What a Difference A Year Makes!

So where were you a year ago? Chances are if you're a Links regular you were on the course. Yes - we were open this time a year ago, but this year Mother Nature has a different agenda. The calendar has said its spring for over a month now, but the thermometer has consistently called it a liar as we've continued to endure snowfall after snowfall.

This extended shoulder season is finally coming to a close. This weekend for the first time temperatures are expected to reach double digits during the day and, more importantly stay at or above freezing at night! Couple the warming trend with some snow eating winds and the course should be bare in short order!

Regional micro climates mean that Taylor's Lone Wolf course is again the first local course to open. Flying home from Vancouver this week, my plane was descending over Taylor and I noted just how little snow was left around the course. Another friend who lives in the Charlie Lake area tells me their snow is also retreating but not as fast as residents would like. Pictures taken April 20th at Links show we too are a ways from being snow free. We'll pull the snow blankets off the greens this weekend and have our first peek at what's beneath!

From here on the news should be good! I've lived in the area long enough to have seen snow fall every month of the year. My family once had to cancel an August long weekend holiday due to white out conditions on the Alaska highway, so I know better than to say with absolute certainty that the white stuff is gone for good, but here's hoping. With Canadian teams stumbling in the hockey playoffs, the golfing jokes are flying. With some continued good weather and concentrated preparation efforts members shots will soon be flying too!

The Big Melt

Another week of North Peace weather has left many of us wondering if spring will ever arrive. Much of the preseason prep work done at Links was brought to a halt or buried by the latest round of snow falls. When asked Thursday when play might begin, Len could only shrug and say "as soon as the white stuff is gone". The good news is it will go, and go quickly. Environment Canada is calling for double digit plus side temperatures and, as a drive trip to Dawson Creek or Grande Prairie demonstrates, the big melt is already underway in the South Peace. We just seem to be a week or so behind.

The bad news is, when it comes the big melt could also slow things down. Before the last round of snow, the effects of rapid runoff were easy to see in FSJ's streets. Foot deep puddles, clogged drains and manholes that looked more like geysers were keeping city workers and steam trucks hopping as they tried to guide the flow to less harmful or inconvenient places. The same process will be in play at Links. Run off ditches along number 9 fairway, the drainage paths on 1 and 5, the trees between 3 and 4, the stream behind number 2 green and number 3 tee box are all low spots prone to run off overflow. The manhole cover near the washroom at number 5 tee is tied into the city storm drains and has been known to back up in the past, and the swamp between 8 and 9 fairways can only hold so much before it overflows onto cartpaths and fairways. At Thursday's Commercial League meeting Len mentioned the new water hazard on 5, but for the short term every hole on the course will be a water hole!

Run off has to go somewhere, and where it prefers to go is down. Low spots are to first to puddle up. Compounding the issue is that frozen ground is not a receptive media. Turf that will thirstily soak up surface moisture in June simply will not accept it in April. Most of the air pockets that would take up the run off are still clogged with ice, and so the water surges on. So long as it stays in or near the ditches, ponds or dugouts created to guide its flow, problems are limited to stream bank erosion. Once water has left its regular courses though, damage can get more extensive and expensive. 

Fortunately turf grass has its own defenses. Well rooted and thickly established grass protects soil providing a barrier between flowing water and valuable topsoil. Saturated greens and fairways will puddle up, forming areas of standing water, but still puddles are not nearly as damaging or as difficult to deal with as running water. Water itself is a penetrating and thawing force, and as temperatures warm up, standing water is quickly reabsorbed by the course or evaporated by sun and wind.

So, for at least one more week, patience is still the name of the game. The warmer weather is on its way and the great melt has begun! Easter comes late this year and sadly, opening day might too, but as sure as the suns going to rise and waters going to flow, golfers are going to be back at Links sooner than you think!

Virtually There

Virtual (vir-tu-al) Adjective - almost or nearly, but not completely

The sun continues to shine, and the snow banks are shrinking almost as you watch, and yet we are still a couple of weeks away from opening day. At the course outside activity has begun. Paths have been cleared so water goes where its supposed to and equipment be run out just as soon as nature and common sense allow.  Still, local golfers itching to get their clubs out have few options beyond a southern vacation or watching the Masters on tv.

For those looking to stay closer to home and still be active there's snow golf or virtual play at either  a commercial venture or in the rec room via the nearest gaming console. I'll confess to having tried the simulated version recently. I shot a rather uninspiring score and found almost as much water on the big screen as is running off the course. While it was nice to spend some time with the other members of our weekend foursome, and there was certainly nothing simulated about the good-natured heckling we all gave and received, there was something not quite real about the whole experience. Even though there was no walking involved, the round took every bit as long as a real game. The computerized version lacked a certain feel, and, while I'm sure the replay and video analysis features are useful to many, I prefer the perfect swing of my imagination to the stark reality of replayed shank. And I'm really not sure about the whole putting thing. At least in the real world I have a little bit of control over green speed and playing conditions from on top of my mower!

Its trade show weekend. The inside staff are looking forward to seeing many of our members at the Links booth as you sign up for the coming season. Some of us outside folks might be there too! One thing's for sure. We're all eager to get this season underway. Until then, we'll just have to be satisfied with it being virtually there!

Hurry Up and Wait

Recently brilliant sunshine and rising temperatures, coupled with media coverage of major tournaments on both the men's and women's professional tours is increasing anticipation for the day local courses open for play. While it is nice to finally see some sun, this shoulder season is actually a high risk period for local courses as they deal with repeated freeze thaw cycles.


The freeze thaw cycle exists when day time temperatures that produce good melting conditions for existing snow packs are offset by evening temperatures below freezing. Situated in latitudes between the the far north and southern Canada, the Peace country experiences more of these days than the rest of BC; the freeze/thaw cycle repeats itself more than 70 times annually with more than half of those instances coming in the spring.

Repeated freezing and thaw cycles are hard on golf courses. The repeated creation and melting of ice crystals causes the extreme weathering that creates potholes and damage to course infrastructure such as cart paths and tee boxes. The real threat, however, is to the grass. Dormant under a protective layer of snow, grass is sensitive to warmer temperatures and literally comes to life. Repeated exposure to ice can cause new plant cells to rupture and the grass to die. 

Extended ice cover is equally damaging.  Once roused from dormancy grass, like all living things, begins to breathe. If ice cover prevents  proper air exchange from occurring, a build up of carbon monoxide can occur and the plants will suffocate. Where surface temperatures rise and cause the snow to melt from the bottom up, air pockets can form providing the moist warm dark conditions conducive to snow molds. Where warm winds remove the snow cover too quickly, evaporation can deny the plants necessary moisture and the grass will be wind burnt, dessicated or freezer burned.

So what's the answer? Patience continues to be the name of the game. Nature operates to its own timetable and human attempts to speed the process can often lead to unexpected and costly consequences. Left to its own devices nature will find a balance. Grounds crews need to take their lead from the hand nature deals and where necessary, provide restorative assistance, rather than try to rush the process.


Traditionally Links has targeted the third weekend in April for opening. Given that there are five weekends in April this year, Easter seems a reasonable target. Hopefully the Easter Bunny brings great growing conditions as one of his Easter treats. Until then, local golfers have lots of time to assess their equipment, prepare for the season and purchase memberships at the upcoming trade show. As soon as nature allows we'll be ready too!