Our friendly neighborhood alligator has been seen sunning himself along the banks of our lakes. This picture was taken on #9 but we have seen him in multiple locations. From holes 7 and 8 to holes 16,17 and 18. Alligators will typically move across land to a more conducive feeding area. Sometimes they will travel through the underground pipes that connect our lakes. The most important rule is to NEVER feed an alligator. Once they lose their fear of humans and associate us with a food source, they must be removed. Stonebridge has done a remarkable job of respecting our wildlife, we have only had to remove one alligator in my 15 years of service here. As always, I will monitor the activity and keep your safety in mind.

On to a more nefarious creature. We have received reports of Iguana sightings on a few occasions. These are non-native, exotic and invasive lizards. I have been in contact with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Commission, regarding trapping, removal and eradication. I ask you to e-mail directly at mmetzger@sbcc.club to report and sightings and specific locations. We will do all we can to alleviate this issue. Pleas steer clear of these iguanas, they are not typically aggressive but we do not want to make them feel comfortable in our environment.

Finally, I want to remind all of our members and guests that we are in the midst of our most arid time of the year. The plant loses water at a rate that irrigation alone can not replace. This means we will experience some dry areas throughout the property. You will see my team out there on a daily basis pulling hand-held hoses to provide supplemental moisture to our driest areas. Thank you for your patience and understanding around this practice as we try to provide proper playing conditions during these trying times.

This seems to be an annual post regarding dry conditions during this time of year. Typical weather patterns during March, April and May produce a very arid climate. As seen in the picture of #15 putting surface and the surrounding area, off color turf is evident due to excessive Evapotranspiration(ET). ET is a measurement of the the amount of moisture lost in the plant on a daily basis. During a time of rising temperatures, high sun exposure and low humidity the ET rate increases exponentially. Replenishing that moisture is a never ending battle. Thankfully, the last couple of days have produced some cloud cover and a bit of rain last night to aid in our moisture management. We have many tools available to us to help combat these factors. We are blessed with a state of the art irrigation system and there are many wetting agent products that help in retaining moisture. Although, some areas of our playing surfaces may seem off color, they are quite healthy and preforming well. Our soil tests and profile examination have dictated our approach to fertility and irrigation inputs. This has resulted in firmer and more consistent putting surfaces.

Color is not our first priority when in comes to playing conditions. We focus on plant health and performance, aesthetics are a byproduct of proper conditions and enhanced cultural practices. As we endure the next few months of a drought season, you can expect to see more off-color turf and and a lot of my staff dragging hoses around to pinpoint the most effected areas. I am in close contact with the Water Management District that dictates any possibility of water restrictions. At this point, we are strongly advised to conserve, we are not currently under an official restriction. This may change in the coming weeks. We are well prepared to cope with any situation that may arise.

Another round of soil tests and profile inspection is scheduled for early May. The results will dictate the intensity of cultural practices we will schedule for the summer season. Controlling infiltration rates, Organic Matter and Thatch is paramount to the long term health of all of the playing surface. This is done through practices such as aerification, verti-cutting, amendment injections, topdressing and moisture management.

My team has worked hard this season to provide proper playing conditions and we will continue to strive towards a more consistent and playable golf course.

This morning was the first Frost Delay that I can recall in quite some time. Obviously the weather has been quite frigid for awhile, with no relief in sight for the next 4-5 days. Our Bimini Bermuda Grass has held up well heading into this weather pattern. Although the Frost this morning was not as heavy as expected, we will start to lose color in the effected areas. Our warm season grass needs soil temperatures above 55 degrees to start recovery. We will be boosting fertility to jump start recovery as soon as Mother Nature allows. We are expecting another round of possible Frost tomorrow morning, thankfully the Ladies Day events have already moved their tee times to a later start.

On another note, our team has worked hard to equalize moisture content on our putting surfaces. This is in direct response to findings brought forth by our newly employed course consultant. The undulations in our greens require pin point applications to control the Volumetric Water Content. To that end, we are adhering to a strict protocol of watering only where needed. This is determined by the use of a moisture meter. These readings dictate where and when water is needed. As you play the golf course you will notice some “off color” areas around a few greens. This is a result of reducing moisture content, coupled with the cooler temperatures. As the weather improves and the moisture evens out, these areas will bounce right back. The benefits of this process is numerous, most notably, stronger roots and a firmer faster putting surface.

Finally, I would like to give an update on our Lake Aeration project. Previous to the renovation only around half of our lakes had aeration systems installed. Our goal of “Maintainability and Sustainability” included aerating all of our lakes. This promotes a healthy vibrant water quality that extends the life and balance of our waterways. I have included a picture of one of our Solar Compressors that feed air to the diffusers in the lake. Without a reliable electrical source in certain areas, a solar panel was the only option. We currently have four solar compressors on site, eventually we endeavor to screen this panels as best we can without hindering the solar collection process. The remainder of the project should be completed in the next few weeks.

Thank you for taking the time to read this update and feel free to contact me with any questions or concerns, Stay warm (and Classy) Stonebridge!

It has been an interesting 2025. We experienced some odd weather patterns, despite avoiding major storms. As the golf course matures, we adapt to its needs. The most challenging aspects are managing the micro-environments that exist throughout the property. Each area of the property reacts differently to treatments. This leads to specialized practices to enhance the conditions of the entire course.

Our undulated greens are a perfect example of these micro-environments. The high areas react much differently than the low areas. Whether it be water holding capacity or retention of growth products. Each summer season we will address these areas to enhance uniformity. To that point, I have begun to work with Todd Lowe, he is the owner/operator of Todd Lowe Consulting. Todd previously spent more than a decade as the Lead Agronomist for the USGA, representing the entire South East of the country. His independent firm concentrates mostly of Florida. The testing methods employed will give us a base line off information to improve our conditions.

Todd was onsite earlier this month to extract samples. The results are in the attached report. We are looking forward to continuing our relationship and employing some new practices to ensure optimum results. It is always reassuring to hear from a well respected industry expert, that we are on the right track. He even took pictures of a few cultural practice that we use, so he could forward them to a few other courses that are enduring some of the same challenges. The collaborations of fellow Superintendents and industry personnel are what my profession so unique.

We are looking forward to a fruitful 2026. It is my pledge to focus more on communication of both succusses and challenges throughout the property. Look for regular updates beginning in the new year. Thank you for your patience as we grow a better Stonebridge. Please feel free to contact me at any time with your questions or concerns.

We are within 2 weeks of our Major Guest Tournaments. The putting surfaces have shown signs of significant recovery from the damage done by the harsh Summer weather. Mother Nature has aided our efforts with some great weather over the last week. We will continue to push growth as we focus on playability for the upcoming tournaments. Our goal is to have the putting surfaces true and smooth throughout the Season. The few blemishes that remain will continue to grow in over the next few weeks. I made the decision to not plug or sod in play areas to ensure a proper playing surface, free of rulings or ambiguity. If and when we survive the gauntlet of the next few weeks, we we take the rest of November and December to perfect the surfaces for the Member events starting in January. Thank you for your patience and understanding, my entire team is doing all they can to provide the experience you deserve.

I have included a couple of pictures of #9 Green. We have a few of these thin areas on 3-4 Greens. They are the result of a very trying July and August. The wet, cloudy weather led to a concentrated outbreak of a Pathogen that causes a fungal disease called Bermuda Grass Decline. We maintain a strict preventative program and will still had issues. Once tested and recognized, a more aggressive curative program was put in place. With 3 weeks to go before our Major Tournaments, we are aggressively pushing growth and recovery. Our entire team is aware of the importance of producing a quality playing surface for the Season. We have the resources and the plan to ensure success. If necessary, any area that needs to be plugged or sodded, this will happen on our last Tuesday closed. Our goal is to re-establish through growth to maximize playability. I am confident that we will achieve a level of Quality that we are looking for heading into Season. Our most affected Greens are #4, #5, #6 and #9. As a whole, it is less than 1% of our Putting Surfaces that are compromised. The last 2 applications have produced good results and we will continue to push forward. On a brighter side, the rest of the golf course is in excellent condition. Once we correct the imperfections on the Greens, we should be good to go for the remainder of the Season.

Another FYI, we have started the installation of the lake aerators. The plan is to install new aerators in all the lakes. There are a few areas where we have had to bury air lines across the golf course. This process has started on #3 and #4. We have tried to keep these disturbances out of normal play areas so it should not effect golf. We will have new compressors on lakes that have previously never been aerated. Some of them will require solar panels, as an electric supply was not available. This program is vital for the health of our lakes.

Thank you for your patience and understanding, this is the most critical part of the year for me and my team. Perfection is always our goal, not being there at this moment is both frustrating and motivating. We will make our back, and soon.

We have had a very productive Summer. Most of our closures went as planned and we have avoided any major storms as of yet. We are looking forward to providing our members and guests with an excellent playing surface for the season ahead. Our goal every year is to improve the property and instill a community wide pride in you property.

This closure was quite challenging. We completed all of our scheduled cultural practices during the first week. This was followed by 8 days of horrible weather. We received close to 7 inches of rain over the last 8 days. The moisture is not that detrimental, it is the lack of sunlight. All plant material needs sunlight to thrive. The stress we put the course under during these necessary cultural practices is extreme during the summer months. Recovery relies on good conditions and proper fertility. Unfortunately we have run in to a stretch of weather that has slowed recovery. The golf course is extremely saturated and we are hoping for a dry forecast over the next few days. The Photosynthetic properties that sunlight provides was lacking for more than a week. The Putting Surfaces are not quite where we would like them. There is a bit of a Silver Lining, the longer the holes are open, the more benefit of Oxygen Exchange continues deeper into the upcoming season. Our team feels very confident that the course will return to optimum conditions well before Opening Days and our Major Events in late October early November. The Putting Surface, although not completely healed, will be very playable. Through proper topdressing and continuous surface rolling, a smooth and true roll should be expected.

On another point, the perimeter buffers are always a topic of conversation. All plantings were installed over the last couple of years and a few of the identified gaps received additional plantings. This will always be a “work in progress” as we continue to enhance the noise and visual buffer around your community. Specific to the #3 and #4 buffer, we have two different types of Bamboo installed, as the availability dictated. They both will eventually grow to 40 to 50 feet tall, at slightly different growth rates. We are constantly looking for landscape opportunities to enhance the entire property and this ties in closely with the new SPC Initiatives being adopted by the Club.

Thank you for you patience and understanding through the summer months, our team works extremely hard to provide the best possible conditions on a year round basis. Thank you for your support and we look forward to the best Season yet!

This picture of #6 Fairway is a good representative of the process we are employing during our first closure. The lines you see in the grass are the result of Verti-Cutting, this cultural practice helps reduce thatch and grain to provide a denser more playable surface. All of our “Short Grass” areas have received this treatment along with aerification, to increase air movement and percolation. We finish the process with a solid coat of sand. This Topdressing will help smooth the playing surface and further impact the thatch layer. Through this week and next, we will apply close to 1000 tons of sand to the course. We will stretch the limits of our resources to make Stonebridge better than ever.

This is a close up look at #6 Green. As always, we attack the greens first to enable them the longest recovery time. We are confident that they will be quite good upon opening next Saturday.

During this closure we have embarked on a few other projects. This photo shows the removal of the clump of trees along the V Tee on #8. The were hindering the growth on the tee through shade a root encroachment. There are a few other projects on the horizon that will enhance your experience on the golf course. We are looking forward to a very productive Summer. As always, we will strive to provide excellent conditions throughout year with an eye on a “Better than Ever” Season to come.