to open the November 2011 Club - Carmel Country Club

COURSE & GROUNDS
Carmel CC turned a major disruption of its South Course into a striking renovation that
not only features a neoclassic design by Rees Jones but has changed the property’s
maintenance practices—and the way its golfers play the game.
By Betsy Gilliland, Contributing Editor
At most golf course facilities, installation of a 7,000-linearfoot,
six-foot-diameter municipal sewer line that had to
run 25 feet underground through the length of the property
would be a major headache. At Carmel Country Club in
Charlotte, N.C., that problem was seen as an opportunity for a
complete overhaul of its 18-hole South Course.
Because the sewer line project was going to shut it down
anyway, the disruption offered the perfect chance to upgrade
the South Course’s design, notes Certified Golf Course Superintendent
Bill Anderson, Carmel’s Director of Greens and
Grounds. After approval to renovate the course was given,
however, there was one more decision to make.
“The choice was to renovate small—or renovate big,” says
John Schultz, CCM, Carmel’s General Manager.
‘Never-Ending Pleasure’
Rather than merely adding some shaping to the course, rebuilding
the greens and replacing cart paths for $5 million,
Schultz reports, Carmel decided to go big. The club, which had
first approached renowned architect Rees Jones about renovating
the course in 2005, decided to give him carte blanche to
essentially build a new course on top of the former layout.
“We decided to make it special, rather than just enhancing
what we had,” Schultz reveals.
Ground was broken on the 18-month, $9 million project in
October 2009, and it became the largest golf course renovation
in the country in 2010. More than 200,000 cubic yards of soil
were moved, and a total of 478 semi-truckloads of sod were
laid everywhere except the greens.
When the neoclassical design reopened for play this spring,
golfers found new bunkering, significantly increased grading,
contoured fairways, square tees and open entrances to the
greens. Grassed areas were increased from 143 acres to 157
acres. Some holes had been eliminated, while others were created
on 14 undeveloped acres, to extend the layout by about
500 yards. Holes 1 and 18 were reversed, to take advantage of
a new clubhouse terrace. Hundreds of trees were removed, and
new ornamental and native grasses were planted.
PHOTO BY MARCOS ASPIAZU AND COURTESY CARMEL CC
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COURSE & GROUNDS
PHOTOS BY GREGG OWEN AND COURTESY CARMEL CC
Carmel CC
General Manager
John Schultz (left)
and Director of Golf
Jeff Nichols (below)
worked closely with
the club’s Course
& Grounds staff to
plan, execute and
keep each other, and
members, apprised
on the progress
of what ranked as
the largest course
renovation project in
the U.S. last year.
Fairways were dropped and
landing areas were elevated
on holes along McAlpine
Creek, which runs through
the property. A new irrigation
system with more than
2,500 individually controlled
sprinklers and an extensive
drainage system was installed,
to help maximize playability
in all seasons, and all weather
conditions. The end result is a
golf course that players of all
abilities can enjoy.
“You have a golf course
that gives you options on
every shot,” explains Jones.
“You have options depending
on what you did off the tee,
depending on what tees you play, and depending on where the
hole location is. This is going to be a very changeable golf course
season-wise and wind-wise, and in cold and warm weather.
This is a golf course that will be of never-ending pleasure.”
Anderson says the course is drier now after a rainstorm, and
the new irrigation system allows the grounds crew to keep the
turf healthy without over-watering.
“We also have newer high-tech, high-performance grasses
that were not available 20 years ago,” he adds. “Golfers like
the way the ball sits on these grasses. It’s almost like hitting
off a tee.”
No Substitute for Experience
Anderson, who collaborated with Jones on reconstruction
of the South Course tees, greens and fairway bunkers in the
1980s, worked closely with the architect and his team on the
new project as well.
“Bill was integral as the project manager. He represented
Carmel Country Club with the contractors on a daily basis,”
says Schultz. “This project was exceptionally smooth in dealing
with the contractors, because Bill took such an active role in
coordinating their activities on a weekly basis. We also had to
work with the city on installing the sewer line, and there was
not a single dispute between any of the major subcontractors.”
As a member of the South Course Renovation Committee,
Anderson, who has been in his position at Carmel since 1975,
was involved heavily in the year-long process of planning, permitting,
writing documents and getting them approved before
the project got underway. He also drew on his experience with
the previous reconstruction project.
“It’s a lot different in the field than just writing the specs,”
Anderson reports. “During the construction process, I was the
club representative in the field with the contractor and the architect.
We had to make an endless number of small but important
decisions, and continually make adjustments and solve
problems to keep the process moving.
“We were on a tight schedule to get the grass down in time
for the growing weather,” Anderson adds. “If you lose that
window of growing weather, then you have to wait a year to
get it back.”
Playability for golfers of all abilities was the
primary goal of the renovation, notes Director of
Golf Jeff Nichols, but some were concerned that
the additional length of the course—which now
measures 7,500 yards—would make it too hard for
high handicappers. To alleviate those fears, the staff
took members on daily tours of the project during
construction.
“It was exciting for them, and we wanted them to
be comfortable as the golf course was being built,”
Nichols reports. “We could show them where they
would be playing from. We have more high handicappers
than low, and they could see that everyone’s
demands were being met.”
Carmel also made a decision early during the renovation
project to find ways to regularly give positive
feedback to the people who were building the
course. From offering workers golf balls and hats
Golf Scorecard
Property: Carmel Country Club, Charlotte, N.C.
Club Website: www.carmelcountryclub.org
Golf Holes: 36
Designer: South Course – Rees Jones;
North Course – Tom Jackson
Type: Private
No. of Members: 1,350
Year Opened: 1947
Golf Season:
Year-round
Annual Rounds:
50,000
Fairways: South
Course – Zeon Zoysia;
North Course – Tifway 419 Bermudagrass
Greens: South Course – A-1 Bentgrass;
North Course – Crenshaw Bentgrass
Tees: South Course – Diamond Zoysia;
North Course – Tifway 419 Bermudagrass
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“When the course was closed, we took the opportunity
to analyze what we were doing, and changed some of our golf
operations and practices.”
—John Schultz, CCM, General Manager, Carmel Country Club
with logos to taking them out to dinner, the facility showed its
appreciation to the individual construction crews each month.
“Properties often wait until the project is finished to have a
cookout and let everyone who helped build the course play a
round of golf,” explains Schultz. “But by then, so many of them
are already gone.”
Rethinking the Approach
After the South Course reopened this past March to rave
reviews from golfers, Carmel’s golf operations instituted new
practices designed to help keep the layout in top condition.
“When the course was closed, we took the opportunity to
analyze what we were doing, and changed some of our golf
operations and practices,” says Schultz.
The golf operations staff used that time to revamp tee times,
play and tournaments. “Instead of having shotgun starts four
days a week, we reduced them so the maintenance staff could
get out ahead of the players, instead of working around them,”
Schultz reports.
Carmel created a new bag drop and cart-staging area and
added 50 new parking spaces “to enhance the experience as
members arrive,” he adds. The property also set up computer
stations in some of these areas and at the new turn rooms, so
the staff will know which golfers are approaching.
With a $500,000 increase to its budget, the greens and
grounds department benefited from the operational analysis
as well. The grounds crew now mows the grass more frequently
and the staff also spends more time maintaining the bunkers,
which feature G-angle sand that decreases plugged lies and
makes them more player-friendly.
“The bunkers are more striking, but they take more time,
more people, more edging, more raking,” says Anderson. “We
had to allocate more dollars to bunker maintenance—but since
we got more money from the Board, we didn’t have to cut back
anywhere else.”
The new irrigation system, which Anderson selected, allows
the crew to water the course more efficiently. “Some of the
heads just water the faces and sand of the bunkers, and it keeps
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COURSE & GROUNDS
PHOTOS (LEFT AND FAR RIGHT) BY MARCOS ASPIAZU; PHOTOS (BELOW) BY KEITH EVANS: ALL COURTESY CARMEL CC
To take advantage of a new clubhouse terrace, holes 1 and 18 were
reversed in the renovation. Because of the added demands from
the makeover, Carmel CC’s annual course maintenance budget was
increased by $500,000. “We had something that we thought was a
gem, and we wanted to take care of it,” says GM John Schultz.
PHOTO BY GREGG OWEN AND COURTESY CARMEL CC
Superintendent Profile:
William Anderson, CGCS
Education and Training: 36 years as Greens and
Grounds Director at Carmel Country Club; B.S. in
Crop Science, Michigan State University
Years at Carmel Country Club: 38
Years in the Golf Course
Maintenance Business: 44
Previous Employment:
Summer labor, Point
O’Woods Country Club,
Ann Arbor, Mich.
Certifications: Certified
Golf Course
Superintendent
Honors and Awards: 2008
Distinguished Service
Award, Carolinas Golf
Course Superintendents
Association
the moisture in the sand perfect,” he reports. “Or we can just
water the fairways or the rough.”
The renovated South Course became only the second in the
Carolinas to feature Zeon Zoysia grass, which was installed on
the fairways, collars and chipping areas. The zoysia creates a
nice color contrast with the Celebration Bermudagrass in the
rough, Anderson notes, but the crew has to sharpen the mowers
more frequently because of the zoysia.
Not that anyone is complaining about the new maintenance
practices. “We had something that we thought was a gem, and
we wanted to take care of it,” says Schultz. “It’s the little things
that make a difference in the condition.”
Leading to Bigger Things
While play at Carmel used to be divided equally between
the North and South courses, Schultz reports, now usage is
heavier on the South Course, which gives shot makers a variety
of ways to play each hole.
“The greens are relatively low to grade, so it gives the golfers
options,” explains Anderson. “You don’t have to fly every shot
over a feature or low area to get to the green. We used sand
from the bunkers that were previously in front of every green
to give a firmer, drier, more shot-friendly approach, and you
can bounce the ball to the green. There might be a bunker on
one side of the green, but it’s clear on the other side. The design
is asking you to create the shot you’re most comfortable with.”
Schultz agrees. “There are multiple shot options,” he adds.
“We brought back the ground game. Instead of hitting up to
areas that will hold, a golfer can land the ball in areas in front
of the greens, and run it up to the holes. There are bailout areas
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around the greens that you can putt through and get the ball
close.”
The 18-hole North Course, which still features a lot of front
bunkering, requires golfers to play an air game, Nichols adds.
However, he continues, the new South Course lets golfers use
their creativity, from hitting a flop shot to a bump-and-run
from the bailout areas.
“If you miss a green, now you can take your entire bag to the
spot and decide what you want to play,” he adds.
The walkable course also includes a new lake and other
aesthetics, and the ups and downs on the new fairways create
more movement and more interest.
“People ask me if the South Course has a signature hole,”
Jones says. “I tell them that every hole is unique; they combine
to create a signature golf course.”
Carmel was the site of the 2006 U.S. Girls’ Junior Championship,
and Schultz says the club is now starting to receive
inquiries from the PGA and the USGA about holding bigger
events at the property. But while the added length of the renovated
South Course could attract major tournaments, Schultz
is taking things a step at a time. “We want to wait and see how
that fits into our mission for Carmel,” he says.
Anderson believes that all of Carmel’s amenities benefit
from having a challenging, well-maintained golf course.
“Carmel is a large country club where swimming, tennis,
social activities and dining are all important,” Nichols agrees.
“But we’ve picked up 88 new members since the beginning of
the year, and golf is of the highest importance to them. We
have two different types of golf courses now, and that has been
an asset.”
Schultz concurs. “Golf is the main reason that members join
country clubs,” he says. “Other amenities are becoming more
important, and the social element is a major driver. But it’s still
about golf.”
C&RB
At the reopening of the South Course in March, architect Rees Jones
(far left) posed with three Carmel CC Presidents (left to right, Robert
Hoppe, Jack Morgan and Ted Barnes) who were influential in moving
the ambitious renovation project forward. “Every hole is unique,
[and] they combine to create a signature golf course,” says Jones.
Course & Grounds Profile:
Carmel CC
Annual C&G Budget: $2.9 million
Staff: 38 full-time, two part-time and 14 seasonal
full-time
Other Managers: Ed McClafferty, South Course
Superintendent; Kevin Lutz, North Course
Superintendent; Corey Hraczo, South Course
Assistant Superintendent; Bob Campbell, North
Course Supervisor; John Clark, Horticulturist and
Petra Toet, Office Manager
Irrigation system: Both courses – Toro Lynx Control
System; more than 3,500 irrigation heads
Water source and usage: Lake with four wells and
creek pump
Equipment: Toro lease for all major mowing
equipment
Technology: Lynx Toro Irrigation System, soil
moisture sensors, hand-held moisture sensors,
weather station
Maintenance Facility: Updated building with offices,
conference facility, lunch/break room, locker room.
Chemical and fertilizer storage and wash pad with
recycled water and cleaning capacity. Large
maintenance building for equipment repair and
storage.
Aerating and overseeding schedule: Aerify South
and North courses in April and September; no
overseeding
Upcoming capital projects: Beginning stages of
long-range planning for future improvements on
North Course
Duties and responsibilities: Responsible for all golf
courses and landscape operations on 465-acre
property. Also in charge of large practice area and
upcoming renovations on a 12-court tennis
complex.
To comment about this story, contact
editor@clubandresortbusiness.com
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