by Brian Duthu
Pro Shops
Total rounds for May showed a slight increase over prior year and Green/Cart fees exceeded budget by 1.5% and prior year by 6.2%. Total revenue missed budget slightly due to misses in merchandise and driving range sales. Total rounds year-to-date are down from prior year due to January and February performance; however, rounds after February have increased over prior year.
We are offering the Wilson Duo golf balls at reduced pricing through August 31st. You can purchase two dozen Wilson Duos for $30 or two dozen Wilson Duo Spin for $35. This offer is only available through the Riverview Pro Shop. The Duo is ideally suited for higher handicapped golfers looking for distance, providing great feel and low spin. The Duo Spin provides plenty of distance but adds spin which aspiring players are looking for around the greens.
Golf Courses
Transition is well underway as the winter rye and poa trivialis give way to the summer heat. Transition is painful as it is a much slower process reestablishing the bermuda in the summer as opposed to over seeding with winter grasses in the fall. The bermuda begins to emerge from dormancy late February/early March by using carbohydrate reserves stored in the root system. During this time it is competing with the well-established winter grasses for both nutrients and sunlight. To aid in transition on fairways and tees, we use a blend of perennial and annual rye. The annual rye has a lower heat tolerance and begins to transition out sooner. Greens are over seeded with a blend of poa trivialis and perennial rye, both of which are much hardier and can continue living until summer temperatures become extreme. We further aid the transition through mechanical means, such as lowering the height of cut, vertical cutting and aerification. By the time these processes are complete, the golf courses do not have the conditions golfers prefer. The goal is have the courses back on the road to recovery by the middle of July, providing the 100 days of growth bermuda needs in order to store the proper amount of carbohydrates needed prior to dormancy.
Sodding has been completed at Riverview and North. These areas will remain closed to play and cart traffic until established. The 30 yard signs will remain in place at Riverview to keep heavy cart traffic away from the green complexes. For those golfers that carry a handicap card, carts are allowed within the 30 yard markers; however, we ask that once a shot is played, the cart is driven back from the direction it entered and then driven around the green. The less cart traffic we have around the green complexes, the sooner recovery will occur.
Snack Shops
Snack shops are now closing at 1:00pm on a consistent basis, though will remain open longer depending upon demand. After the snack shops close, snacks and beverages are available through the pro shop.
The snack shops have operated within their budgeted goals year-to-date. We thank everyone for their continued support.
Lawn Bowling/Grounds
Work continues on the Lakeview Lawn Bowl greens to remove irregularities in the surface. To date, RCSC staff have leveled all plinth boards and removed high points as needed. We are currently working with a contractor to “fraze” mow the surface and then top dress and level. After this portion is completed we will begin to re-grow the turf. After six weeks the contractor will revisit the site and further level and top dress as needed. All other Lawn Bowl greens have been aerified and top dressed. In addition to this process we have verticut and fertilized all greens.
We are currently working with our irrigation consultant on pressure problems around the softball field. Water pressure to the field has decreased recently, creating difficulty in providing consistent turf coverage. We are also working on eliminating high spots along the infield by using a total of 2,200 square feet of sod.