Golf News

The Ice Breaker tournament kicked off our first golf event of 2022 with Tyler Duke taking the Bluff Flight with a terrific score of 80, Greg Honeymichael capturing the Creek Flight with a score of 91, and guest Kyle Hadden finishing with a score of 87 on the Island Flight. There was some fantastic scoring in tough conditions for this event.

As we moved into the Spring months, we hosted the Augusta National Women’s Amateur at full capacity with the world ready to come back in town for the Masters tournament. The ANWA competitors found our new TifEagle greens firm and challenging as they were tested throughout the course of two-and-a-half days of tournament play. Due to severe weather conditions, the event carried into Friday morning allowing the ladies to complete round 2, which then led to a spectacular final round at Augusta National on Saturday, April 2nd. Anna Davis grinded through two tough rounds of play at Champions Retreat (70-76) and finished her final round at Augusta National with a score of 69. After an exciting finish, she grabbed the title.

Once again, Augusta, Georgia became the capital of the world for one week of the year as Masters Week was back in full force for 2022. Our Club hosted several Members and visitors from all corners of the globe for seven consecutive days with golf, fine dining, and entertainment. Champions Retreat definitely is a sought-after destination from those who visited for the tournament. Once they experienced the southern hospitality, incredible venue and golf course second to none, visitors booked their 2023 trip before they left the property.

We hosted our annual Member-Member tournament this spring with 57 teams competing for the Championship Barrels. The weekend was complete with great sportsmanship, competitive play, and camaraderie. The Tournament Shootout came down to the last hole between teams Rich Poythress/Pierce Markowitz and Phillip Tully/Matt Eschelbach. Both teams competed twice on Creek #9 to determine an overall champion and in the end, Poythress/Markowitz captured the title.

Flight

Flight 1 - Shae Stancil/Adam McKenney

Flight 2 - Mike Ross/Russell Fiveash

Flight 3 - Kyle Christiansen/Bill Gibbs

Flight 4 - John DeFoor/Preston Duffie

Flight 5 - Rich Poythress/Pierce Markowitz

Flight 6 - Russell Kowalczyk/Chris Perry

Flight 7 - Chip Huffman/Brett Arrowood

Our instructional programs have continued their growth the first half of this year and remain a staple for many new golfers to explore the game of golf. Both Fore the Ladies and the Junior Golf Academy have remained successful in forming new friendships, playing partners, and an overall excitement to expand and improve one’s golf game. With ANWA as a backdrop here at the Club, we have noticed an increased interest in girls joining our Junior Academy golf program. We’re proud to see the benefit of the Women’s Amateur encouraging young golfers to explore the game. We, as a Professional Staff, are thrilled and proud of the development of our programs and are always looking for new and innovative ways to continue elevating them.

Mike Rymer | Director of Golf

(706)

854-6964 | mike@championsretreat.net

Course Conditions

I hope that this letter finds you happy and healthy. We have been fortunate to have such a positive run of great weather for our turf this spring. With that, May is the beginning of the transitional months from Rye overseed to Bermuda grass, when Bermuda awakens from dormancy. Transition will show itself first as bare or struggling grass, but the Bermuda will creep in to fill those voids during the months of June and into August.

Below is a short summary of each area highlighting our focus this summer.

Tees (overseed areas):

These areas will be fertilized every 7-10 days with a quick release granular fertilizer to get the bermudagrass the nitrogen it needs to recover. A light topdressing will be applied once most of the ryegrass has died out. There are always some areas that do not make it through transition and will need to be resodded; for example, forward tee on #6 Island. Due to shade, strength of turf and micro-climate locations around the property, some areas will recover differently than others.

Fairways:

We are pleased with the fairway surfaces and their conditions, and the fertilizer that we applied in April will continue to release throughout the next month.

Aprons:

This is an area of immediate attention. While some elements of the construction project were known in terms of its timing and recovery, some areas have not responded to our standards. The warm weather is our friend on this topic. That said, the nutrients and best agronomic practices are being applied in these areas. A combination of patching, fertility applications and protection will make improvement in areas of need.

Greens:

Our goal to have firm and fast putting surfaces has been achieved by changing the surfaces to the TifEagle bermudagrass. Our first winter was one of protection of these new surfaces and we were pleased on how we managed through those colder months. In an effort to maintain these conditions, routine maintenance must be followed. Every Monday since late March and through August 15th, the surfaces will receive either a vertical mow or verti-cutting and topdress. With minimal impact on playability, what can be noticed are green speeds increasing throughout the week (Tuesday-Sunday) as the surfaces are rolled.

Rough:

With certain exceptions, we are pleased with the condition of our rough. Three areas in particular (#4 and #8 Bluff and #7 Creek) have areas of a condition named Spring Dead Spot. Adjustments to the chemical applications in the fall will have a greater influence in these areas for the spring. These areas will improve as the summer heat returns.

Aerification July 11th through July 13th:

Aerification is the dreaded word that is a necessary evil and ultimately produces the best putting surfaces. During this week, all greens will be aerified, as well as tees and aprons. Fairways will be verti-cut and solid tine. Tees and Aprons will also be top-dressed.

Steps for Greens Aerification:

1. Verti-Cut 4-directions

2. Aerify

3. Topdress