May has been an incredibly dry month, following an equally dry April and March. While this stretch of weather has been fantastic for golf—allowing for a very busy and enjoyable start to the season—it has inevitably come with its challenges.
The lack of rainfall has led to a few issues and most notably, progress on the driving range project has been slow. Whilst we can’t do anything with the weather, there are things within our control and we continue to do what we can to continue progress.
What’s evident now and especially encouraging is that we’re beginning to see the results of many years of careful work and steady investment. Improvements across the course have been implemented throughout the latter part of May, and it’s a real positive to see our long-term strategies starting to pay off.
Perseverance Paying Off
For many years, we’ve had to work within our limitations—setting priorities and making improvements gradually, one step at a time. Often, the results haven’t been immediately visible, apart from the inevitable disruptions caused by ongoing work. Recent projects like the irrigation system installation and the driving range redevelopment are good examples of this.
Economic challenges have only added to the complexity, forcing us to make tough decisions that we know weren’t easy for you to take. However, we’re now beginning to see tangible results from the long-term strategies we’ve committed to over the years.
Here are some key initiatives that are now resulting in big wins for the course:
- Transitioning turf grass species to year-round, lower-maintenance fine grass varieties.
- Cutting, thinning and collecting rough grassland to reduce mowing frequency and workload.
- Upgrading the irrigation system to improve water efficiency and reduce labour requirements.
- Naturalising out-of-play areas to enhance nature while lowering maintenance demands.
- Redesigning course bunkering to improve surrounding turf conditions and reduce upkeep.
- Gradual equipment upgrades to increase our capabilities and long-term efficiency.
- Establish a skilled and dedicated greenkeeping team, fully committed to safeguarding and fostering Hunley’s future.
These are just a few of the more impactful changes. In reality, countless adjustments have been made across every aspect of the operation, each one contributing to significantly improved efficiency and performance.
So, why bring this up now?
Because many of you may have noticed tasks being completed recently that, not long ago, we simply wouldn’t have had the time or resources to tackle.
For example, in May alone, we’ve been able to:
- Enlarge several fairways, bringing them closer to tees and increasing their width.
- Expand the semi-rough, both in front of tees and alongside fairways.
- Tidy and strim around teeing areas.
- Cut back fringing rough early, preventing it from becoming too thick.
- Install new bench locations.
- Repair worn turf around many greens, with aeration, overseeding, and fertiliser applied to boost turf quality.
These visible improvements reflect years of planning, investment, and persistence. Our patience—and yours—is starting to pay off.
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We’re incredibly excited to continue building on this momentum and are committed to making Hunley even greater in the years ahead. Your trust in our judgment—especially during moments that may have been frustrating—means a great deal to us, and we’re truly grateful for your continued support.
Driving Range Update
We had originally hoped to reopen the driving range around this time. Unfortunately, the combination of persistent, cold sea breezes and a lack of rainfall has created extremely poor conditions for new grass growth—about as challenging as it gets.
Understandably, this has been frustrating for everyone. The good news is that we’ve recently had some rain, and we’ve already seen a noticeable improvement. If this continues, we’re confident we’re not far off.
While we’re hesitant to commit to a specific date after our earlier (seemingly cautious) June estimate, we believe we’re just a few weeks away. Please rest assured that we’re doing everything possible to get the range open and ready for use as soon as conditions allow.
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June
Work has also begun on some of the tees. Unfortunately, the ongoing drought and limited water supply (lots of which had to be diverted to the driving range) have made it challenging to maintain them, and several have suffered as a result.
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Similar to the attention given to the green surrounds in May, we will be carrying out targeted maintenance on the tees throughout June, focusing on the areas most in need.
In recent years, we’ve successfully managed to control Clover populations on the course—a problem that was once quite severe at Hunley. However, we’re now seeing signs of it re-establishing in certain areas. To prevent it from becoming a significant issue again, we’ll begin treatments this month.
Where we have been repairing damaged turf by the side of greens, we have marked arrows to direct traffic away from the heavily worn areas. This will allow them to firstly recover and then protect them going forwards. Please look out for these and follow the arrows as you move around greens.
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Many thanks for reading and also for the continued support. Please continue to provide us with your valuable feedback, it is much appreciated and has made a huge difference to us making priorities over the years.
Greg Fitzmaurice
General Manager