President’s Update – February/March 2024
Summer has certainly arrived! Hope everyone is staying cool!
Please find below updates on happenings across the club and at board level.
Property Development Update
If you’ve played recently, you’ll have seen that our new 6th green complex is complete and now bedding in. The feedback to date has been really positive, which is great. We’re expecting the hole to be in play sometime around mid-late April.
The new chipping green is almost finished its shaping, with the turf to be laid next week. Following that, the new 6th and 7th tees will be built. The final upgrade will be some minor works to the green complex on the 7th, namely the back of the green.
Our new driving range is nearing final design. This has taken a little longer than expected, as the engineering aspects being a little more complex than first thought. At this stage we don’t have a completion date, as it will still require council approvals.
The settlement from the property development has now been received. We have held over the amount owing to Thaxted Holdings (in trust) awaiting their payouts (Holdings Board is handling that aspect). We’ve paid all other loans also. So we’re debt free!
The approvals for Metro Homes to commence construction are still ongoing with council, at this stage we anticipate them to commence civil works in April.
Course Update
After significant rainfall prior to Christmas, our dry, hot summer has finally arrived.
The course team have been busy balancing the work required on the new hole and the upkeep of the course, they’ve done a fantastic job with a small team.
Our course continues to be presented in terrific order, with our fairways certainly very lush, with good grass coverage. With some warm weather around, you may notice the greens may be slightly slower than usual. This is to ensure their health and so they are not too stressed in the heat.
You’ll note that the greens were scarified earlier this week – this was completed to remove some of the thatch, as we are not coring this Autumn. This will take a week or so to come back to normal, however will be unnoticeable by the Pro Am.
There’s a couple of wet patches on the course, namely back of 7 (which will be amended with the green complex work) and front of 10 (which is a cracked pipe that will be replaced in the coming weeks). Other small leaks around sprinkler heads are common and will be resolved in order of priority.
There continues to be snake sightings on course, especially around the dams on the back nine, please ensure you remain aware.
Staff Movements
Many of you will already be aware that we’ve had a few staff movements in recent weeks.
Our long serving Bar Manager Nikki Hyde has returned to being a greenkeeper at West Beach Golf Course in a part time capacity, whilst also spending a little more time with her family.
Another mainstay behind the bar, Emma Todd has taken up a position in a 9-5 capacity to better suit her family needs.
Last but not least from a bar perspective, another stalwart, James Marchington is having a change of careers and is moving into the real estate game, following recent study.
The Course team have also seen the second in charge, Dillon Burns be fortunate to land his dream job at Adelaide Oval.
We welcome our new starters behind the bar in Jai Prasol, our new Bar Manager, who comes to us from the McLaren Vale Hotel. We also had another Jay, Jay Jung commence recently. Finally, to round out our bar recruits, Brittany Heath has also joined us.
Whilst it may seem that it’s a large change of staff in a short space of time, we had been fortunate to have a very stable workforce for many years, which is unusual in hospitality. We are fortunate to have recruited quality replacements and are finalising the recruitment search for the additional course staff in the coming weeks.
Other Board Matters
The club has had a significant membership increase since our new season commenced in September, with over 280 new members joining across many of our categories.
The board approved the engagement of a marketing consultant, Charlotte, to assist with our marketing, promotion, and communication strategy to assist the Board and the club in our upcoming period. This has already proven to be a positive engagement.
The board agreed on the investment strategy of the proceeds from the land sale. We are in the process of investing $2 million in term deposits, which will remain invested in an ongoing capacity.
The Pro Am is rapidly approaching. To ensure we had a good turnout of pros, this is now being held on Friday 22nd March. There are plenty of spots still available – please see Allen if you’re interested.
And last but not least, we recently lost an ex-Board Member, volunteer and long serving club member, Peter Ward in tragic circumstances, following a round of golf at the club. Pete was known by many and will be dearly missed.
If you see any one of the Board members around the club, please don’t be hesitant in having a chat.
Take Care,
Jamie Dunnicliff
President
Thaxted Park Golf Club