Pierce Ln./Stamper Ln. Road Construction Update

ATTENTION GOLFERS. ROAD OPEN. Notice in picture above that all barricades are still in place and signs are up that say road closed but there is access thru for local traffic only. STRICT speed limits of 15 MPH are being enforced so please beware.


Notice barricade on left with speed limit sign going North toward Rolling Hills Golf Course. Various construction material remains on part of the road.


View of Pierce Lane looking South from the Stamper Lane intersection.

Thanks go out to Mayor McCormick, village employees, engineers, and the road construction crew for pushing for the partial opening of this major Godfrey roadway by the first of 2010.

New Years Day 2010

New Years Day 2010 brought our 33rd annual and longest running area first tournament of the year plus open house. We have had to cancel a couple due to ice but snow does not stop us. To the right of the snow man you can see the green where we started manually shoveling an area around the pin for the golfers to putt. We had two different 2" snows the week between Christmas and New Years.


Pictured above is #2 green with some remaining snow and ice. Exposing the dark green allows the surface to warm enough to melt down this remaining snow and ice.


We are able to utilize backpack blowers with dry snows as seen above.
New Years Day 2010 brought temperatures that maxed out at 20 degrees with wind chills in the single digits. That being said we still managed to have 54 golfers.

Flooding in #11 Fairway

Pictured above is a flooded(& frozen) #11 fairway. Why does this happen?

Years ago the valley on number 12 was always wet so we installed some underground drainage that runs into a well located in front of the white truck above.



The pump in this well forces the water up the hill and dumps it into our irrigation pond. We have had some issues with this pump kicking off during bad weather which then allows the water to flood the fairway.




Pictured above is the 36" well on the right where the pump is located and on the left is the electrical transformer. The blue box seen contains the breaker that we have had trouble with kicking off during storms.

Holiday Gift Specials 2009

Looking for the perfect gift. Consider Rolling Hills for your gift certificates this holiday season.

Frost Damage

Pictured above here is an up close look at frost. Normally in our area frost can occur anytime between the dates of Oct. 15th and April 15th of each year.



This picture illustrates why we do not allow golfers out when frost is present. While the plant is in this frost mode the cell walls are frozen and will rupture and die when stepped on. The foot imprints illustrate the rupturing of the plants cell walls.



Turf damage from a foot print on a green while frost is present.



Although this turf damage will recover in the coming months, this creates an opportunity for POA ANNUA invasion along with other weeds.

Tee Markers Off Course For Winter

Winter rates typically go into effect around November 1st of each year. Pictured above is #1 tee looking down the fairway. Tee markers are removed for the months of Nov.-March which allows us to paint and re-condition the markers for the season ahead.


We also get down to a skeleton crew in the Winter and lack of tee markers on the course means we do not have to worry about rotation. A view from the ladies tee on #9 Exec. with no tee markers present.
Feel free to use any part of the tees you like while the markers are off the course. Please try to not hit from areas that are excessively worn.

Hurricane Katrina Volunteer Work In The Lower Ninth Ward

In February 2009 I had the privilege to attend the Golf Industry Show in New Orleans. This show brings the club managers, owners, and the superintendent associations together for industry updates and educational opportunities. Obviously there are still areas in and around New Orleans that are still devastated from Hurricane Katrina in 2005. I decided to volunteer two days of my time at the Show and work with the St. Bernard Project. This is a group who have been recognized nationally for their efforts in rebuilding homes in the St. Bernard Parish area of the lower ninth ward which was totally devastated by the flooding. Pictured above are three of the individuals that I worked on the house with who were associated with the Americorps group. For more information on the Americorp program you can go to www.americorp.gov. This is a federal volunteer program for young adults between the ages of 18-24.




Flooding in this lower ninth ward area came up to the gutter line of this house pictured in the background. In the foreground is a FEMA trailer given to the homeowner by the federal government. Only about 30% of the homes in this area have been rebuilt as some decided to take the buyout and move on. Others such as this homeowner decided to live in one these trailers until their homes could be rebuilt by volunteers.



These homes had to be totally gutted and rebuilt with volunteers. The two days I worked we drywalled, taped, and painted. To the left of me is a storage box for building materials. Really a great experience and time well spent. The St. Bernard Project has been recognized for their efforts in this rebuilding effort and you can find out more at www.stbernardproject.org