MEMBERS NEWSLETTER
JUNE - JULY 2025
AN UPDATE FROM... SARAH BLUNDEN
General Manager
Hi everyone
Thank you very much for your ongoing patience following a slow return from winter conditions to a season-ready golf course.
I hope, like us, you have seen a vast improvement over the last month as growing conditions have reestablished themselves.
In the Autumn of 2024, we unfortunately caught a turf disease called Fusarium on our greens. The mild and wet weather in 2024 created very high disease pressure. There isn’t a pesticide or fungicide that we are still able to use that can prevent this disease, and, across the country, the outbreak of Fusarium was one of the highest seen in many years.
Once Fusarium has died off, there is little that can be done to repair the scarring in the short term. Whilst the disease is no longer in the green, the grass needs to grow back to repair itself.
This is where we struggled this spring. Grass needs both warmth and moisture to grow, and in March, we had neither. March 2025 was the driest March seen in over 60 years and also had very cold nighttime temperatures. Whilst we had our irrigation to provide the moisture, we were unable to use this on the greens during March due to the cold soil temperatures. Grass requires average soil temperatures of around 9 degrees or above in order to begin growing, which we were not getting until the end of April. From the end of April onwards, we saw temperatures heat up, which in turn prompted the grass to start growing again. As soon as growth returned, we were able to return to our normal greens maintenance programme that we normally begin during March, as well as additional work to force the greens on as quickly as possible.
April and May were equally very dry months. Whilst we were able to water our greens, in order to give them the moisture to grow alongside warmer temperatures, the water content of our fairways significantly dropped, and the grass became almost dormant with very little growth.
Such a dry spring has presented major challenges to turf management, not just at Hoebridge but across the entire golf industry.
Paul Woodham, The R&A’s agronomy lead for Europe and the UK, noted that warm days combined with cold nights have disrupted seasonal growth, resulting in stressed grass and delayed recovery from winter damage.
In a recent article, he wrote:
“The lack of rainfall combined with warm days and cold nighttime temperature has caused issues for greenkeepers across the British Isles,” he said. “The impact is seen in a lack of recovery from winter wear and is particularly challenging in situations for courses which suffered winter disease scarring and damage caused by leatherjacket larvae. Greenkeepers have seen the early onset of turfgrass stress, especially with poa annua being stunted coming into the seasonal emergence of seed heads in mid-May.”
Our greenkeeping team, along with so many others across the country, are working hard to produce the best Courses possible during incredibly challenging seasonal weather conditions. These challenges present differently at different clubs due to factors such as soil conditions, pH levels, thatch levels and moisture levels, all of which impact how grass behaves. ensuring we are doing everything possible to
Barry explains in more detail further down this newsletter how our own greens’ pH levels have an impact on how effectively they take up nutrients, and what, in turn, we can do (and are doing) to have a positive impact on altering our greens’ pH readings.
We are continuing to cut and roll the greens daily, alongside a weekly verti cut to improve surface smoothness, reduce seed heads and thin the sward. In addition, we’re continuing our efforts to repair any scarring or thinning on the greens by overseeding or plugging where appropriate, often relocating the plugs to less prominent areas to maintain overall surface quality.
Away from the greens, we have been busy this May overseeding and divoting the tees and feeding the collars, approaches and fairways.
Thank you also for your patience as we work to get our shoe cleaning compressor back up and running. As many of you will know, our shoe compressor broke late last winter. We wanted to use this opportunity to upgrade it to a more powerful and quieter version. The original delay in getting it installed was due to the model we wanted being out of stock, and then further compounded by it being delivered from Europe. The compressor is now on-site and is installed within its new housing on the exit of the 18th.
However, upon commissioning, it began tripping regularly. Unfortunately, it became clear that there was a further issue with the wiring, located below ground.
Our electricians are now working to pull a new armoured cable through from the clubhouse to the compressor. However, due to the distance between the fuse board and the compressor, it does not travel in a straight line, and so we are unable to simply pull it through.
We are now waiting on a date of attendance for a ‘mole’ to pull the wire across. If this doesn’t work, then we will need to look to dig up some of the pathway. We hope that this last action isn’t needed, but we will continue pushing forward to reinstall the shoe cleaner as soon as possible.
DIVOT PARTY
Thank you to everyone who joined us for our divot party in May. We focused on the back 9 holes of the course, walking the fairways and filling the divots with a sandy divot mix. We couldn’t have had better timing, with a wonderful sprinkling of rain overnight to wash the sand and seed into the ground. Every bit helps, and all those extra hands focused purely on putting divot mix down will have a very positive impact both visually and for playability across the rest of the season.
For those who joined us, we hope you enjoyed your meal and drink following the couple of hours spent on the course. We really did appreciate your help.
REPAIRING DIVOTS
A reminder that all of us can equally make a positive impact when playing by ensuring that you’re replacing your divots during your round and carrying a divot mix bag with you to put down whilst you are playing.
Finding and replacing the lump of grass that was removed is always the best option for repair. As long as there are still roots and soil attached to the divot, step gently on it to help the roots make contact with the soil.
Divot bags are provided at the 1st tee of the Main Course, and divot boxes are located across all of the par 3 tees. These are filled with a sandy seed mix, which, when put down onto divots, will encourage the growth of new grass in these damaged areas. The sand is used to improve seed-to-soil contact, stop seeds from blowing or washing away and to aid drainage during the germination process. The more hands we have putting this divot mix down, the less damage we will all see.
PATHWAY TO GOLF
In May, we began a new programme of lessons focused on beginner golfers. Our Pathway to Golf aims to take a beginner or novice golfer through from the driving range onto the Par 3 Course. No prior experience is required, with these fun and relaxed lessons giving beginner golfers the chance to gain confidence and learn all the basics needed for them to begin enjoying playing on the Par 3. With a Trackman driving range and three golf courses, we feel very strongly about introducing new golfers to the game and giving them the support needed to eventually move through to playing on the Main Course and joining us as a member.
Our Taster Sessions will be running across June and July, costing £10 for a one-hour group lesson.
If you know of someone who would like to get into golf but isn’t sure how to go about getting started, then this could be the perfect opportunity for them to begin. Speak to the Pro Shop team for further information.
BAR AND FUNCTION ROOM DECORATION
Our Bar and Function room decoration is now underway, and will continue during the first two weeks of June. The decoration of these areas is part of our ongoing commitment to improving your experience at Hoebridge, and we hope it will make your time in the clubhouse even more relaxing.
The works will include:
• Full repainting of the space
• Installation of new carpeting
• A refreshed bar front
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During this time, both the bar and kitchen will remain open as usual, so food and drink service will continue uninterrupted. However, we do want to make you aware that there may be some temporary disruption to seating while certain areas are sectioned off to allow work to take place safely and efficiently. We’ll be making the most of all available space to ensure that seating is always available for our members and guests.
While we are still moving forward with planning for a more extensive, long-term clubhouse refurbishment, we felt it was important to continue making progress in the meantime, upgrading key areas for the comfort and enjoyment of all who use them.
I am very excited to share the results with you very soon.
We will keep on pushing forward with updates and improving standards to ensure we provide the best value membership possible, in addition to all the benefits open to you as members:
• 14-day advance booking window
• 10% off food and drink
• 20% off range balls
• Half price warm-up balls on the range –purchased via the pro shop – New for 2025!
• Access to club competitions
• Free room hire for private events
• One round per month at one of the eight other BGL sites (excluding flexible members)
• One round per year at Burhill Golf Club (excluding flexible members)
• Discounted overnight accommodation at Thornbury Golf & Lodge (excluding flexible members)
We now look ahead to some of our key events of the year; Mens and Ladies Club Championships, Invitation Day, and Charity Day.
As a team, we are super excited to support and join you across these important days. Best of luck to everyone who will be taking part this year.
Should you ever have any questions or concerns about your membership or the golf courses, please reach out to me or the Hoebridge team directly. My door is always open, and I am always happy to hear your thoughts and offer further communication around what we are doing and why.
Thank you,
Sarah
COURSE MANAGER REPORT
BARRY GARDNER
Course
Manager
THE WEATHER AND ITS IMPACT
It seemed like this year we went straight from winter into summer, with no spring flush to be seen.
Now that the nighttime temperatures are more consistent and we have the odd spot of rain here and there, we will start to green back up. The obvious talking point this year has been the condition of the greens. I would like to take this opportunity to explain in a bit more detail how factors other than the weather can affect growth and how we are moving forward.
Last year, we had soil samples taken and sent to a laboratory to test for nutrient availability, pH, organic matter (thatch) and CEC (Cation Exchange Capacity).
Nutrient availability can vary from month to month depending on many factors such as weather, soil type, CEC, etc, but soil sample results show us if we are deficient in any or have excessive amounts.
pH of the soil is very important as it can influence fertiliser uptake, grass species, fungal activity (diseases) and soil biology. Of the greens tested, we are currently sitting at an average pH of 4.5. As you can see from this chart, nutrient availability is linked
to pH, and the main ones that we need for grass growth, Nitrogen, Phosphorus and Potassium, are not easily available at our current pH of 4.5.
This is one of the main reasons, along with low nighttime temperatures, that we were unable to force any growth this spring to recover from the disease scars we had at the end of last year.
This table shows how much fertiliser is unused at certain pH levels
Soil pH Fertiliser not taken up 4.5 71%
You can see that at our current pH levels, around 71% of any fertiliser we put down is not being taken up by the grass. Add in low night/daytime temperatures where the grass plant will naturally use very little fertiliser offered, then it is almost impossible to force any growth.
Finally, CEC (Cation Exchange Capacity) measures the soil’s ability to hold and exchange positively charged nutrients (cations), which are important for plant growth. A good target range for CEC would be between 6 and 12 meq/110g.
Low CEC means that fertiliser can leach through the rootzone quicker, leading to nutrient deficiency, and also soils with low CEC are more prone to acidification because they have a reduced capacity to buffer against acidity. The lower the CEC of the soil, the faster the soil pH will decrease over time.
WHAT ARE WE DOING WITH THE FINDINGS FROM THESE SOIL SAMPLES?
Firstly, last year we started to apply lime to the greens, which helps to bring the pH up. However, we cannot go gung-ho with this and must apply it spread out over the year, as we don’t want to raise the pH too fast. Raising the pH levels too fast brings about many other problems, including decreased disease resistance.
We will continue to take regular soil samples throughout the year so that we can monitor the increase in pH levels and work towards getting them to a level that allows our grass to more effectively take up the nutrients we are putting down.
As always, we will continue to work on reducing the thatch levels in the upper 40mm, this will, in time, give us better, firmer, drier greens in the winter and even better greens in the summer.
To increase the CEC levels, we will be looking at introducing soil amendments which will help to hold onto nutrients and water longer, but can also help with allowing excess water through the soil profile quicker.
In the immediate future, we have increased our spraying/feeding programme so that we are feeding little and often, alongside continuing with the essential cultural practices, such as verti cutting, micro hollow tining and top dressing to continue the greens improvement.
IRRIGATION AND WHY WE HAND WATER
This dry period has tested our irrigation system to the max, and I am very grateful for the continual investment in Hoebridge, where we had a new irrigation control panel and three new pumps installed in April. Our irrigation system, alongside our reservoir, gives us peace of mind that we have everything available to us to effectively water our greens and approaches during such dry spells.
At this time of year, we water the greens via the irrigation system daily, using our
onsite Weather Station to also monitor evapotranspiration rates.
If you see the team out watering greens with a hose, it does not mean that the irrigation system is not working! We pinpoint specific areas of the green that may require more water than other parts and apply wetting agents to these areas to help increase moisture levels. This is a very common practice and is vital to ensure that we don’t over water areas that already have an appropriate moisture level.
That’s all for now, sorry if the information is a bit weighty, but I believe it’s important for me to let you know the reasons behind what we are doing.
Happy golfing!
Barry and The Greens Team
GOLF OPERATIONS UPDATE
IAN HAYWARD
Head Professional
Hi everybody,
I hope that you are enjoying the great recent weather that we have been experiencing and are all playing plenty of golf!
With summer around the corner and plenty of golf to look forward to, I just wanted to give everybody a reminder of the benefits of playing ‘Ready Golf’ to enhance the experience of all members and visitors to Hoebridge Golf Centre.
Ready golf begins before you even start your round of golf, by ensuring you are on the tee and ready to play at least 10 minutes before your tee time. Once on the course, some examples of ready golf include the following:
• Hitting a shot when safe to do so, if a player farther away from the hole is assessing their options
• Shorter hitters play first from the tee or the fairway, if longer hitters have to wait
• Hitting a tee shot if the player with the ‘honour’ is delayed in being ready to play
The Warden team closely monitor the pace of
play, and if, by using some of the simple examples above, we could save two minutes per hole, that would make a huge difference of over half an hour per round and greatly enhance the enjoyment of all golfers at Hoebridge.
If you do experience slow play out on the golf course, please do not hesitate to contact the Pro Shop on (01483) 722611 or the wardens during their regular sweeps of the course so that we can identify and deal with any issues.
TAYLORMADE ULTIMATE CUSTOM FIT EXPERIENCE – FRIDAY 13TH JUNE 2025
I am delighted to announce that we have the Ultimate Custom Fit Experience arranged at Hoebridge with Taylormade for Friday 13th June from 2pm – 6.30pm.
If you’re serious about upgrading your golf equipment, this is the opportunity you’ve been waiting for. The TaylorMade Ultimate Custom Fitting Event brings together world-class technology, expert fitters, and unbeatable offers — all in one exclusive day.
What to Expect:
• The Ultimate Fitting Experience by TaylorMade fitting experts
• Use of TrackMan — state-of-the-art tracking technology for the ultimate results
• Access to a wide range of TaylorMade heads, shafts, and grips to dial in your perfect setup
• Completely FREE fitting session
ON THE DAY INCENTIVES:
• A TaylorMade goody bag worth £50 when you order on the day
• Entry into a prize draw to win a TaylorMade Tour Bag - 1 entry per every club purchased
• Trade in your old clubs on the day with Nearly New Golf on hand to supply a tradein value.
• Spend over £500 and receive an extra £50 on top of your trade-in value
This is a fantastic opportunity if you are looking to upgrade your equipment and improve your game.
Spaces are strictly limited with just 18 appointments available, so to secure your fitting today, please call us on (01483) 722611, email proshop@hoebridgegc.co.uk or alternatively just pop in and we will book you a slot.
I look forward to seeing you there!
And remember, if you can’t make this date, then we have our very own custom-fit studio open to you 364 days a year. It’s FREE for members!
AN UPDATE FROM...
The Driving Range Team
Whether you’re dialling in your driver or finetuning your iron play, the driving range is where real improvement begins. But if you’re still practicing blindly, you’re missing out on one of the most powerful tools, Trackman.
Trackman takes the guesswork out of your practice by giving you instant, accurate feedback on every shot. From carry distance and spin rate to club path and face angle, you’ll know exactly what’s happening with your swing—data that used to be available only to the pros.
Here’s how Trackman can elevate your range session:
• Target Practice: Set specific goals and track your consistency.
• Swing Analysis: Understand your swing tendencies and make data-driven adjustments.
• Practice with Purpose: Use guided drills and challenges to make each bucket count.
• Compete with Friends: Play virtual games and CONTINUED ON THE NEXT PAGE
keep score—perfect for friendly rivalries or group sessions!
Members only offer!
£5 Warm-up balls are now £2.50
New for 2025, we are introducing an additional benefit for our members: half-price warm-up balls. See the Pro Shop to get your discounted barcode.
Sam and The Driving Range Team
H&F UPDATE
RYAN STONEHOUSE H&F
Manager
Stay supple this summer!
Maintaining good flexibility in your shoulders and hips is vital for being able to execute a correct swing, which not only helps your game but also helps in preventing common golf injuries.
Here are three simple exercises that focus on shoulder and hip mobility that you can include as part of your golf warm-up or flexibility training:
1) Roll down to crescent position
2) Split squat rotation
3) Triangle pose reach
If you are new to flexibility and stretching and would like some help, then please come along and try one of our supple strength classes. Our Supple Strength classes blend elements of yoga, pilates, and stretching to create a challenging, low-impact workout targeting improvements in flexibility. To book a free trial class, please email fitness@hoebriddgegc.co.uk
LIFESTYLE MEMBERSHIPS
A reminder to all our Golf Members that you can upgrade your membership at any time to include the Gym and Classes.
A Lifestyle Membership at Hoebridge gives you full access to the Gym and Classes as well as a Starter Personal Training session to create a workout plan bespoke to your fitness goals.
Upgrading costs less than £7 per week and is a great way to integrate both your golf and fitness under one roof.
Thank you for reading the latest Members News.
Please feel free to contact us on 01483 722611
HOEBRIDGE GOLF CENTRE