Superintendent's Blog
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August 13, 2015
Today is the first day of the PGA Championship at Whistling Straits in Kohler Wisconsin, the final major of the 2015 golf season. I have decided to go with the obvious choice for my selection of the winner - David Lingmerth. Why Lingmerth, the native Swede who played his college golf at The University of Arkansas, and has traditionally played well in the majors - you ask. The answer is simple - for the past nine years I have been a total failure trying to predict the winner of golf's four majors. So this time I decided to look at a list of players, close my eyes and point a finger at a name. How can I lose? The rest of my PGA pool team is: Day, Stenson, Koepka and Lowrey. Also, starting Monday the US Amateur begins at Olympia Fields Country Club. I will be a volunteer on the grounds crew.
David Lingmerth and is wife, Megan
August 12, 2015
H-F High School starts classes today. WOW! Almost everyone I talk to thinks that this summer has gone by fast. Maybe it is because school is starting a week earlier - or - because the first part of the summer was wet and cool and it didn't seem like summer until mid-July - or - we are getting old and time seems to go faster the older one gets. I guess it doesn't really matter why, but I feel like it is almost Thanksgiving. The early morning's of the past three weeks of summer have for the most part been gorgeous with clear skies and moderate humidity. Last Monday afternoon, the course received .7" of precipitation, as measured by the official Coyote Run digital rain gauge. The rain really helped even out the moisture on the fairways. Check this space tomorrow for my PGA picks.
Mauricio Morales string-trimming bunkers - John Deere gator/Mercury in background
August 3, 2015
Somehow all of the blog entries between May 21st and August 3rd disappeared - I'm blaming it on Chinese hackers and my cousin, Roger. If you were able to read all of the hacked/deleted posts on this blog since May 21st, you would know that it has been an interesting season at CRGC. After a cold, wet and seemingly un-ending spring, we have just gone through a period of great summer weather. Last night we received some much needed rain, (.75" as measured by the official Coyote Run Golf Course digital rain gauge). The forecast for the upcoming week is for perfect golf weather. The biggest news that was posted in the hacked/deleted blog entries was the fact that I won the pool for The Open Championship, (British Open), with a team of Jason Day, Adam Scott, Justin Rose, Henrick Stenson and Louis Oosthuizen. I picked Adam Scott to win, so may record of total futility is still intact, (Zack Johnson was the winner). One of the things I am enjoying this summer are the native plants in our out of play areas and the great wildlife that is enjoying Coyote Run. The last post that you can see, (May 21st), is about the eagle that visited CRGC to munch on a bluegill. Eagles aren't the only birds enjoying the bluegills in our lakes.
Egrets fishing in pond on #12
Caspian tern with his sushi breakfast on #15
May 21 2015
This morning Coyote Run Golf Course had an unusual avian visitor. I was riding back to the maintenance shop when I noticed a 'large something' on the opposite bank of the pond on the 16th hole. I stopped to take a better look and saw what appeared to be a large bird with a white head and a white tail. I thought to myself that the only bird I know matched what I was seeing was a bald eagle. I ran for the camera, grabbed Mike Lavine, CRGC equipment technician, as a witness and slowly approached the bird while snapping pictures. Sure enough, it was an eagle sitting on the bank eating a bluegill. I've had a number of eagles, (a hole played in 2 under par), in my golf career but this was the first time in my 40 years on a golf course that I have ever seen a real fish-eating/white-headed/giant-wingspanned national bird and symbol of our nation. I wasn't sure if the pictures would turn out because the eagle was so far away, but a couple turned out to be pretty good.
Eagle flying away from the pond on #16
Eagle in a tree by #15 tee
April 22, 2015
This is one of those rare spring days when I wish I had an inside job. The temperature this morning was 33 degrees, (now 43 degrees), with a 20 miles per hour west wind, (now 25mph with gusts to 35mph). Just to make things a little more miserable, it snowed for a while. As a boss, I felt guilty sending the crew out to mow fairways and approaches - a job where you mostly just sit and get cold driving a mower. The cold is actually the reason I am updating the blog. I wanted an inside job! 33,353 gallons of water - that is the about amount of water it takes to fill all of the irrigation pipes at Coyote Run, (minus a little water that escapes venting the air out of the system). Yesterday, we activated the irrigation system. There is always a chance that something bad happens over the winter and when the system is filled with water in the spring, leaks appear everywhere. So far after two days, no leaks. Other than the shivering, I feel blessed.
cold day for testing out the irrigation system
April 15, 2015, (Tax Day)
So, another of golf's majors has come and gone and my historic record is intact - now 0 for 37! Rickie redeemed himself on the Sunday shooting five under to finish at minus six. Matsuyama tied the low score of the day by shooting six under to finish at minus eleven. I think the trend is in the right direction and the 2015 US Open will be the championship that breaks the curse, (maybe I need to get a goat). Jordan Spieth was amazing and his win was great for the game of golf. I personally am looking forward to years of competition between all of the great young players currently in the game - Spieth, Fowler, McIllroy, Day, Reed, D. Johnson, Matsuyama, etc. Throw in a few old guys who are playing well - Mickelson, Woods, (maybe), Z. Johnson - and golf will be compelling for the first time years. Meanwhile back at picturesque Coyote Run Golf Course...grass is growing, the whole staff is back, the golf course is in good playing condition and the forecast looks promising. This week the crew finished the clean-up from the high winds of last week, trimmed around irrigation heads, started daily mowing of the greens, and spent some time getting all the sand in the bunkers in the right place. Next up - activating the irrigation system. Season's on!
Jordan Spieth, Master's Champion!
April 10, 2015
Yesterday was a good scoring day at The Masters. Ask Jordan Spieth. Rickie Fowler, although definitely not out of it, finished about in the middle of the field, shooting one over par 73. The rest of my pool team, with the exception of Garcia, (-4), also shot so-so. I feel good - at least until tomorrow - because there is still hope. I also feel good because the Homewood-Flossmoor area missed the worst of yesterday's storms. We did get some rain - .65" as measured by the official Coyote Run Golf Course digital rain gauge - but no flooding, no tornado, no significant tree damage and no loss of life.
So, you wonder, how do they get Augusta National in such unbelievably fantastic condition every year?
April 9, 2015
So it's the first day of The Masters and our internet was down until 1:30pm. Something about a surge, (lightning), destroying a modem, a firewall and a router. So this post is a little late, but I made my pick yesterday and I'm sticking to it. The Winner of the 2015 Masters will be - Ricky Fowler - of course. How could one not select Fowler after a 2014 season where he finished tied for 5th at The Masters, tied for 2nd at the US Open, 2nd at the British Open and tied for 3rd at the PGA. He is due! Through my futile nine years of trying to select the winner of golf's four majors, I haven't come close. In fact, I couldn't have done much worse. This year, however, is going to be different and I feel really good about Mr. Fowler. I may even start wearing orange Puma hats, a little large, a little sideways and a little pulled down over my ears. As for the rest of my Masters pool team - I decided to go with the not-so-obvious players. Why not, I never win by picking the obvious ones. Here it is...Fowler, Garcia, (my second choice for winner), Reed, Matsayuma, and Westwood. I picked -11 as the winning score. How can I lose?
Rickie Fowler finds out he is the Superintendent's Blog selection to win The Masters