Courtesy photo Pictured is the Alpena Golf Club, where flooding has delayed the opening of the course to the public. Maintenance work to get local courses ready to open has been delayed until the water recedes.

ALPENA – Because of the recent flooding throughout the area, several local golf courses have had to delay or postpone opening for the season.

Among the damage related concerns are immediate turf health risks like turf damage caused by flooding or standing water on the fairways, greens, or rough, which cuts off oxygen to the grass roots.

Clubhouse Operations Manager for the Alpena Golf Club, Travis Brown, explained the status of the golf course and what, if any, damage or delays have been caused by flooding.

“We didn’t really have any damage necessarily from the flooding, it just washed-out cart paths,” Brown said. “The biggest issue is all the water is preventing us from cleaning up the golf course and getting it in shape for play.”

Receding water often leaves behind layers of silt and clay. This can block essential drainage, degrade soil structure, and create a hard surface that is difficult for turf to penetrate.

The flooding has also made it difficult to clean up the damage left behind from the ice storm in March.

“We did have quite a bit of tree damage from the ice storm back in March and now with the ongoing flooding it’s hard to get out and clean that stuff up,” Brown said.

Brown explained the current status of the Alpena Golf Club and whether the flooding has caused them to delay opening and/or shut down the golf course.

“We hope to be open as soon as possible, weather permitting, we are working as fast as possible to maintain and improve the condition of the course,” Brown said. “The pro shop is open at this time, but the course is not open for play just yet.”

A representative of River’s Edge Golf Club spoke about the current conditions at the golf course on Werth Road, and whether they are currently open.

“Absolutely not open, it’s going to be a couple of weeks at least. We certainly sustained some flooding; we still have holes on the golf course that are underwater.”

We reached out to Thunder Bay Resort for comment; however, we were unable to obtain a response prior to deadline.