1-6-19

Good Morning,

Over the past two weeks I have spent time with my family in Iowa City and Ankeny.  My brother in law, Todd, is progressing quite nicely.  He will be released from the hospital this coming week.  He was scheduled for release on Friday, but there was an infection in his chest causing an infection.

Once Todd is released, he will live with my wife, at my Aunt’s home, in Iowa City.  Tiffany will help Todd with his daily medical care through training from his hospital staff.  Todd will do outpatient rehab multiple days a week and have a home healthcare professional stop three days a week.

This has been a very long process for Todd and our family.  Taking time away from work is never ideal, but spending as much time with my family is my priority right now.  Todd’s health has improved and it’s a miracle he is still with us today.  Thank you all for the thoughts and prayers during this time.

I have started the reel sharpening process, the past couple weeks.  There are a lot of reels to get through as well as a lot of bedknives to sharpen.  The bedknife is bolted to the reel frame while the reel blades spin, slightly touching the bedknife.  This action is what causes the grass to be clipped.  If either of these is dull or out of adjustment, you get a very poor quality of cut.

Winter weather is always a major concern of mine.  It’s four months of the “unknown” I try to monitor on a regular basis.  The warm temperatures are definitely a concern.  The majority of snow has melted off all the greens leaving some standing water in low areas as well as exposed turf.

With frost in the ground, the melting snow causes a lot of surface drainage with no place for the water to go because the ground is frozen.  Now this standing water will freeze in these low areas, possibly causing turf damage in the spring.  It’s not an alarm going off, but it is always a possible concern.

The golf course looks very nice right now.  There is no sign of damage to any of the greens or other turf areas around the course.  This is only January, but these warm temperatures can really cause some issues.  Our newly sodded mounds, on 16, look great.  I will continue to monitor the course conditions each week and haul water if necessary to any dry greens.

The golf course experienced a lot of electrical issues over the course of 2018.  These were mostly connections that had melted due to moisture in the old connection tubing.  I was able, this past week, to check on some of the areas most affected last season.  They all appear to be in great condition.

Public use of the golf simulator has started to pick up the past week or so.  We have had golfers calling and reserving tee times for an hour or two.  It’s nice to see a little more traffic in the clubhouse.  There are several groups renting the simulator over the next two weeks.  I would love to have the simulator booked every day, but the increased use will be a positive for now.

I have updated all of the information on the website.  The event schedule has also been updated with our 2019 dates reserved.  The events will be updated as dates are requested for golf events.  Fees and other areas have also been updated on the website.  Any 2018 reservations have first choice on their date again for 2019.