Turf Talk

Ellis Maples Invitational

(Men’s Member-Guest)

Thursday-Saturday, August 25-27 The 2022 Ellis Maples Invitational is just around the corner! Registrations opens on Saturday, June 4that 8:00am and we expect it to fill up quickly, so do not hesitate to sign up! FORMAT: Match Around (Four Ball Match Play - Round Robin within Flight). Within matches the low ball in the group will play at scratch"" and all other players will receive the difference in strokes. Odd handicaps will receive a "1/2 stroke" on each side. POINTS: Points in each 9-Hole match are awarded as follows: Winning Hole = 1 point, Halve Hole = 1/2 point, Loss of Hole = 0 points, Win Match = 1 Point, Halve Match = 1/2 point

*Match Point Maximum = 7 points (example 10 to 0 becomes 7 to 0 or 9 to 1 becomes 7 to 1)

FLIGHTS: For the Match Around Format, flights of six will be created by Total Team Handicap Index based on the August 15th, 2022 handicap revision. If your guest does not have an established handicap, verified scorecards must be turned in to the Golf Shop Staff in order to create a handicap. (A minimum of five scores will be required). All players will receive 90% of course handicap. TEES: All Players will compete from the Gold Tees. Players given permission may play the White Tees under the "Rule of 80" (Age + Course Handicap = 80 or greater). OVERALL CHAMPIONS: The winners of each Flight will play in a Championship Shoot-Out to determine the 2022 Ellis Maples Invitational Champions.

SCHEDULE OF ACTIVITIES

Thursday, October 7 8:00-7:00 pm Registration and Preliminary Round (Optional)

5:00 pm Skills Contests and Special Events 6:30 pm Contestant’s Dinner (Contestants and wives are invited)

Friday, October 8 7:30 am Players’ Breakfast 9:00 am Flight Match #1 11:30 am Flight Match #2 2:00 pm Players’ Lunch 3:00 pm Flight Match #3

* A Ladies activity will be held on Friday during play! *Dinner will be “on your ow ”n after play on Friday. Reservations will be available at the club.

Saturday, October 9 7:30 am Players’ Breakfast 9:00 am Flight Match #4 11:30 am Flight Match #5 2:00 pm Players’ Lunch 2:30 pm Championship Shoot-Out *All contestants and wives are encouraged to come watch! 6:30 pm Contestants and Wives Awards Reception 7:00 pm Awards Dinner 8:00 pm Presentation of Awards & Celebration w/ Live Entertainment

ENTRY FEE:

$850 per team. REGISTRATION: Once registration begins, the first 48 teams will make up the field. *Flight Winners from the 2021 Ellis Maples Invitational will automatically receive entry in the field! All other registrants after the first 48 will be put on an alternates list and will be put into the field on a first come, first serve basis. It has been an interesting spring, with temperatures all over the map, and not nearly as much rain as we would like to see. In spite of the weather, the golf course has almost made it through the transition period between dormancy and active growth. If it seems like we are a week or two behind other courses in the area to green up, you are not mistaken. The lay of the land, and fairways lined with trees keep soil temps lower than the area average. The lack of direct light also limits photosynthesis in our grass. When we do come completely out of dormancy, we have some of the best Tifway 419 fairways in the area. We have begun our landscaping refurbishment around the clubhouse and the golf course. So far, no new plantings have been installed. The entire project will take some time. We don’t have the staff to rip out everything all at once and maintain the golf course simultaneously. Consequently, we are removing old plant material first. Then, as new plants become available, they will be installed as efficiently as possible. Several areas have been pruned and will not be replaced. This is all part of the master plan. Please be patient with areas that have been dramatically pruned, they will grow back and be beautiful again soon. You may notice small holes in and around the greens. With very little disruption to play we were able to aerate all the greens and green surrounds. The greens should be fast and firm again soon. Aerating the collars and green surrounds should help relieve some of the compaction created by greens mowers and rollers. Any areas of collar or green surround that does not come back out of dormancy will be sodded.

While on the topic of sod, several members have expressed concerns about the turf quality on number 12 back tee. After careful consideration, we have decided to sod that tee with a Zorro Zoysia. It is a much more shade tolerant variety of grass and should hold up to traffic better than the existing Bermuda turf. While we convert the turf, that back tee will be closed until the sod grows roots and can be cut down to playable height. As promised, number 1 green is back in good health. So far this year, we have been executing our fungicide plan exactly as scheduled. If all the products perform as well as research trials have shown, we should not see disease on any greens this year. Other improvements you may have noticed include a new coat of paint on all the bridge railings, and new private property signs. The steel bridge railings were showing their age. Some had become unsightly with areas of rust, chipped paint, or growth of lichens. We sanded all of them smooth and repainted them. The private property signs were a joint venture between the Brook Valley HOA and the Country Club. We installed 8 signs in total. It is our hope that everyone respects the property and will follow the rules and regulations stated on the signs. As a staff we will be making an effort to be more diligent about enforcement.

From everyone in course maintenance, we wish all of you a great summer! We hope it is filled with a lot of great golf, no 3 putts, and plenty of good times with your friends and family. Until next time, I’ll see you on the course! Buckley Brockmann Brook Valley Superintendant