We've Set a Record!

What a week! We opened the golf course - fully - on Friday (March 16), and we were partially open since last Tuesday. This is definitely an "early opening" record for us. And it's been BUSY...

The above picture was taken on Saturday March 17 at about 10am, just as the fog was lifting. Of course, the topic of conversation among many of the golfers: "is this the earliest you've been open"?
I'll qualify an answer. In terms of being fully open - all 18 greens & tees, driving range, and carts on the course - then yes, this is the earliest. There have been years when we've partially opened at around this time (I can remember one year in the late '90s, we opened the temporary layout during the second week of March) but late March or early April usually surprises us with one last patch of snow, so we're bracing for the possibility of it. After all, it is, technically, still winter.
This is in stark contrast to last year - you may remember the dismal spring we had! So we'll take this anytime.

Time "Marches" On!

Wow, February was a blur. Lots happening and lots left to do, with the impending grand opening of our new Victoria Park Valley Golf Club. And here at Victoria Park East, we're reminded that March has arrived because so have boxes of new stock! So Jay has some work cut out for him.

The weather looks favourable for an early opening - heck, anything before March 31 is an early opening! Check out this screen-grab from The Weather Networks 14-day trend for Guelph:

Looking for the Right Person!

2012 is going to be a fabulous year for us here at Victoria Park Golf Club: the Spring opening of our new Victoria Park Valley Golf Club is creating a lot of interest.

We've decided to create a marketing position to help drive that level of interest throughout the season, at both courses! So if you're a college or university student that is currently enrolled in a Business or Marketing program, or who is about to graduate and is keen to get some hands on experience, this may interest you. Here are the details:

http://www.victoriaparkgolf.com/uploads/Marketing%20Job%20poster.pdf

The Money Stream

Here's an interesting article by Sympatico Sport's Robert Thomposon about PGA players' paycheques, and how the endorsement factor is crucial to many of them:

http://bit.ly/zrsBno

It's no secret that stardom in any sport will translate into big $$ from the endorsement market. What's interesting to me is the number of opportunities available to garner these endorsements... if you're the right player, that is!

More Winter Projects

Jay Pembleton, our Head Pro, is quite a handy guy... he's building himself a new office in our Pro Shop where the shoe rack used to be.

Our main office will be administering both the East course and the new Victoria Park Valley course, and an extra office staffer will be moving in.

So we politely booted Jay out of the main office into his own little domain. But he won't mind... lots of places to hide a little cooler!

Up & Down like a Yo-Yo

This has been one weird winter so far - I feel for the ski operators! Minimal snow, and temperatures that go up and down like a kiddie coaster. Above is a screen grab from The Weather Network showing the 14-day forecast for Guelph.
Our Superintendant David DeCorso and I were talking yesterday, I asked him about the state of the turf out on the golf course. You may recall, in the winter of 2010, many southern Ontario golf courses suffered severe turf damage from a January freeze/thaw cycle.

However, this winter doesn't look as bad, according to David, because the lack of melted snow means no significant ice build-up on the greens - that's the main culprit.

We'll keep our fingers crossed!

Here's to a New Year

We're back in the office, after a (somewhat) relaxing Christmas break. Lots to do...
2012 will be a challenging year, not only because of our new golf course opening in the Spring (Victoria Park Valley), but also to work hard at improving our level of play here at Victoria Park East. By level, I mean quantity as well as quality!

We'll be working on some great new promotions for the upcoming season. Stay tuned, and visit our website often: http://www.victoriaparkgolf.com/default.aspx

And for your info, here's our 2012 Membership info - lots of options to choose from. Plus, a new "Combined Membership" for both courses: http://www.victoriaparkgolf.com/uploads/Membership%20Pamphlet%202012%20revised.pdf