News

Wow! Say “Goodbye” to the Fourth of July, “Hello” to August, and almost back to school.

We’re starting to feel the onset of college starting back up, as our college-bound students are beginning to talk about dates and times they’re going to be needing off to get ready for the school year. The summer has been great for golf and many activities at the club. We’ve been staffed up for a good part of the season, which helps greatly with taking care of such a large and sprawling property. The grounds team has been a nice mix of individuals this year!

The main focus of the grounds staff has been keeping the courses playing well and the property looking sharp. Accomplishing this has been much easier this year, thanks to having a solid grounds staff. Hopefully, we’ll be able to have some of the team members back for two or three seasons in a row, being that several of them are in the early stages of their college career.

We are in line to get some more cart paths repaved this year. On the Valley course, we’ll be paving on No. 14 from the back tee to the bridge. Then, No. 15 from the bridge all through No. 16 up to the bridge on No. 17. Then, from the fairway side of the No. 17 bridge up to the fairway bunker. The remainder of the path will be removed and replaced with grass. There are multiple reasons for the removal of some cart paths: Once they’re out, the hard surface is gone and can allow the rain to be absorbed into the soil (aesthetically pleasing to the eye when viewing up the golf hole and not seeing cart path). The right green side of No. 17 will be paved, and then on Ridge No. 12, we’ll pave the right side near the green. This No. 12 cart will also be on the list to remove, except near the tee and green area.

Hopefully everyone is enjoying the Strackaline hole location system! Our team has put a great amount of work into the process to try and get it to a point where it’s fair at all times. We’ve removed and adjusted several of the hole locations so far this summer, but I believe we’re down to the last few adjustments. If you don't agree with a pin position, please note what green, course and the day, and we can take a look at it and adjust for future use. Please realize we’re going to look at the location but also see if there’s additional comments or if it’s simply an isolated situation. Personally, I feel the Strackaline system has been a great addition to our course set up and helps to make good use of the greens.

When it comes to the weather, the summer has been good for the courses. Dry weather is always better for growing grass than wet weather, as it’s easier to add water to the turf than try to take it away. With that being said, I'm not opposed to some occasional rain—just not continuous rain like we had this past spring and last fall.

The landscaping at the pool area is being finished up and looking very nice. By the end of this week, I believe the landscaping will also be finished. It will be a relief to no longer have all the extra contractors on site (too many people with trucks and equipment running around). But the end results look amazing and will be enjoyed by many for several years to come.

Have a great week and we will see you at the Club!

Jeff Holmes, CGCS
Golf Course Manager