Where the grass knows no bounds

BRYCE ALDERTON

If the mowers haven’t done their work already, now would be a perfect

time to head out to golf courses in Newport-Mesa and play a round to

experience what the game’s professionals endure on a weekly basis.

Just be sure to bring your accuracy.

The torrential rainfall that belted Newport-Mesa and the rest of

Southern California earlier this month caused its share of felled

trees and puddles on greens, but also sent many mowing schedules out

of whack.

Superintendents held off using machine-driven mowers until the

weather warmed and courses dried a bit, allowing the rough to grow,

and grow ... and grow.

At Newport Beach Country Club the rough in some places grew as

tall as six to eight inches, said Paul Hahn, the club’s head

professional.

“The rough is just brutal,” Hahn said. “I told people if they miss

the fairway, they could lose [the ball].”

Six to eight inches!

That kind of grass length would no doubt cause sweat to form on

foreheads of Champions Tour golfers during March’s annual Toshiba

Senior Classic held at Newport Beach Country Club.

Heck, grass six to eight inches tall is U.S. Open caliber.

Hahn said crews began mowing for the first time late last week as

members were allowed back onto the course after an amazing stretch.

From Jan. 2-11, Newport Beach Country Club’s course was closed for

nine days.

Needless to say cabin fever circulated.

“We were going crazy ourselves,” said Hahn, who used the rainy

days to help take stock of inventory and do some cleaning.

Hahn estimated between 100 and 120 golfers played Saturday.

Hahn said the course’s superintendent Ron Benedict and assistant

Mike Novak worked tirelessly to get the course back into playing

shape.

“[Benedict and Novak] were out there until the wee hours of the

morning running pumps on the lakes so they wouldn’t overflow,” Hahn

said. “I think Mike slept in his truck one night.”

They also spent time re-sodding two areas Hahn described as

“large,” on the sixth green after an underground pipe burst, which

caused flooding of the entire green.

“They had to cut out the bad parts and take sod off of the main

putting green,” Hahn said.

The sixth green is alive and well today, however, as this extended

streak of lovely weather continues.

It doesn’t seem possible that just nine days ago, it was more like

Seattle than Newport Beach around here.

“I saw rain like that [in the late 1990s], but never have we had

to close for so many days in a row,” Hahn said.

Hopefully the closures will be few and far between from here on

in.

Here’s to birdies!