If the rest of 2015 is anything like the first couple of months, it is going to be a banner year for the Atkinson Resort and Country Club.
Located in Atkinson, New Hampshire, the property recently was named the winner of the 2015 National Golf Course of the Year by the National Golf Course Owners Association.
Presented at last month's Golf Industry Show in San Antonio, the award is based on four criteria: quality of the golf course, quality of ownership and management, outstanding contributions to the local community, significant contributions to the game of golf.
The privately owned, 420-acre club opened in 1996 with nine holes. The second nine opened two years later, and a par-3 layout debuted in 2009.
With 16 guest rooms and a practice facility that features 15,000 square feet of teeing ground, a 12,000-square-foot putting green, multiple bunkers and a 65-yard short-game hole, the property rolls out the red carpet to visitors. But it's the golf course that stands out at Atkinson.
First-year superintendent Eric Whitmore is judicious in his water use, and has data from soil moisture meters to back up his program. He uses air injection to disrupt compacted native soils beneath his bent/poa greens, and he has developed an aggressive tree-management program has introduced sunlight and airflow where once there was little.
"When I was the assistant the year before, I noticed that we were having a lot of trouble with controlling moisture on our greens. We have native soils that do not have the best drainage, so evaporation or infiltration was difficult," he said. "My past superintendents always drilled to me that you can put water down but can't take it up. I am always more on the dry side when it comes to my greens, so we had to develop a hole-specific moisture program that allowed us to manage how much water was being put on our greens. One of the ways we accomplished this was by using soil moisture probes that measured volumetric water content, and relied heavily on the use of hand watering of those specific spots."
The Air 2G2 by GT Air Inject has helped relieve soil compaction, promote better drainage and root growth.
The Air 2G2 is a self-propelled, hydrostatic drive three-probe air-injection machine that injects compressed air to depths of 7 to 10 inches and fractures compacted soil with no surface disruption. Air also is injected vertically, covering an area of up to 5 feet.
A graduate of the University of Maine, Whitmore credits his staff, namely assistant Andrew Koffman and equipment manager Dave Wallace, for helping to make him look good and helping the course look good in the eyes of the NGCOA.
"The soils at Atkinson also gave us a challenge with managing our micro/macro nutrient levels. With the utilization of several soil tests we were able to develop a specific fertility program just for our course," he said. "There were also several hundred trees and dense brush areas removed throughout the property to increase airflow and sunlight on the greens, tees, and fairways. Last but not least I had an outstanding management team and crew that took a great deal of pride in what they were doing, no matter what the task, each and every day. Without a great crew we would not have been able to accomplish this amazing award."
The property also is heavily involved in giving back to the community.
The club hosts a fundraiser tournament each year that benefits the local Boys and Girls Clubs, and Atkinson teaching professional Wayne Swanson doubles as head coach of the Timberlane Regional High School varsity golf team.
Other finalists for the award were Currahee Club in Toccoa, Georgia, Haggin Oaks Golf Complex in Sacramento, California, and The Legend at Shanty Creek Resorts in Bellaire, Michigan.