Friday, July 10, 2015

2015 So Far

The Weather
The year so far has been very good for course conditions here at Blackhawk. Almost without fail it has rained when we needed it but still been dry enough to have excellent playing conditions.


The Course
3/30/15
7/10/15


It's funny to imagine the picture on the left actually looking good at one point, but two days before opening  we thought the range was starting to look great. As with the rest of the course, July looks much better on the range.


The Crew
We ended up with quite a few new faces this year on the seasonal crew. The good news is, everyone has been eager to learn and improve every day. Going forward I can only see conditions improve as everyone is able to focus less on learning and more on the details of every job.


The Projects
Once the course is playing well we are always looking for ways to improve the overall look of the course. Going forward we hope to finish cleaning up all of the plantings on the course. One of the best gardens this year is the bed between 9 tee and 1. If you haven't had a chance to see it, it's much better in person. It smells even better than it looks.
9 Tee Flower Bed
                                                             Another focus so far this year has been the clubhouse. Aside from the new parking lot, we have started some work on improving the flower beds and hope to have some larger changes in the future.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                       This year we also have a gentleman on the crew who is familiar with prairies and native plants. In his own words he "knows just enough to be dangerous", and has helped out tremendously with his work on 3,7 and near 8 tee.
The last major project so far has been the work done with the pond. Over the past 25 years grass, mud and leaves have made their way into the rock surrounding the water. It has been providing a perfect spot for weeds to grow and was only getting worse as time went on. The difference between the finished area on the south side and the rest of pond is dramatic. I can't thank the crew enough as the work is hard and messy, but the end product will last for years to come.

The Final Word
As always we hope everyone is enjoying their year here at Blackhawk and look forward to seeing you out on the course.