tropical storm fay passes through naples

Our General Manager, Patrick Dorbad and myself assesed the damage to the golf course this morning at about 9:00 AM. I am very happy to report that there was no major damage to the community or the golf course. There were some power outages in the area, but the power was on at the club. The winds probably reached 50 to 70 mph as the storm came onshore at about 5:00 AM. We did receive a lot of rain. Probably more than 5 inches in all. There are a few trees down on the golf course including two Washingtonia palms one behind #10 green and one behind #3 green. Our plan is to spend the day on Wednesday cleaning, cutting and hauling as much debris off of the course as possible. I fully expect to have the golf course open and playable on Thursday morning. Our lakes are as full as they have been for three years.

Click on the thumbnails below to view some pictures taken this morning.

Rainy Season

By John H. Foy, USGA Agronomist
July 16, 2008

After an erratic start, the summer rainy season has fully arrived in Florida. Beginning in June and continuing through July, afternoon thunderstorms have occurred on a regular basis. Golfers, as well as course maintenance staff, need to be continuously aware of the warning rumbles of thunder that precede spectacular, but often violent and dangerous lightning strikes. With most areas of the state having been plagued by a prolonged and severe drought, the rainfall produced by these afternoon thunderstorms has been desperately needed. Yet, more time and rain is needed to fully recover from the drought and to reestablish normal lake and groundwater levels.

While we should never complain about the rain, the frequent and, at times, heavy deluges do contribute to additional turf and course management challenges. In some instances, 2- to 3-inches of rain has occurred in an hour or two, and the resulting localized flooding causes setbacks in accomplishing routine management practices and requires additional time be spent on debris cleanup and repairing bunker washouts.