By Brian Duthu
Pro Shops
Total revenue for June and July combined was down 3% to budget or $14,196. Total revenue compared to prior year was down 1% or $5,908. Merchandise sales for June and July combined were down $2,713 compared to prior year. Driving range sales were the one bright spot compared to prior year, exceeding prior year sales by $1,859.
Despite our summer performance we remain ahead of our sales budget and continue to exceed prior year sales.
Once again this year we will be participating in Patriot Golf Day. Patriot Golf Day was organized, with the help of PGA of America, to raise funds for the Folds of Honor Foundation. The money raised is used to fund scholarships for spouses and children of military service men and women killed or disabled while serving our country. Starters will be collecting donations through the pro shops from August 31 through September 3.
Golf Courses
The irrigation project at Lakes West remains on schedule, work is scheduled to be completed in early September. A major milestone was recently completed, which is the tying in of the new irrigation system to the pump station. For the first time the irrigation system was pressurized, allowing us to abandon most of the previous irrigation system. We have received numerous observations from outside vendors on how clean our irrigation project has been and how well the grass has come back. Much of this credit goes to the maintenance team at National Golf Maintenance.
Our summer cultural practices have been completed, including aerification and fairway verticutting. As stated in a previous email/press release, we understand the inconvenience this causes our summer golfers. We do appreciate your patience.
Through over seeding heavy rough can be expected at all the courses. Our standard rough mowing frequency is 1.5 times per week. With higher humidity this time of year growth will be heavy. It should be noted that the staff of National Golf Maintenance is exceeding our rough mowing standard in an attempt to keep rough heights reasonable.
As a reminder over seeding begins October 1 and preparation for this begins in the September. Growth regulator will be applied the week before closing to slow the growth of the grass. Irrigation will be reduced to further slow the growth and mowing heights will be raised to aid in the scalping process. Please check the golf calendar for each course’s overseed schedule.
Snack Shops
Despite decreased golf traffic snack shops were able to exceed prior year sales for the combined months of June and July. Total sales for the two months were $2,718 ahead of the same period last year or 4%. We thank everyone for continuing to support your snack shops.