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 From the News Desk...Medinah gearing up for 2012 Ryder Cupby John ReitmanCurtis Tyrrell is an example of the adage that if you want something badly enough you can make it happen. During his days as a student at Penn State, Tyrrell and his some of his fellow students often would discuss career goals, and one of Tyrrell’s goals will come true when the 2012 Ryder Cup Matches are played at Medinah (Ill.) Country Club. “We had a great group of students who were highly competitive and talked about goals,” Tyrrell, now 38, said of his days at Penn State. “I always thought to myself that the Ryder Cup is one of the greatest events in golf. “Absolutely, the opportunity to do a Ryder Cup has been a goal of mine since I went to Penn State.” Preparations soon will be under way on the Chicago-area club’s No. 3 course that will include a $3.5 million renovation led by Rees Jones. The course will close Aug. 15, and is scheduled to reopen in June. Part of a 54-hole complex that covers more than 600 acres, Medinah’s three courses opened in two-year intervals between 1924 and 1928. Changes that have taken place through the years have resulted in various stands of turf throughout the property. "We want to bring a consistency to the infrastructure to provide playing conditions that members expect here."The project will include rebuilding 12 push-up greens (Nos. 3-12, 14 and the practice green) to USGA specifications and regrassing them with Dominant Extreme 7 bentgrass. The seven remaining greens were rebuilt during a 2003 renovation, and they too will be converted from a bent/Poa mix to Dominant Extreme 7. The fairways, a combination of bentgrass, Poa annua, rye and Kentucky bluegrass, will be recovered with a bentgrass mixture that has yet to be determined. “We want to bring a consistency to the infrastructure to provide playing conditions that members expect here,” Tyrrell said. At Medinah since February 2008, Tyrrell came to the Chicago area as director of golf course operations from Lake of Isles in Connecticut, where he was grow-in superintendent of the 36-hole Jones design. Described by Tyrrell as a “true country club,” Medinah will undergo further changes to make the 1928 Tom Bendelow design a notable Ryder Cup experience. Many of the greens, which average about 4,500 square feet each, will be recontoured and others will be expanded to reclaim some of Bendelow’s original design concepts that have been lost over time. “We’re just reclaiming some of the original size. It’s minor,” Tyrrell said. “We’re adding maybe a total of 13,000-15,000 square feet to all of them – 500 feet here, 800 feet there. And some of the greens were just flat with back-to-front grade. There was no movement through the green. We’re adding break here and there; however (Jones) sees fit. A tree-management plan implemented by Stratapoint of Rosemount, Minn., will help provide more consistent playing conditions as well. Once an open layout, as proven by vintage aerial photography, Medinah has been the site of several tree plantings through the years, resulting in artificially creating different microclimates throughout the property. Stratapoint’s plan includes fertilization and pruning program for the trees Medinah will keep, and identifying others for removal – all of which should result in improved and more consistent playing conditions, Tyrrell said. “It is a turnkey tree-management plan that we are going to utilize as part of the overall renovation,” he said. Some of the improvements on the docket at Medinah are designed to make maintaining the course after the renovation as easy as possible for Tyrrell, superintendents Kris Kvelland (No. 1 course), Jim Wallace (No. 2) and Dave Kloss (No. 3), equipment manager Jim Connor and the rest of the staff. The current 5,000-square-foot maintenance shop and office facility will be gutted and renovated, and an additional 12,000 square feet of storage space will give Tyrrell more than 18,000 square feet of space to store Medinah’s equipment fleet – valued at nearly $1 million. Much of the equipment now must be stored outdoors. “That significantly shortens the life span of equipment, especially in a harsh climate like Chicago where winter, spring and fall can be heavy duty,” Tyrrell said. In the end, the changes are about not only providing superior conditions for some of the world’s best players when the Ryder Cup comes calling in 2012, but for Medinah’s members who play the course daily. “This is a true country club with a lot of tradition,” Tyrrell said. “The members have a tremendous amount of pride. And I am excited about the opportunity to provide these facelifts to a classic golf facility. I am excited about the next phase. “I look forward to it with the highest level of enthusiasm. We have built a great team here to deliver what is going to be a great golf course.” |
In other news... Study examines spring pre-stress fertility programs Research finds no correlation between biostimulant applications before spring core cultivation and recovery. Posted: 09/02/2010 Read more » Aquatrols, TurfNet present Water Week The series of five Webinars is aimed at helping superintendents manage water and soils more efficiently. Posted: 09/01/2010 Read more » News and people briefs Registration opens soon for Irrigation Show, Briggs & Stratton elects new chairman, FMC taps new director for professional solutions division Posted: 09/01/2010 Read more » GCSAA selects firm in search for new CEO Kansas City-based company will open search process for Mark Woodward's successor in October. Posted: 08/31/2010 Read more » Water foul! Research shows that droppings from non-migratory geese on turf can result in nitrogen runoff into adjacent bodies of water. Posted: 08/26/2010 Read more » Complete news index » |
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