ALTA SIERRA COUNTRY CLUB

GREEN GAZETTE

VOLUME 41 ISSUE 12 DECEMBER 2017

2017 Board of Directors

Carl Koring, President

Cecil Robbins, Vice President

John (Jay) McCarrick, Secretary

Jim Barrilleaux, Treasurer, Front Office

Committees

H.C. Howser, House Committee Chair, House Maintenance

Pete Gobby, Greens Committee Chair, Golf Course Maintenance

Doreen Lewallen, Membership Committee Chair, Pro Shop

Ron Ott, Greens Committee

Ann Podielski, Membership Committee, Pool Committee

Advisors to the Board

Mike Scianna, Restaurant, Bar and Events

Jan Core, Wedding Events Coordinator

NOTES FROM THE BOARD

Carl Koring, President

I am writing this article the morning after Thanksgiving. Nancy and I hosted a family gathering like many of you did, and enjoyed the day feast and football.

At our November 21, Board of Directors (BOD) meeting Sean O’Brien gave a report on what his needs would be to get the golf course in “good shape.” The list included more fertilizers and pesticides, sand/soil, seed, and increased labor. In addition, Sean told the BOD his equipment is 12-15 years old and it is becoming more and more difficult to repair and in need of replacement. We have other needs such as new carpet in the clubhouse, kitchen equipment that needs to be replaced, air conditioner(s) that need to be replaced, etc. The BOD is having a special meeting December 5 to brainstorm and prioritize these needs.

Tree removal crew taking down the 4 dead trees behind the #2 green.

On November 21, ASCC hosted a Fire Safe meeting. The presenters included representatives from first responders as well as representatives from county and non profit agencies. The audience of 250+ received valuable information on what to do in case of an evacuation and how to create a defense space on their property.

I hope you will be able to attend our Christmas and New Year’s Eve parties. Be sure to sign up in advance

GREEN SCENE

Sean O’Brien

The cooler and wetter weather has arrived. The storms

have been significant enough to chase away the flames,

but spaced sufficiently to allow golfers to enjoy some great

golfing conditions between storms. Other than requiring

the carts to stay on the paths, and having to clean some

clumps of mud off of the balls, this Fall has been a great

time to get out and take in the colors along with your

round.

Spacing of the storms has also given your maintenance

crew the chance to take care of a pressing problem left

behind by the high flows of last winter. The torrential rains

and subsequent flooding pushed the 53 year old spillway

under the bridge on #15 to its limits leaving us to evaluate

and come up with a plan to help insure it will survive the

next 50 years. Pressure from the great power produced by

the many cubic feet of water had forced the seams in the

concrete to split. This allowed the water to penetrate into

and around the structure which helped to erode away the

very ground the spillway was built on top of. When these

problems were discovered last spring we were able to

quickly plug one of the main cracks and backfill where the

erosion had happened and then repair the cart path where

affected. We knew at that time that much more work was

required and it had to be done before the next winter. In

short, Oroville was not the only spillway that needed fixing.

Finally a window had appeared at the end of October

and into mid November that allowed us to get to work.

First the cracks that had allowed the water to erode away

at the substrate had to be filled. Nearly a thousand pounds

of concrete later all of the cracks were plugged and filled.

Next we had to build up all of the area under the spillway

that had been hydraulically removed. This was a big job

that required a larger tractor than ours and the removal of

a couple of small trees to allow us room to maneuver as

needed to place the very large rocks needed for the job.

Of course we had to scour the course to come up with the

many boulders of all shapes and sizes to fill the large hole

left at the bottom of the spillway. Once we had everything

in place it was time to get it rolling.

Luckily it came to my attention that we had a Board

member with experience calculating flows and managing

problems associated with creek flows and hydro-electric

applications. I invited Ron Ott to the site and got his input

and advice on how to next proceed with the placement of

the rocks to best achieve our goals of shedding the water

quickly through the spillway while reducing erosion beside

and below the structure. Ron stuck around and watched

us work the site with two tractors and several men to help

place the smaller rocks between the larger boulders.

Today what you see looking over the edge of the bridge is

the culmination of a lot of hard work by hand and by

mechanical means, that will hopefully provide the

necessary strength to last for many years to come.

Instead of the usual Nature Pics of the Month, I will

share some before and after shots of the spillway that will

illustrate the scope of the project as carried out over a

week in November.

Men’s Club Awards Banquet

Our 4th Annual Awards Banquet was a great

success. Fifty-Two Members and Guests enjoyed a

great meal, dancing and the music of Cousin Cricket

as we celebrated another year of golf, fun and

friendship with our fellow Men’s Club Members.

The following Members were recognized for their

achievements on the golf course:

Gold Rush Series Points Winners

Silver Flight – Chuck Martin

Gold Flight – Pete Gobby

Member-Guest Invitational Tournament

Jody Laffins & Kirk Laffins

Men’s 2-Man Championship

Del Clement & Jeff Wilde

Men’s Club Champion

Jeff Wilde

President’s Trophy The November President’s Trophy goes to Ron Fritz.

On November 1, Ron scored a net 58, finishing 10

strokes ahead of the rest of the field and securing

the November President’s Trophy.

Men’s Association

By: Mike Quinn

Jeff

Chuck

e

Pete

e

Jody

Ron

Hole-In-One Awards Hole-In-One Plaques were awarded to Mike Grogan

and Don Carey.

Mike Grogan Don Carey

July 21, 2017 October 27, 2017

Hole #3 Hole #3

176 yards 132 yards

7-Wood 7-Iron

Congratulations Gentlemen!

Coming Events The Awards Banquet concludes our tournaments for

the 2017 year. Enjoy the holiday dinners and parties

at the club. Our next official Men’s Club event will be

a 4-Man Elimination Scramble followed by lunch and

a Quarterly Meeting on February 7, 2018. In the

meantime, join us for Nooners and SBOAS play on

Wednesdays, weather permitting.

Weekly Winners Regular Nooner & SBOAS Wednesday Golf Days

November 1, Nooners 2-Man Best Ball

1st Jeff Wilde & Fred Dodge 63

2nd Jim Pearce & Jim Buciak 66

November 1, Nooners Individual Low Net

1st Jeff Wilde 73

2nd Jim Buciak 75

November 1, SBOAS 2-Best Balls of Threesome

1st Jim Binks, Ron Fritz & Rusty Witwer 120

2nd Lewallen, Cardwell & Ostrander 130

November 8, Nooners 2-Man Best Ball

1st Jeff Wilde & Jim Buciak 61

2nd Dann Counihan & Mike Ireland 68

November 8, Nooners Individual Low Net

1st Jeff Wilde 65

2nd Mike Ireland 75

3rd Dann Counihan 78

November 8, SBOAS 2-Best Ball of Threesome

1st Lewallen, Ostrander & Martin 133

November 22, Nooners 2-Man Best Ball

1st Dave Whitehead & Mike Grogan 60

2nd Del Clement & Scot Byous 64

November 22, Nooners Individual Low Net

1st Dave Whitehead 68

2nd Scot Byous 69

3rd Jim Pearce 72

If you want to …

Play organized golf.

Have fun.

or

Play in the Gold Rush

Tournaments.

Join the

Alta Sierra

Men’s Club

For more info contact us:

Mike Quinn, President

Mike Ireland, Secretary

Dann Counihan, Treasurer

WOMEN’S GOLF CLUB

Robin Van Metre

What a spectacular fall at Alta Sierra Country Club. The trees are still putting on a magnificent display of color, unwilling to succumb to winter, which is just around the corner. The ladies were able to get in Captain’s Trophy this month before the rains came.

November Captain’s Trophy Results First Flight Low Gross Doreen Lewallen Low Net Elaine Martin 2nd Peggy Hubert 3rd Cinnamon Danielson Second Flight Low Gross Jean Metz Low Net Wendy Weiss 2nd Phyllis Smith 3rd Edda Howe Closest to the Pin Edda Howe 8’11”

November Captain’s Trophy Winner

Wendy Weiss

Due to rain and the Thanksgiving holiday there was no play on November 9th, 16th or 23rd. This will be my last article as Co-Captain. Liz Coots will be taking over as Co-Captain in December. Best wishes for a wonderful holiday season.

Daniel Frances Turner

June 18, 1950 – October 31, 2017

Betty Koski

With the advent of winter weather having already arrived it's

behooves you to know the meaning of "preferred or winter lies"

which are usually announced by our Tournament Chairman,

Andi or our Pro Kacey. A local rule listed under 143 b. in the

USGA Rules of Golf book states that "A ball lying on a closely-

mown area through the green (or specify a more restricted

area, e.g. at the 6th hole) may be lifted without penalty and

cleaned. Before lifting the ball , the player must mark its

position. Having lifted the ball, he must place it on a spot

within(specify area e.g. six inches, one club length etc.) of and

not nearer the hole than where it originally lay, that is not in a

hazard and not on a putting green."

At a recent meeting the subject of whether or not goose poop

could be removed if it lay under the ball without penalty.

Since goose poop is considered a loose impediment this

was a fair question. However when a loose impediment is

removed from near the ball and the ball is caused to be

moved there is a one stroke penalty incurred.

In the Rules Guy column in the December issue of Golf

magazine a question was posed about the kind of relief this

player could receive when his ball had landed in a bunker

and a fellow player's approach shot hit his ball, causing it to

bury slightly in the sand. He wanted to know whether or not

he was entitled to relief from where his ball lay. The Rules

Guy told him that he was allowed relief since Rule 18-5

states "replace a ball at rest moved by another ball to its

original spot, and under Rule 20-3b(iii), " if the lie changed,

re-create the original lie, too." Wow! That's a relief!!!

I've had fun writing this column and have learned a lot about

the Rules of Golf but now it's time to turn over the reins to

next year's Rules Chair, Janet Barnes, who will have at her

fingertips the small R & A USGA Rules of Golf booklet, the

gigantic R & A USGA Decisions on the Rules of Golf and the

handy Golf Rules Illustrated (the official illustrated Guide to

the Rules of Golf). She will ,also, according to Article VI

Section 8 "serve as a member of the Tournament

Committee, resolve the questions using USGA Rules of Golf,

and the ASCC Local Rules." A more detailed explanation of

her duties will be listed in the 2018 ASWGC Membership

roster. Hopefully Janet will hear from the WGANC early in

2018 when a new rules book containing some more forgiving

rules of golf will be published.

Here's to having many dry weather golfing days on

Thursdays and many pars, birdies and eagles in the New

Year!

READERS CORNER

Submitted by Jan Core

The Wright Brothers by David McCullough David McCullough is one of my favorite historical writers. I wasn’t disappointed with his well documented book The Wright Brothers. McCullough’s writing makes these lives so real and they are no longer just a feel paragraphs in our high school history book. These brothers were born to an itinerant preacher who encouraged them to explore and learn. From the time he brought home a toy flying machine, they were hooked on developing an actual flying machine. McCullough takes us through the lives of these two brothers without a college degree. What we clearly see is their dedication to their dream and the hard work it entailed. They were entrepreneurs who first had a printing show and then their bicycle show. One on the most important aspects of the bicycle show was the machine shop where so many of their engine experiments took place. We are taken on a journey of their first glider flight and later engine flight in Kitty Hawk, ever wonder the effort it took to get their machine to Kitty Hawk, and their experimental flights later in Dayton. Throughout all the ups and downs including accidents, thank goodness, they never gave up. They had patents to file, governments to convince of the usefulness of air flight, and continuing to run a business to finance their endeavors. It was interesting that France and Germany were at first more interested in purchasing the plane than the United States. This is not a long book and the documentation takes up a good portion. The pictures alone are worth the price. The Wright Brothers belong with two of my other favorites by McCullough, John Adams and Truman.

ALTA SIERRA CC

PHONE DIRECTORY

OFFICE 273-2041

FAX 273-2207

GOLF SHOP 273-2010

DINING ROOM 273-2868

SUPERINTENDENT 273-2736

E-MAIL

Office: beckycardin@yahoo.com

Kacey: kacey4259@gmail.com

Sean O: supeoday@cwnet.com

WEB SITE http://altasierracc.com

ALTA SIERRA CC

GREEN GAZETTE

Published Monthly by

Alta Sierra Country Club

11897 Tammy Way

Grass Valley, CA 95949-6626

Publisher/Editor

Ann Podielski annpuddles@hotmail.com

Doreen Lewallen danddlew@suddenlink.net

December 2017

Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat

1 2 ROLL THE DICE SALE

December 8th through December 22nd

Member 10:00 Shotgun ASCC CHRISTMAS PARTY 5:00-8:00

Course Opens 7:30

3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Course Opens 7:30 Sunday Brunch 10:00-3:00

Member 10:00 Shotgun Monday Night Football 5:30

Shop and Range Opens 10:00-5:00 Course Opens 11:30

Men’s Club Presidents Trophy 9:00 Shotgun

Ladies Club Captain Trophy 2018 9:00 Shotgun Niners 9:30

Member 10:00 Shotgun ASWGC Award Luncheon

Course Opens 7:30

10 11 12 13 14 15 16 Course Opens 7:30 Sunday Brunch 10:00-3:00

Member 10:00 Shotgun Monday Night Football 5:30

Shop and Range Opens 10:00-5:00 Course Opens 11:30 Membership Comm. Mtg. 10:00 Greens Comm. Mtg. 1:00

Men’s Club 9:00 Shotgun Niners Award Luncheon

Ladies Club 9:00 Shotgun Niners 9:30

Member 10:00 Shotgun

Course Opens 7:30

17 18 19 20 21 22 23 Course Opens 7:30

Member 10:00 Shotgun Monday Night Football 5:30

Shop and Range Opens 10:00-5:00 Course Opens 11:30 ASCC Board Mtg.8:30

Men’s Club 9:00 Shotgun

Ladies Club 9:00 Shotgun Niners 9:30

Member 10:00 Shotgun

Course Opens 7:30

24 25 26 27 28 29 30 Course Opens 7:30 Shop and Range Closes 3:00

CLUB/COURSE CLOSED

Shotgun 10:00 Shop and Range Open 10:00-5:00

Men’s Club 9:00 Shotgun

Ladies Club 9:00 Shotgun Niners 9:30

Member 10:00 Shotgun

Course Opens 7:30 Main Dining Room Tree Take Down

31 Course Opens 7:30 Shop and Range Closes 3:00 Wedding 2:00-5:00 ASCC New Year’s Eve Party 6:00-11:00

Green=Outside Club Events Black=Member Golf Red=Community