amenities. And they worked hard to achieve awards and rankings for the Harbor Club golf course from publications that include LINKS magazine, Golf Digest and Golfweek. Today, they are operating debt free - something that is truly unheard of in this era.
The Matney family is committed to the success of the property and maintaining a solid relationship with its members and property owners. That commitment is evident by John and his sons, Brandon and Ben’s, involvement in the community’s member events, the regular POA meetings and in the constant communications with the owners and members.
Brandon Matney’s passion for the community and local area can be seen in the care and professionalism he brings to his position as the property’s General Manager. He is involved in every aspect of the Harbor Club community from the golf operations to home construction and maintenance. Ben Barker shares the family’s vision for Harbor Club and has joined Brandon serving as an apprentice to Harbor Clubs’ Golf Professionals. Ben provides superior customer service to the club’s members’ and guests everyday helping to coordinate outings, weekly events and more.
In all, Harbor Club is a family business serving the families that have chosen to live here over the past twenty years. “Only by personally visiting this fabulous community can you begin to understand what a truly special place we have," says owner John Matney. "Come discover our neighborhood for yourself and we hope the next twenty years will be as enjoyable for our new residents as this last twenty has been for each and every one of us.”
