Merry Christmas from EGCagronomy!

Christmas unfortunately may be a bit wet here at EGC this year. With the storms yesterday the river decided to burst it's banks last night. We suggest santa brings a boat with him this year whilst delivering presents!

As it's Christmas we don't want to end on a negative note so we've posted this picture of the course last summer. The shortest day has passed and we are now on our way to spring. We wish all our members and guests a merry Christmas. Let's hope it dries up soon so that we can get all our new presents out on the golf course!

Adidas Zero's are not welcome at EGC!

Today we have taken the unusual step of banning some golf shoes. Within the greenkeeping world there has been much talk about the damage done by certain golf shoes to our greens. A new design seems to be coming out frequently and some of these can seriously damage the putting surfaces. As you can see from the picture to the left, Adidas Zero's golf shoes have left a bumpy surface on our greens. It looks like a pair of football boots have been walked across the greens. Until their soles become friendlier they wont be welcome at Ealing for the foreseeable future!

Winter is here!

This week winter has definately felt like it has arrived. We've had a couple of mornings of frost and the air temperature has dropped suddenly. As the golf course has dried out a lot over the past few weeks we decided to give all playing areas a trim before christmas. As usual greens,approaches and fairways were cut but on top of this surrounds,tee banks, semi-rough and full rough were tidied up. These areas can only be cut when ground conditions are suitable at this time of year. Not so much of making hay while the sun shines, but rather cutting when the rain stops!

On top of this we are right in the middle of leaf clearance. During November and December a big operation goes in to place to collect all the leaves that fall from the trees. Around 200 labour hours has been spent so far to blow and pick up the leaves. If we don't then they will mulch in to the ground smothering the grass plant. Also finding golf balls in amongst heavy piles can be problematic. They may look beautiful up on the trees at this time of year, but on the floor they can be a pain for the golfers!

The Oaks looking lovely