Golf Course Report

April 2015

I want to start off by thanking our members and our entire staff for successfully hosting 3 Member/Guests events over the last month.  The Ladies Member/Guest, the 9-Hole Invitational and the Men’s Invitational.  My entire team relishes the challenge of tournament preparation.  Guest events give us all a chance to “show off” the great amenities that Stonebridge has to offer.

On to the golf course, we had a flush of growth during the second week of March which also coincided with a couple of equipment issues.  The longer than normal rough was cut down to size before the Ladies Club Championship.  This took a combination of “Loaner” equipment and some long hours to prevent knee deep rough for the Ladies Club Championship.  I mention this because I did field a few questions regarding the appearance of some of the roughs.  The “scalped” areas will bounce back quickly with a regular mowing schedule. 

The months of March and April tend to be our driest time on the golf course.  Moisture loss in the plant is increased by low humidity, high temperatures, windy conditions and sandy soils.  The cumulative effect of these factors and the strict adherence to available water leads to “Prescription Irrigation”.  This practice involves daily adjustments to our overnight program and a lot of hand watering, with the goal of getting the water where it needs it the most.  As with all of our tasks, we will attempt to accomplish this with little to no disruption in your golf round. 

We have had a productive golf season with many improvements to the course and landscape.  Most importantly, we have identified some issues that can make next season even better.  I am blessed with THE BEST TEAM imaginable.  Their ability to adjust to ever-changing conditions and still exceed my expectations is incredible.  As much as we enjoy the Winter Season, a glimpse of May is all it will take for our team to shift into Summer Maintenance Mode.