Petersburg, VA

The reconstruction of all 19 putting greens at the Country Club of Petersburg, originally designed in 1968 by Edmund Ault, has been completed. Lester George was engaged to design these improvements and lead the club through the extensive process of rebuilding. The new greens are totally redesigned by George and were rebuilt to USGA specifications by Jim Armstrong of Quality Grassing and Services, Inc. from Lithia, Florida.

The board and membership of the Country Club of Petersburg made the decision to pursue renovations due to poor putting green turf quality, caused primarily from drainage problems. "Our putting greens were originally built from native soils, which did not promote reliable turf quality," said Vince Hankley, superintendent of the course at the Country Club of Petersburg. "With Lester's expertise, we have corrected many other problems including air movement, shading and traffic patterns."

The club remained open for play throughout the process of renovation, with temporary greens having been placed in the fairways during construction. The turf of George's redesigned greens is now maturing, and the temporary greens will remain in play until the spring of 1998, when the Club will unveil the newly designed greens.

"The response of the members has been very positive," said Bill Shonk, Club Manager of the Country Club of Petersburg. "A good number of people are seeing the fruits of our labor, and the success of the grow-in has enabled the members to see the subtleties of the greens. We are happy to have made the investment in these renovations," he continued.

The renovations at the Country Club of Petersburg were performed on a fairly limited budget. Bryant Palmore, Club President, states that, "Even if the budget for this project had been unlimited, we would not have received better results. I am 100% satisfied."