The floods ? 12 months on

By David Newbery It was one of Queensland golf’s toughest periods and left many golf clubs shaken, but not defeated. In January 2011, the effects of the floods and Cyclone Yasi resulted in flooded and isolated golf courses from Brisbane to the Darling Downs to Central Queensland and even further west and north. Most golf clubs, particularly smaller clubs, felt the financial strain and had to rely on grants and additional bank loans to help in the recovery. The big wet also had an effect on employees’ livelihoods, particularly casual staff. Some golf clubs sent staff on annual leave; some received reduced working hours while others were given shovels and told to assist in the clean-up. Still, they were the lucky ones because many golf club members lost their homes during the summer of discontent. Images of the damage to golf courses were astonishing. At McLeod Country Golf Club in Brisbane, neighbouring homeowners used speedboats to access their flooded properties. The Brisbane Golf Club resembled a fruit, vegetable and fish market when produce from the Rocklea markets floated on to the fairways while other courses resembled African water holes muddied by herds of elephant. But the “COURSE CLOSED signs didn’t remain in place too long. Within a matter of weeks, golf course superintendents and volunteers had done enough to allow golfers back on to the fairways.Of course, some of the hardest hit golf clubs took a little longer to put up the “BUSINESS AS USUAL signs. Today, some golf courses still carry a few remaining scars inflicted by the weather while others have patched up the wounds and again are picture-perfect. Golf Industry Central contacted a number of the worst affected golf clubs to find out how they have recovered. Indooroopilly Golf Club CEO Gary Cosier said the 36-hole facility on the banks of the Brisbane River had made a remarkable recovery. A year ago, 80 per cent of the course was under water and the club faced a $1.2m clean-up bill. Today, there is little or no evident the club’s two courses had been under water and covered in silt just 12 months ago. “The golf courses are in terrific condition, Cosier said. “You wouldn’t know a flood had been through the place. “We have had to do more aeration and coring in the last 12 months than we’d usually do and will probably have to do that for the next few years as well just to get that silt up beneath the top layer. “It’s probably be a three-year cycle of extra renovation to break all that up and to ensure the course stays in great nick, but it is in terrific condition. “They (maintenance staff and volunteers) have done a great job in the recovery and it’s well worth a look. “The only evidence of the flood is the driving range is still a little scarred as we complete the grow end of the range, Cosier said. Infrastructure wise, the club had to replace offices in the maintenance building, which are located in lower lying areas of the facility. “There was a lot of capital expense needed to be ploughed back in at a time when the golf industry is not going forward. “Since the floods we have built our technical centre which is very hi-tech so the club has gone ahead in leaps in bounds in the last 12 months. A year ago, the floods left The Brisbane Golf Club looking like a muddied fruit and vegetable garden after produce from the Rocklea markets washed onto the fairways. Today, the golf course is at its picturesque best and looks extremely inviting. The club’s general manager Simon Parker said ground staff and volunteers had the golf course back in play three weeks after the floods. It was an amazing feat considering the club received damage to the tune of $700,000-plus. Currently, the club is putting the finishing touches to its flood mitigation plan. “Most of our damage was fixing up the machinery shed, Parker said. “As part of the process we have got a disaster mitigation plan that swings into action at certain trigger points. “We will pretty much evacuate the whole shed, which includes moving all of the machinery out. We also have some demountable buildings, which we would transport out as well. “Now we have a solid path from the shed to the clubhouse whereas 12 months ago we didn’t, which meant the bigger machinery couldn’t get up the hill and went under. Last month the golf club had the chance to test its evacuation plan when heavy rain and a 2.5m high tide triggered flood evacuation procedures. The new pump system and machinery was moved to higher ground when water levels got to within a metre of the pump shed. Ipswich Golf Club manager Brett Holdway said the golf course, which suffered more than $650,000 worth of damage, was almost back to the condition it was in before the flood put 17 greens under water. Only the 18th green survived and the clubhouse became an emergency evacuation centre for flood-affected residents. “The golf course was closed for about four weeks, but it’s now looking the best it’s looked prior to the floods, Holdway said. “The fairways copped a hammering and the greens had a lot of silt over them. “We lost our major pump shed when it floated down the river. The club managed to secure a grant to get the pump back in operation. “Apart from the odd couple of bunkers that are still out of play on the fourth hole and the 14th you wouldn’t realise a flood had even hit the place. Jindalee Golf Club in Brisbane’s western suburbs is almost back to full strength following last year’s big wet. At the time, the clubhouse and pro shop had more than one metre of water through it and the nine-hole course and carts’ shed was completely submerged. Now the course is close to its original best. “The course is looking fabulous, said club manager Mike Leontjew. “The staff and volunteers have put a lot of work into the course, but there still a little bit of work to be done. The club’s clean-up bill exceeded $300,000. “Fortunately, we got a couple of grants to help us recover, Leontjew said. “The clubhouse had to be repainted. We managed to get poker machines out, but it took six weeks to get them back and the kitchen took until the end of April (close to four months) to re-open. It has been business as usual at McLeod Country Golf Club in Brisbane, but it did take 10 months for the club to re-open the flood-damaged bunker on the second hole. A GUR sign was in place until the Brisbane City Council came to the rescue with a much-needed grant last November. Club president Di Paez said the re-opening of the bunker was another step forward in the club’s flood-recovery process. “History will show how the 2011 flood decimated the course, but it will also show the commitment demonstrated by the McLeod golfing community to get the course back into tip top shape, she said. All 18 holes at McLeod went under water and caused major damage to the fairways, greens, waterways, bunkers and water pumps. Paez said the golf course was close its former glory. In Central Queensland, Rockhampton Golf Club’s general manager Karen Leonard said she didn’t want to see a repeat of last year’s devastating floods. Nine holes went under water and the club largely had to rely on volunteers to assist in the recovery. “The course is great as pretty as a picture although there is always ongoing work to the course, she said. The club’s greens committee chairperson Max McDonald said water holes (dams) on the course’s boundary meant there were ongoing drainage problems when it rained heavily. “We have recently put in spoon drains across some of the fairways to help with drainage, he said. “We have trouble keeping up with ongoing maintenance because we only have a staff of two greenkeepers, two labourers and one apprentice so we rely a lot on volunteers. “The glue that holds us all together is that we love golf. The club’s head pro Ian Collins said his bottom line had taken a huge hit. “Last year we virtually had five months of reduced trading and by quite a big margin, he said. Smaller clubs like Dalby Golf Club on the Darling Downs know a thing or two about hardship. Following the January 2011 floods, the club had to do it all again in March when heavy rain again flooded the course on two separate occasions. “When the January floods hit, we were closed for six weeks and then in March we went under again, said the club manager Leanne Toms. “We had $100,000 damage to the golf course and $50,000 in lost revenue, she said. “It’s been a struggle over the last year, but we have come a long way. “There is still a little silt around, but other than that the course is looking pretty good. Our greens are really good at the moment. “Luckily we had a little money in the bank, which we had earmarked for big renovations. “We wanted to build a new pro shop, extend the verandah and knock down and rebuild the original part of the clubhouse. “But we have had to scale back our plans because a lot of the money went towards getting the course up and running again. “We’ll build a new pro shop because it is a demountable, which was put there temporarily 30 years ago. We’ll also do the verandah, but the clubhouse will have to wait a few years. With less than 250 members, who pay just $390 annually, the club operates on a shoestring budget. Toms and two part-time bar staff keep the clubhouse operating and a full-time greenkeeper and his part-time assistant maintain the 18-hole golf course. Increasing the members’ annual fees isn’t an option, according to Toms. “If we try and put up our fees, even by $5, the members will jump up and down, she said. FOOTNOTE: Last month southeast Queensland golf clubs were reminded of last year’s big wet when Mother Nature dumped heavy rain on golf courses. Brisbane and the Gold Coast had falls of more than 400mm (16 inches) in a 48-hour period. A big thank you to Golf Australia and Golf Queensland. The Golf Industry Recovery Fund was initiated by Golf Australia immediately following the Queensland floods in January 2011 and raised nearly $500,000. Golf Queensland Chair Tom Crothers said 18 golf clubs and one PGA member had submitted applications for assistance. Without that assistance many would not be open for business even a year later. Top Photo; Floods McLeod bunker launch Middle Photo; Indooroopilly redBottom Photo; Ipswich GC