As the temperatures drop, the level of activity increases around these parts. We’re getting prepared for Old Man Winter. We like to wait until we can see that we’re officially in the deep freeze. Then, it’s all hands on deck to knock out the projects. Most of it has to do with water. If it […]
Irrigation Equation
Ahhh. Water. It’s earth’s most abundant compound. It can be easily found naturally in all three of its states. It’s weird and defies logic. It’s the universal solvent. It expands when it freezes. When you really think about water, it’s pretty amazing. We have experienced mass amounts of water. We have experienced lack of water. […]
Something Old. Something New. Something Borrowed. Something Orange?
One of the hardest things about running a business is trying to figure out when you’re supposed to make capital improvements, when you’re supposed to buy new/used equipment and when you’re supposed to pinch your pennies and just make do with what you have. As a general rule, we always pinch our pennies. Our family […]
Sir Toad is in the HOUSE!
I think it is safe to say that we are probably the only golf course in possibly the world to have the name Toad Valley. It isn’t exactly what you envision when you think about a golf course. Most have a serene name that brings a mental picture of gently rolling hills and flowing creeks […]
Iowa’s Power
About five years ago, we decided to name our holes. I had played another golf course who had named their holes and I really liked it. I casually mentioned it to my dad. Unbeknownst to me, he had basically named all of our holes in his head already. He started rattling off names that he […]
Tadpole Junior Golf Tournament
It simply wouldn’t be a sport if you didn’t have some sort of finishing tournament followed up by a trophy presentation. We had our annual Tadpole Junior Golf Tournament last Thursday. I have found one thing over the years. The kids may forget their swing, stance or grip from year to year, but they absolutely […]
Tribute to Dan O’Donnell, Sr.
Back in 1994, we hosted a golf outing for the O’Donnell family. It was the first one which served as a family reunion of sorts. About 40 golfers were present. The family which included Dan & Dee O’Donnell, their 10 children, spouses and grandchildren had a great time and plans were made for another family […]
She Thinks My Tractor is Comfy
Our outside staff spends lots of time on this John Deere tractor. They are required to sing country songs about tractors while they work. Ok. Not really required. Maybe just encouraged. We like to keep our outside staff happy. No falling asleep on the job, though. In preparation for the rain that is predicted, we […]
Seed. Seed. More Seed.
We have had several consecutive years of interesting weather. Hum. Ok. Maybe I should use the word challenging. In 2010, we had more water than we knew what to do with. It basically rained every single day. On 6 separate days, we had to close the course. When you really only have about 100 days of […]
Grass Seed is King this Spring
We have been seeding this spring. My husband, Kelly, always likes to comfort me by telling me that the seed only costs about $1 per pound. The trouble with that? We order about 5,000 pounds of seed. We use a rye/bluegrass mix. The rye grass germinates quickly, while the bluegrass is a more hardy grass.The […]