It's a great morning for the final 2 matches of the Men's M/G Tournament. This is always a fun event for the staff to show off the golf course; something the whole team takes pride it. It's also an event that allows us to add some special touches, unique to the event. This is a big deal for the golf maintenance team and more than just coming in a mowing the grass extra early. We want to put our special touches on the event and create an experience slightly different from others. This may include things like accessories, faster green speeds and detailed maintenance.
While there are some that may prefer the red, white and yellow flags, we decided to use tournament yellow flagsticks with yellow flags. The first 2 days of the event featured yellow flags with the Highlander logo and hole number. On Day 3, we used our retro logo...a small touch to celebrate the special heritage of HCC. Both logos are screen printed rather than embroidered. ANGC made this setup famous after research determined that the human eye can most easily pick up this color yellow against a green back drop. The average golfer also associates embroidered logos in flags as being of higher quality. The reason ANGC flags and Masters flags are screen-printed???...It allows the flag to blow in the breeze. Often detailed logos with lots of embroidery are weighed down and won't budge unless the wind is strong enough. The number of each hole was added in the upper corner to replicate those flags used during a US Open or Open Championship.
Speaking of detailed maintenance, we withhold any kind over overhead irrigation on the golf course and only water with hoses during the event. This allows us to keep the course as firm and fast as the weather will allow. However, this type of maintenance is labor intensive, requiring a lot of overtime. While we hand water all summer long as needed, it's supplemented by irrigation cycles in the early morning hours as needed. Occasionally, some turf may dry out here and there that leads to a temporary brown spot. But this is the price to pay for firm conditions. Everyone knows of a golf course that looks good visually, but plays terrible because it is saturated, leading to shorter drives and plugged shots. Rather than error on the side of caution and water to maintain green color, I am more in favor of the increased playability even if it means a brown spot here or there. It's a delicate balance, for sure.
