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Spring cleaning on the course
Fort Simpson golf club plans additional enhancements

Roxanna Thompson
Northern News Services
Published Thursday, May 15, 2014

LIIDLII KUE/FORT SIMPSON
The Seven Spruce Golf Course was a hive of activity on May 10 as golfers traded drivers and irons for rakes and leaf blowers.

NNSL photo/graphic

Neil Phillips uses a leaf blower to clean debris off of the artificial green on hole nine during the Seven Spruce Golf Course's annual spring cleanup May 10 in Fort Simpson. - Roxanna Thompson/NNSL photo

Approximately 35 people volunteered during the club's annual spring cleanup. They raked leaves, picked-up garbage, removed the snow fences from around the greens and put up flags and signs among other tasks.

"We're very thankful for the volunteers that came out," said Shane Thompson, the club's president.

The clean-up serves a number of purposes. It gives community members ownership in the course and also gives the club a head start on the maintenance that has to be done at the beginning of the season, Thompson said.

"It makes it that much better for the course," he said.

Seven Spruce is already looking really good, said Thompson. This is the earliest in May the cleanup has been held in a long time.

Stephanie Cudmore was among the volunteers wielding a lawn rake on Saturday. Cudmore, who started golfing last year, said she decided to contribute to the course this year through the cleanup.

"It was great," she said.

"It was nice seeing everybody working together."

The club officially opens for regular use on May 16 and membership fees will be due at that time, although some golfers have already gotten some rounds in. In 2013 the club had approximately 120 members.

To increase the use of the course, members voted at the annual general meeting to create two additional membership options – a senior couple season rate and a book of 10 day-passes.

The day-pass book will allow people to try out the sport and the course without having to commit to a full season. The passes are also transferable, which makes it ideal for people who want to bring friends or visiting family members, said Thompson.

On the ground this year, the club is focusing on some additional enhancements.

There are plans to clear more brush from around the edges of the course including behind the green on hole five and around the clubhouse. The club also plans to buy a compactor that will be used to refresh the artificial greens and make them softer and more forgiving. Two of the greens are approximately 10 years old and the others are four.

Last season, the focus was on the areas around the greens. Turf was added to some holes and grass seed to others to smooth the transition from the fairway to the greens.

"We are continuing to work on enhancing and improving and making the course better than ever," said Thompson.

The club is also set to work with the Fort Simpson Community Garden Society this season.

The club has agreed to let the society move its garden to an unused section of land beside the entrance to the course. The partnership will enhance the community and hopefully increase the number of people who come to both the course and the garden, he said.

The course's first tournament will be the Luck of the Draw Opening Tournament on May 24.

This year, teams are being decided by random draw, which will give golfers a chance to play with people they might not normally compete with, said Thompson.

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