Big Old Oak Tree on #12

       This Monday was a very busy day on the golf course for maintenance, but was different because we were forced to cut down one of the largest trees on the property.  The large Oak tree on the right side of the path near #12 green was removed because of safety concerns.  The tree has had many dead branches over the last few years, but recently the roots on the cart path side of the stump started raising up off the ground.  This is a telling sign that the tree is unstable and could fall down at any time.  With over 100 golfers each day driving right under this potential hazard, we decided to remove the tree before any harm was done.  The tree company did a great job of removing the entire tree in just one day, and now there is a very big open space that has been covered up for years by the large tree.  The plan moving forward is to remove a few more of the small sweet gum trees throughout the area and seed fescue grass in the next 6 weeks.  This will hopefully add a little green grass to a now barren area and also provide a good surface to hit a chip if your tee shot goes errant left!  Take a look at the pictures to see the chronological order of removing the tree......

The big Oak is right behind the Fan

It is hard to see in the pictures, but the two long roots protruding out have started to come off the ground about 3 inches!

Max was chasing a rodent into the hollow center of the large tree.  This picture gives a very good feel for the size of the massive trunk and stump of the over 100 year old tree.

Here it is after all the limbs are cut off and only the main trunk remaining

This is what remains of the large area where the tree once was.  You can see all the little trees that were growing under the Oak tree.  Our staff will work over the next few weeks to remove the smaller trees and seed fescue grass this Fall.

Max still not sure where those critters went hiding!  This stump is one of the biggest I have ever seen.  Also notice the hollow center where the tree was on the way to a slow death. 

Ribbon Cutting Ceremony

On Tuesday, July 15th the Club held a Ribbon Cutting Ceremony to officially open the Driving Range and to present the new Verdin clock.  It was a very nice little event, and the Club even provided free beer to those in attendance!  President Tom Roberts was kind enough to say a few words about the project and the new range, and then everyone got into the picture as Stephen and myself cut the ribbon!  Please take a look at the link posted below and see some great pictures that Mr. Jeff Whittingham snapped of everyone on hand......

http://s1173.photobucket.com/user/IFBikephoto/slideshow/Ribbon%20Cutting

Max even got a chance to get in on the action!  See you on the Driving Range!

GALAKTOBUREKO

Installing the Clock

Thursday or new Verdin Clock was successfully installed, officially completing the Driving Range project!  This new clock is 17 feet in height, and is a 4 sided clock.  I must say that it is the perfect piece to complete the new Driving Range.  No one should be late for their tee time from now on!  Take a look below at a few pictures showing how the clock was installed.............

The clock faces even light up at night!!!!!

Tree on #1 set to be taken down

This coming week we will remove the lone Pine Tree on hole #1.  Over the last 6 months, the grounds committee has discussed removing the tree in order to improve the grass in front of the green. This large Pine Tree is 50 yards or so in front of the green, so short errant left shots commonly fall around this bad area. As you can see in the pictures below, there is a large area of dirt around the tree caused by too much shade and lack of water from the turf competing with the trees roots.  Over the years this problem area has been re-sodded continuously but the tree always wins the battle for life.  Much discussion was had by the committee on whether the removal of the tree makes the hole play "easier".  The determination was that while the tree may be a slight nuisance for a shot on the far left side of the hole, it does not come into play on a majority of the par 4, and grass would be a much nicer surface to hit from than the dirt.  The schedule is to remove the tree on Tuesday when the Club is closed, then prepare the area on Wednesday for the sod truck coming Thursday morning.  This project should have minimal disruption to play this week while finished by the weekend and in time for Member-Guest next week.         

Fountains for Lake #3 & #13

The new fountains have been installed in the Lake on #3 and #13 and they look really nice.  These fountains were selected not only for their aesthetic value, but also to help aerate the water and prevent moss and algae growth.  Because the fountains continuously keep the water surface in motion and provide oxygen, it makes it much harder for algae to survive and grow.  The lake is a little over 3 acres in size, so 2 fountains were needed to provide the proper aeration for such a large body of water.  This also works perfect to showcase the fountains to be seen from multiple holes on the golf course.  We hope you enjoy the fountains and are very glad to finally have them installed and operating!!!!