Mother Nature, it would seem, is not a golfer.
Thanks to heavy rains over the last few weeks, some area golf courses find themselves having to suspend their operations temporarily while they get their facilities back in shape and above the water line.
Rob Douglas of the Stratford Country Club said half of the course’s 18 holes are on the floodplain and have standing water - forcing the club to close for now.
“Holes 2, 6-7, 10, 12, and 14-16 are all flooded right now,” he said. “We have accumulated approximately 10” since last Wednesday, and it’s difficult to estimate the accumulation amount as our issue is run-off from fields to the east of the course.”
The primary issue Douglas said the club is facing is getting the water level to drop below where their irrigation pipes are - in those conditions, he said it's normal to have the course back with limited operations within 24 hours.
“That being said, it’s a difficult time frame to guess as it relates to run-off,” he said. “With fields being tiled, we have seen far more accumulation in the river over the last decade. At this time, we’re unsure when we will be able to reopen - we’re hoping for the weekend, but time will tell.”
It’s a similar situation to the south, where there St. Marys Golf and Country Club have seen flooding affect eight of their 18 holes. Matt Staffen, the club’s president and general manager, said they’ve seen more than five inches in the last seven days and over 10 in the last three weeks.
“This amount of rainfall over the past month seems unprecedented,” he said. “Water continues to flow on the course and is anticipated to continue over the next 48 hours, as the Upper Thames River Conservation Authority increases outflow from the Wildwood reservoir.”
Staffen said he expects a full recovery for the course will take about a week.
“We’re aiming to have nine holes open - walking only - for the weekend,” he said.
