Bulle Rock Conditions

[Tim Bert]

I'm on a Bulle Rock mailing distribution since I played there last year and signed up for email.  I got a message today that sounds like the course has gone through a pretty rough summer.

Has anyone witnessed conditions first hand?

[Mike Hoak]

My brother-in-law was out there two weeks ago and said that the conditions were very bad.  They completely lost four greens and are using temporary greens on those holes.  There were also nummerous dead spots on several fairways and several of the other greens.  

It has been a brutal summer for golf courses here in the DC/Baltimore area.  Last month, we had a string of about 4 weeks with very high heat and very little rain.  Over the last week and half we have recieved two large rains and most of the golf courses here in the area seem to be rebounding well.

[Jim Colton]

Do you know if they were still charging full fare for greens fees despite the sub-par conditions?  I just love when courses do that.

[Jimmy Chandler]

From a Bulle Rock email this week:

To:  All Bulle Rock Guests
 
Re: Golf Course Conditions
 
There are a lot of rumors in the marketplace on our golf course conditions and we wanted to give everyone an update as to the status of the course.
 
During the extreme heat we lost the Greens on 2-3-16-and 17. The Greens on 13 and 14 had considerable browning and grass loss.
 
During the week of August 26th the greens on 2-3-16 and 17 we totally resodded. This has resulted in us playing on four temporary greens on these holes.  The greens on 13 and 14 were aerified, seeded and sanded a second time that same week. They have remained in play but are still thin and a little bumpy but filling in and recovering.
             
We expect to be back on the 4 resodded greens after September 10th. They will be rolled, top-dressed and mowing will begin on Labor Day.  The greens on 13 and 14th should also be reasonably recovered by this time.
 
Bulle Rock had 3 1/2 inches of rain on Sunday morning August 27th and another 2 3/4 inches on Saturday September 2nd.  Previous to this the stressed areas we did have on the tees and fairways were aerified, top dressed seeded and the golf course had been fertilized.  As a result of this program these areas and the rest of the golf course have recovered. They are again very green and healthy.
 
At this time we will remain on cart paths to give everyone the best conditions possible in these areas.
 
Our temporary reduced rate of $ 58.00 will remain in effect through the period and should change after September 10th.  We will notify you of any unforseen changes.
 
We look forward to having everyone visit us in the fall.
 
Thank You for your attention and patience in this matter.
 
Sincerely,
 
Richard D. Rounsaville
GM/Director of Golf  

[Voytek Wilczak]

I love Bulle Rock and hope the course recovers fully in the fall.

[Dan Herrmann]

How's Beechtree?  It's only 5 miles away.

I wonder if the greens were stressed due to the LPGA championship.

#2 has always been a questionably conditioned green.  It just gets too  much shade.

[Tim Taylor]

I played 36 at Beechtree a few weeks ago (Aug 12, if memory serves me correctly). The course was very wet and soggy. The ground game was not an option anywhere. There were a few areas of stressed looking turf in the fairways and some of the rough was patchy. Nothing that should not be expected given the scorching heat received in late July/early August. The greens had recently been aerated so they were still sandy and a little bumpy. I bet they're perfect by now.

I had called Bulle Rock to see about playing there. The young man in the pro shop was straight up with me about the bad conditions. The greens fee then was $75. He even told me that if I was coming from far away that I'd be better off to wait until mid-late September.

Tim

[Jim Colton]

Glad to see they're using full disclosure and offering a discount.  By the way, weren't they planning on opening a 2nd course out there?  Did that ever get off the ground?

[Steve_ Shaffer]

Jim

The second course and hotel at Bulle Rock never happened. The land is now developed as housing.

Steve

[Craig Disher]

I played Beechtree today and every fairway was soggy, some areas to the point of being treated as under casual water. Although we've had a very dry few weeks, we've had rain over the last few days and much cooler temps. The aerification holes on the greens have filled in well and the greens were in very good condition but the condition of the fairways and green surrounds left us with only aerial shots and frequent plugged balls.

The staff said there had been some rain overnight but the sprinkler heads showed that the fairways had been soaked pretty hard. The roughs were relatively dry.

The course was a beautiful shade of green but the fun of Beechtree is the ground game and it wasn't there at all.

[Dan Herrmann]

Craig,
I've found that Beechtree is usually overly wet, even during dry spells.

Don't know if it's a soil issue - I figured they're far enough away from the Bay to keep dry.

A colleague played Chesapake Bay Golf Club up in Northeast, MD, and he said the conditions were horrible.  

Maybe it's a Harford/Cecil county thing?

[Jay Flemma]

I've never had a problem at all with the conditions at Beechtree, playing there at least 2-3 times a year...although I have not yet played there THIS year...

[Mike Hoak]

An update on Bulle Rock:

To: All Bulle Rock Guests
 
Re: 2nd Update on Golf Course Conditions
 
 
This is the second update on the course conditions of Bulle Rock.
 
The mid-summer heat damage we incurred has made nearly a full recovery and we are near 100% with course conditions.
 
In the last month along with cooler temperatures Bulle Rock has received well over 10 inches of rain which has helped the course make a wonderful recovery.  In mid-August all greens, tees, and fairway areas that received heat damage were verified, seeded, top dressed and fertilized.
 
All fairways have recovered and are in great shape.  The four greens that were re-sodded 2-3-16-17 have knitted together and are very playable. They are still a little slower than the rest but improving every day in that area.  We continue to lower the mowers on these greens.
 
The green on 13 has recovered and 14 green is about 90% healed.  All other greens are in great condition.
 
The current rate is $ 105.00 per player and that is day to day now. I expect the rate to go back to full in a very short period of time.
 
The golf course conditions are very good again.  We look forward to a very good fall!
 
Sincerely,
 
Richard Rounsaville
GM/Director of Golf

[Ted Kramer]

I'm looking forward to my round out there on 10/19!!
Glad to hear that things are improving.

I am very excited to play the course for the 2nd time to see if I can avoid some of the visual trickery from the tee. I was fooled into hitting a few shots that didn't really make a whole lot of sense once I saw the hole where my ball was sitting, or swimming (

-Ted

[Dan Herrmann]

Ted - let me know how you play #2, which I think is a fabulous par 5.  I was surprised to see how far back the LPGA pros played their second shot.

This hack got as close to the creek as I could, which probably left me with a much tougher shot than I would've had from further back.

[Big B]

If you could only play one, Bulle Rock or Beechtree, which one and why?

[Big B]

Yes, it does.  I've already played Bulle Rock, so next time I'm in the area (October) I think I will try Beechtree.

[Ted Kramer]

Ted - let me know how you play #2, which I think is a fabulous par 5.  I was surprised to see how far back the LPGA pros played their second shot.

This hack got as close to the creek as I could, which probably left me with a much tougher shot than I would've had from further back.

I made a pretty routine par there during my first round.
A crappy drive into the left rough, followed by mid iron layup left me about 150 yards into the green.

I hit a decent approach and 2 putted for par.

My buddy hit his 2nd very close to the creek too and made double. That proved to be a very tricky little wedge shot that I'll most certainly try to avoid again.

It is a smallish green front to back but I like my chances with a full 8 iron versus a touchy 3/4 shot of some kind . . .

#9 kicked my ass last time.
I'll be sure to play my drive well left of where I aimed it last time

-Ted

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