COURSE COMMITTEE UPDATE

Course Committee Update

The Course committee met this week and the following matters discussed may be of interest to Members:

1. The complete change in the golf course since the first rain arrived a month ago was noted. The committee congratulated David and his team on managing the course through a very difficult period and noted that the recent rain does not in any way change the imperative of increasing our water capacity.
2. An update on the potential options for water capacity / storage was provided. This includes dam capacity, other storage options, and treatment of waste water to supplement the catchment water supply. The committee continues to investigate these options to determine which we should pursue in more detail. 
3. The water quality results of the past two months (and prior) were reviewed and the committee concluded that given results are consistently within acceptable parameters, we will stop buying town water for the irrigation of the greens and tees. The water from the dam will continue to be tested twice weekly to ensure it is suitable for irrigation of the greens. 
4. The committee are of the view that the Venturi aeration process has been effective in improving the quality of the water to the extent that a second stage process with further filtration is not currently required, and will not be further pursued at this stage. 
5. The level of damage to the fairway bunkers in the weekend storm 2 weeks ago was discussed. The impact on the fairway bunkers, compared to the green-side bunkers that have the capillary concrete, was noted. This is consistent with other heavy rain events, but at unprecedented levels in this storm. The committee concluded that we will continue with the trial of the two sands on the 14th hole. Further time to allow the sand to settle is required to properly assess the performance. We plan to apply capillary concrete to the fairway bunkers when we change the sand. The timing of this will be considered further. 
6. The impact of the storm on the path down the 10th hole was discussed. The path is in the process of being repaired (the repair element is covered by insurance) and the committee approved the extension of the concrete path by approximately 10 metres. The path behind the 10th green will continue to be aggregate based and will be graded as the repairs are completed.
7. The alteration of the back of the ninth tee was recommended for Board approval. The extension will remove the waist /neck at the back of the tee and provide more options for the use of the current Black /Blue tee position. The tee will be levelled in the process. 
8. The new Gold tees on the 9th and 10th holes were reviewed. The work on the Gold tees is ongoing – the 14th now also completed. 
9. A programme for the remediation of bare patches in areas considered to be “in play” was discussed. David’s team have been asked to prioritise this while we still have good turf growing conditions. Similarly, top soil will be applied to areas that have previously been turfed. 
10. The plan to do a burn in the bush down the left hand side of the 3rd was confirmed. This is likely to be in March / April when conditions are suitable.
11. The planting schedule for native plants was discussed. This is ongoing, and priority will be given to the new par 3 tee surrounds and the re-stocking of the 10th / 11A area.