Volume 20 Issue 8

The Divot

INDEX The Divot Volume 20 Issue 8

1. General Manager Pg. 1-2

2. The Pro Shop Pg. 3

3. Superintendent Pg. 4-5

4. Ladies League Pg. 6

5. GMCC Handicap Committee Pg. 7

6. Events Manager Pg. 8

7. Rally Pg. 9-11

8. Club Championship Pg. 12

9. Junior Club Championship Pg. 13

10. Gre-Bill Pg. 14

11. Member Member Pg. 15

12. High School JV Pg. 16

13. Fun Trivia Pg. 17

14. Calendar Pg. 18

INDEX

Page 1 The Divot Volume 20 Issue 8

From the General Manager

We have had a wonderful spring and summer. Thank you, members, for supporting our club and staff especially with all the challenges that faced us this year. With school approaching, it is still is not too late to bring your family out for a round of golf, swim in the pool, or a patio dining experience.

We had another successful month with membership growth. We currently have 396 golfing members and 109 Social/Social Fitness members. Please welcome to the club the following new members:

Lee Lunsford and Chrissie Nicholls

Kellie Lassila

Mark and Dawn Walters

Dan and Shawn Whyte

Susan Depasquale

Mitchel Woods

Kalli and Bridger Redden

Marti and Nick Kuntz

Julie and Clinton Henry

This is the time of year that we lose some of our seasonal staff. Pool staff, wait staff, bag room at-tendants, maintenance employees and other employees that work hard during the season to provide you with an exceptional experience at Green Meadow Country Club will be heading back to school or working other jobs. Please bear with us as we strive to make scheduling changes to continue and provide you quality service. In the next few days, you will be receiving a link to a survey. Please take the time to answer the survey questions. We utilized the data from the survey to make improvements, measure customer satisfaction, and to address members con-cerns.

I had posted this article last year concerning sand and seed. Please read the article again and take care of our wonderful facility by using the sand and seed bottles and fixing your ball marks on the putting surfaces.

Please read the following concerning course care from the United States Golf Association (USGA).

“To Fill, Or Not To Fill, There Is No Question”

Continued………………….

Art by;

P. Hobbs

Cartoon

cycle from

the 1930’s

Page 2 The Divot Volume 20 Issue 8

There are many ways golfers can impact play, not raking footprints in a bunker or improperly fixing ball marks immediately come to mind. While ball marks are sometimes difficult to find and can have a major impact on ball roll, there is no excuse for not fixing a divot. Failing to do this simple act after hitting a shot is not only bad for the turf but has a potential negative impact on players that follow.

Just as ball marks require a certain technique to correctly fix, divots also require attention to detail for proper repair. So, the next time you hit a take a divot please keep the following in mind:

• Watch where your divot went. As you admire your shot – or look away in disbelief – al-ways keep in mind that you may have displaced a small piece of turf. Replacing your divot is always the best option for repair, assuming it has some soil attached. If the entire divot ex-plodes into pieces, look around for any other usable divot that can fit in your scar.

Take your time fixing or filling divots. Regardless of the club used, replacing a divot is a simple act: find the dislodged turf and replace it, making sure to push the divot back into the scar with your foot to enhance rooting. However, if the divot explodes into pieces and cannot be replaced, fill the divot with the divot mix provided by the maintenance staff.

When using divot mix, it is important to avoid over or under filling divots. Under filling a divot will result in a depression that affects golf ball lie. On the other hand, overfilled divots will damage mowing equipment and create poor playing conditions. To properly fill a divot, bend over and directly place divot mix in each divot, making sure the divot mix does not spill onto undamaged turf. Add divot mix until it is even with the base of the adjacent turf. Finally, just as with replacing divots, use your foot to compact and level the divot mix. This will provide better soil-to-seed contact to enhance germination and seedling survival. The USGA Course Care video, “Divot Repair Etiquette,” demonstrates the basics of divot repair for both warm - and cool-season grasses. Make sure to check with the pro shop staff before teeing off for the preferred method of divot repair at your course. And remember: to fill, or not to fill, there is no question.

Sand and seed bottles are available next to the bag rack outside of the bag room.

Next time you play a round of golf, please remember to check into the Pro Shop before you begin.

“Golf is deceptively simple and endlessly complicated; it satisfies the soul and frustrates the intellect. It is at the same time rewarding and maddening – and it is without a doubt the greatest game mankind has ever invented.” Arnold Palmer

Tod Fitterer, PGA General Manager

From the General Manager

Chad Carlson, PGA

Head Golf Professional

406.442.5750 ext. 3

Page 3 The Divot Volume 20 Issue 8

From the Pro Shop AUGUST 4 Rally for the Cure Tue

8/9 GMCC Club Championship Sat/Sun

11th Junior League Championship Tuesday

15/16 Gre-Bill Sat/Sun

22-23 GMCC Member/Member Sat/Sun

24 High School JV (9:00 T Times) Mon

SEPTEMBER 4 President/Speakers Cup Thursday

18 YMCA Friday

25 Carroll College SAA Friday

27 GMCC GRIND Sunday

Chald Sergio “Golf “Amazing Chalk Sidewalk Art

Page 4 The Divot Volume 20 Issue 8

From the Superintendent

Well summer certainly arrived this past month and looks to continue throughout August. Tem-

peratures in the mid-upper 90’s present difficult challenges in maintaining all of our golf course

areas. Greens in particular which are hard to manage anyhow become more stressed and vulner-

able. If you take all the greens combined at GMCC it would add up to about 3 of the 100 or so

acres we groom and irrigate. I’ll use this article to talk a little bit about our greens maintenance

programs happening on those three acres.

I have been around this business most of my life and am still surprised how grass communities

within a green can survive at all. They are mowed daily, sometimes twice a day at height range

of .080 to .110 of an inch. They are rolled after mowing every other day. Cups are changed every

other day to combat and rotate the cleated foot traffic of sometimes 220 players per day. This al-

lows previously used areas to heal for a few days before pressure resumes. Inherently over time,

thatch and organic matter begins to build up so we engage in the cultural practice of vertical-

cutting and sanding to top-dress them. This process generally occurs about every third week and

aids in firmness and smoothing of the surfaces while also keeping organic matter at levels within

recommendations. Irrigation gets assigned daily to the greens based on soil moisture monitoring

with a meter, visual inspections, and taking into account the day’s weather. We use plant growth

regulators on the greens to reduce growth throughout a day in an attempt to have them putt as

well in the evening as in the morning. These applications are timed out with growing degree day

calendars and for the months of June – August, averages every two to three weeks. We also

need to apply soil wetting agents every 25- 30 days throughout the season as soils get hydropho-

bic and hard to wet. Because of the volume of water flowing through a greens profile and com-

paction from aforementioned equipment use, pore spaces within the soils diminish and seal off. A

means of aerating greens to relieve this has come in the form of venting the greens with a tine

we’ve chosen that looks like a bayonet. This tool is a great way to aerate, allowing water and air

flow to resume with minimal surface disruption. We have practiced this the last few years

throughout the season once every 5-6 weeks but are still working on how to do so it is more ac-

ceptable. Fertility is a large issue for greens but generally we do a granular application every 4-6

weeks, and supplement that with foliar spray applications about every 10 days. We sometimes

add fungicides to help with diseases which come about when environments are right. There are

literally hundreds of products out there promoted and aimed at greens and golf course manage-

ment in fertility and plant protectants. Finding ones that pertain to our greens needs is often a

trial and error process along with talking with other superintendents about their use of products.

All of this action to these three particular acres occurs daily Sunday-Saturday, between the hours

of 5- 8 a.m. from May through September. They are also practiced in April and October but in re-

duced amount.

Continued…..

Continued…..

The practices mentioned above are in the name of trying to get a golf ball to roll across a surface in

some form of an acceptable manner while maintaining plant health under often tough pressure and

circumstances. I always say there’s about 20 different things that influence how well a ball rolls

across a green and these are a few of them. Firmness, smoothness, and speed are what we evalu-

ate. Faster, smoother, and firmer is what everyone is looking for. It is so easy for any of these three

criteria to get out of line and can happen overnight. Our programs are always evolving and have to

be adaptable because environments change with weather and time. Our goal is day to day quality

and consistent playability. I’ll be the first to admit we don’t always get it perfect, but then again golf

is not a perfect game. I make decisions based on education and things I know have worked for me

in the past. All golf courses are different and can react differently to the same products and practic-

es. Even on our course, green to green can act differently. Things like shade, water quality, and the

grass plants themselves being different species, i.e. (Annual bluegrass vs. bentgrass) all effect con-

sistency and how well a ball rolls across a green. I love the challenge of trying to figure all this stuff

out and we never stop learning or looking for things to bring more consistency, playability, and ease

to achieving it. Thanks for the opportunity to try. None of this is written to offer an excuse for im-

perfection when we aren’t firm, fast, or smooth enough, but rather to bring some informative insight

to some of our practices for those interested in the subject. It is a balancing act where everything

has to work together. It is all part of the game we love to play which occurs on an outdoor very dy-

namic living field.

Have fun out there!

Derek Hofer

Page 5 The Divot Volume 20 Issue 8

From the Superintendent

Golf I is a painting by Jim Grady

Jim Grady is figurative, still life, wildlife, landscape and sports

painter using oil medium

Page 6 The Divot Volume 20 Issue 8

From the ladies League

TUESDAYS ARE LADIES DAY AT GREEN MEADOW COUNTRY CLUB – PLEASE JOINT US

WOW!!!!!! Another month on the golf course. July was hot and we have August coming up.

We held the Grannies Tournament on July 30th. Congratulations to Jan Paulsen(Granny winner)

and Mary Bryson. A fun time was held by all and I want to congratulate all of you grannies.

Thanks go to Mary Bryson for Helping to pull this together.

I’d like to shout out to the ladies that played in the state tournament in Bozeman: Mary Bryson,

June Briceno and Jinny Kerr. I understand that they had a great time playing with ladies from all

over the state. I also understand that the greens were very large and fast. Next year the state

tournament is going to be held in Great Falls at the Meadowlark Country Club at the end of July

20201. I hope all of you ladies mark your calendars.

Upcoming in August are some great events. August 8th

and 9th

will be the Club Championship. I

encourage everyone to play as it is a fun event and a time to play with other members.

We also have the Gre-Bil match play event scheduled for August 15th

and 16th

. It is our annual competition with the Bill Roberts Ladies Association. We hope to retain the trophy. Please call Jan Paulsen 431-4597 or Jan’s email at jkjpaulsen@msn.com if interested. We love to have all you great ladies participate. The final fun event is the Member-Member tournament at the end of the month – August 22-23

rd.

It is a great time to invite another member to play with you in this team event. It is similar to the

member-guest, only way more fun of course because we ladies participate. Be on the lookout for

more information from the club.

Come join us any Tuesday --- morning or evening for a fun time with some great ladies!!!!

Linda Cockhill, President

Women Golfers

By

JC Leyendecker

Over the course of his artistic ca-

reer, Leyendecker completed 322 illustra-

tions for The Saturday Evening Post and

countless others for magazines such as

The American Weekly, Success, and Col-

lier's. ... His work brought him financial suc-

cess and international notoriety during the

golden age of American illustration.

Page 7 The Divot Volume 20, Issue 8

GMCC Handicap Committee

The Rules Corner

This month in the Rules Corner I thought I would talk a bit about the Pace of Play. With so many

new members at Green Meadow (welcome to you all!!) we may find ourselves on a busy course, try-

ing to finish that 9 or 18 in less than the 2 or 4 hours allotted. What are some things that we can do

to encourage all players to be aware of their own “pace of play”?

Play at Good Pace and Keep Up. It is a group’s responsibility to keep up with the group in front of

them. If there is a clear hole ahead of your group and you are delaying the group behind, con-

sider letting that group play through. Remember, we are looking ahead – keeping pace with

the group ahead, not behind.

Be Ready to Play. You should be ready to play as soon as it is your turn to play. We use the term

“ready golf.” To be ready, get to your ball quickly, determine the distance and club you intend to

use, and address the ball as soon as it safe to do so (others in your group have hit their ball and it

is your turn). Then “hit away.” Leave the putting green as soon as play on the hole is completed,

and move to the next teeing ground.

Lost ball. I discussed this situation last month, but it is worth repeating as I believe we have a lot of

lost balls at Green Meadow. .

If you think you may have lost your ball, you should first play a provisional from the point you

last hit your ball. If you find your first ball (within the 3-minute timeline), you must play

that ball. If not, play your provisional, applying the stroke and distance penalty.

Local Rule E-5. At Green Meadow we have adopted a local rule for a lost ball. In lieu of the

stroke and distance rule, if you believe your ball is lost, you can take a two-stroke penalty

and drop a ball in the fairway at the point where you believe your ball may be lost. This

helps us speed up play. Be aware that this rule may not apply during tournament play.

Recently I had the opportunity to apply the Lost Ball local rule. It led to some questions by my play-

ing partners on just how that worked, especially since we are allowed to drop our ball in the fair-

way. I like to think of it in terms of playing a provisional (as far as strokes go), but not having to go

back and hit from the spot that I last hit. Let me know if you have questions, or feel free to talk with

Chad or Ryan to clarify any of these rules.

Mary Bryson

Page 8 The Divot Volume 20, Issue 8

Events & Marketing Manager Greetings Friends,

I hope you enjoy the golf art that is featured throughout the Divot. All artist names or source are listed for your information and reference.

The Cover was created by Val Gregory. Awesome Golf is a 1991 golf video game developed by Hand Made Software and published by Atari Corporation in North America and Europe exclusively for the Atari Lynx.

[1][2] The first project to be

created by Hand Made Software, players have the choice to compete either solo or against other human players using the console's ComLynx system on matches set in any of the three available countries across any of the game modes available. Its gameplay mainly uses a two-button configuration.

I hope the golf art inspire you to share your favorite golf story. Whether your story entails family history, a funny occurrence, something strange or touching. Please send your stories and or photos to Kristina Smith at GMCC Events ksmith@gmcchelena.com

My Best to You All & Wishes for Many Blessings!

Kristina Smith

GMCC Events and Marketing Specialist

(406)442-5750 ext. 121ksmith@gmcchelena.com

406-868-7914 cell

Animator Art Babbit is credited

for developing his character. In a

1930s lecture, Babbitt described

the character as: "Think of the

Goof as a composite of an ever-

lasting optimist, a gullible Good

Samaritan, a half-wit, a shiftless,

good-natured hick".

Hi!

I am pleased to announce that we will be able to go forward with a Rally for the Cure event this year! Of course it will be somewhat different to accommodate for the restrictions in place due to Covid-19. We will still have a Ladies 9-Hole Evening Scramble but without the gathering prior for golf contests or after for an Awards Banquet. Instead we will notify winners the following day and get them their priz-es. We will ask for players to arrive no more than 30 minutes before the 5:30 p.m. start and to leave following their round.

We are also designating the whole day as RALLY DAY. To help make up from some of the lost fundrais-ing opportunities that won't be happening with the restrictions, we are encouraging anyone to play prior to the scramble and make a $20 donation. The donation will make you eligible to win any of the hole prizes. GMCC has generously offered to reduce green fees for nonmembers to $20 to come out and play. This is a great opportunity to invite some friends who are not members to come play with you and help support this cause. They will also be asked to make the $20 donation to be qualified for the hole prizes.

Besides golfers, we also need sponsors. There are opportunities for individuals and businesses. Please see the flyer that describes the different ways you could help support Rally Day. For only $10 you can have a sign on the Wall of Honor to recognize a survivor, be in memory of a family member or friend or in dedication to all those who have fought the breast cancer battle.

Please contact me with any questions you may have regarding Rally Day 2020.

Jena Sabatini

Rally Coordinator

Cell - 406.461.8784

Page 9 The Divot Volume 20, Issue 8

Green Meadow Country Club - Tuesday, August 4th

Sponsorship Request

Hole Sponsor: $75 Each Quantity ______ Total $________ (Choose 2 to be visible to all golfers. Front 9 & Back

9 holes.)

Wall of Honor Sponsor: $10 Each Quantity ______ Total $________

Please check which option(s) you would like your sign(s) to say for Wall of Honor:

___ In Recognition of Survivor (List Name of Person) ________________________________________

___ In Memory of (List Name of Person)__________________________________________________

___In Dedication to All Who Have Fought the Battle

Raffle Sponsor: Donate item/basket of $75 & up value (Please describe item)

__________________________________________________________________________________________

Hole Prize Sponsor: $25 Each Quantity ______ Total $________ or donate two identical items of $25 & up val-

ue

(Please describe item)

__________________________________________________________________________________________

Golfer Goody Bag Contributor: Donate 120 golf or breast cancer related items (Please describe item)

__________________________________________________________________________________________

Please fill in Sponsor Information:

Name:____________________________________ Company________________________________________

Email:_____________________________________________________________________________________

Address:___________________________________________________________________________________

City_______________________ ST______ Zip_______________ Phone_______________________________

To pay with a credit card, visit www.funeventsmt.com. Checks can be made out to Susan G Komen and mailed to: Fun Events

Attn: Jena Sabatini

1000 Strawberry Drive

Helena, MT 59601

Questions? Please contact Jena Sabatini-Event Coordinator @ 461-8784 or jena@jademanagementllc.com.

GMCC Club Championship

Charles M. Schulz, the creator of ''Peanuts,'' the tender and sage comic strip starring Charlie

Brown and Snoopy that is read by 355 million people around the world

August 22nd & 23rd

MEMBER MEMBER

Home Our Story

In 1989, Bert and John Jacobs designed their first tee shirt. They knew nothing about the business.

For five years, the brothers hawked tee shirts in the streets of Boston and traveled the East Coast, selling door-to-door in college dormitories. They collected some good stories, but were not very prosperous. They lived on peanut butter and jelly, slept in their van, and showered when they could. Chicks were not impressed.

Original Jake drawing, July 1994 By the Fall of 1994, heading home from a long, less-than-fruitful roadtrip, Bert and John were desperately searching for answers to keep the dream alive. Little did they know, the only answer they needed was back in Bos-ton, hanging up on their apartment wall. Jake's contagious grin, simple as it was, seemed to express everything the Jacobs brothers believed in. First day ever selling Life is good, Cambridge Street Fair, September 1994One fateful September day, they printed up 48 Jake shirts for a local street fair in Cambridge, Mas-sachusetts. They laid the shirts out on their rickety card table. By noontime, all 48 of those tees were gone. A star was born. Soon Jake was introduced to local retailers, and his simple message of optimism was embraced like nothing the brothers had ever seen. As demand for product soared, Jake's team grew, and the Little Brand That Could began to spread across America. Today, the New England based brand stays close to its roots, with an emphasis on sim-plicity, humor and humility. Through Life is good Festivals, positive products, and a steady dose of ping pong, Jake's crew does its best to keep the good vibes flowing.

LIFE

IS

GOOD

Fun

Trivia

GMCC STAFF

Tod Fitterer…….……...……….…………..………....General Manager

Chad Carlson………...……………………...…...PGA Golf Professional

Derek Hofer…………..….....……………..Golf Course Superintendent

Tom Hayes…….…………………………………….Facilities Manager

April Greene…………………………………………...Office Manager

Jeff Hiel…….……………………….…….Food and Beverage Manager

Kristina Smith………….………………..Events & Marketing Manager

Visit our website at www.gmcchelena.com

Mark Burzynski..…..….……………..………………………..President

Mike Wong.. …….…………………………...……….....Vice President

Steve Fawcett....………………..…………….….......................Treasurer

Mary Bryson…………………………………………………..Secretary

VJ Maddio * Dan Mazurek * Jeannie Etchart

IMPORTANT TELEPHONE NUMBERS

You may reach all departments of the club…………………442-5750

www.gmcchelena.com

Clubhouse Hours Monday –Sunday 8 AM– 8 PM

Dining and Take Out Monday –Sunday 9 am—9 pm

Reservations Required

Pro-Shop Hours Monday –Sunday 7AM-7 PM

Please Make Tee Times

Pool Hours Monday –Sunday 11AM-8PM

Page 12 The Divot Volume 20, Issue 8

August 2020 Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat

1

2 3 4 5 6 7 8

9 10 11 12 13 14 15

16 17 18 19 20 21 22

23 24 25 26 27 28 29

30 31 MCU Coop

GMCC

Bowling

Dan

Henry

Member

Member

Event

Mem-

ber Kiwanis

Board

Member

Event “T”

Rally for Cure

Grannies

Tournament

GMCC

Club Champ

La-

dies

Ladies

League

Ladies

League

Ladies

League

Men's

League

Men's

League

Men's

League

Men's

League

GMCC

Club Champ

Kiwanis

ST Peters

Tourney

GMCC

Member Member

GMCC JV Tourney

Gre-Bill

Gre-Bill

Junior Club Champs