FRANKLIN TWP — Craig Fuller is new to the area, but feeling right at home.

Lake Arthur Golf Club has brought Fuller on board as the course's new superintendent. He has been on the job for two months, replacing Mike Masterson, who left after eight years for a similar position at Grove City Country Club.

“A great hire,” Lake Arthur General Manager Scott Choura said. “Craig has more than 25 years experience in this business.

“We interviewed 10 or 12 candidates for this position, but he was always at the top of our list. His work is very polished.

“Mike took the course to another level during his eight years here. I'm looking forward to where Craig's going to take us,” Choura added.

Fuller, 47, is in his 28th year in the golf course business. He left Willow Oaks Country Club in Richmond, Va., in 2011 to return home to the Meadville area to help care for his ailing father.

His father died a year ago.

“I've been working in the landscaping business the past five years or so,” Fuller said. “I was ready to get back into the golf business and I saw the Lake Arthur opening advertised.

“It was close to home and when I took a ride around the course during my interview, I knew I wanted to come here.”

Fuller has worked on refurbishing and reconstructing golf courses during his career. He served as assistant superintendent at a golf course in Meadville for 14 years and received his certification in turf grass management from Penn State.

He supervised the construction of Clover Valley Golf Club in Johnstown, Ohio, a four-year project from 2000-04.

“That used to be a sheep farm ... I even helped remove the sheep from the property. I was involved in that project from the very start,” Fuller said.

He served as superintendent at Champion Hills Golf Club in Hendersonville, N.C., before moving over to Willow Oaks, where he oversaw a two-year renovation of that golf course before returning home.

Of course, no reconstruction or renovation is needed at Lake Arthur. And Fuller doesn't see this as a brief stay.

“This is a job I'm planning on settling into and being with for a long time, as long as they'll have me,” he said.

He described Lake Arthur as a course “that plays fairly ... If you hit good shots, you'll get a good score.”

While the course is primarily flat, the greens can be challenging.

“There is a lot of undulation, a lot of movement here,” Fuller said. “There are dips and bends. Straight putts are a challenge.

“I like it because greens are what golfers talk about. They don't talk about tee boxes or fairways. They talk about greens: Were they fast? Were they slow? Do they have a lot of grain? Were they green or with brown spots, etc.?

“The greens here are very good and I want to make them better,” Fuller added.

He said his favorite hole on the course is the par-3 No. 17, a 135-yard shot uphill.

“You have to place your shot to score well and I like that,” he said.

While Fuller has a staff in place, he spends nine or 10 hours on the course himself, grooming the greens, trimming the fairways and “looking for any kind of adjustments to improve the course.”

“I'm never satisfied, never complacent,” he said. “If something's good on the course, I want to make it great. If it's great, I want to make it excellent.

“We want golfers to have a positive experience here. Word of mouth can be the best form of advertising.”

Lake Arthur continues to offer foot-golf — golfing through kicking a soccer ball — but only through scheduled group outings. Choura said some area soccer teams use the course for that purpose.

Family Night at Lake Artur begins at 4 p.m. each Friday. An adult can walk nine holes for $7 while his or her child can play for $5.

“That continues to be a popular feature here,” Choura said.

Lake Arthur is home to 13 leagues, including the long-running ladies Wednesday morning league of 40 to 48 golfers.

The bar area has been refurbished and now includes games, a big-screen TV, beers from Butler County breweries and an expanded menu.

“We want golfers to stick around a while longer after they're done playing,” Choura said. “That's an attractive feature here now.

“We've had a great deal of increase in play here over the last few years.”

Tee times are recommended at Lake Arthur.