datasets.iitb.crawledDocs.yn_08Oct08_file_496 Maven / Gradle / Ivy

    Some features on this site require that JavaScript be turned on. Home Delivery Special! Searching for: sacbee.com Web Shopping Yellow Pages Sponsored by The Sullivan Auto Group Sponsored by The Sullivan Auto Group 101 Sponsored by The Sullivan Auto Group Sponsored by The Sullivan Auto Group 100 Sponsored By UC Davis MBA 103 111 110 Sponsored by atlantiscasino.com 172 Sponsored by Sutter Health 107 Sponsored by atlantiscasino.com 643 Sponsored by The Sullivan Auto Group Sponsored by Shea Homes Search Community Info Guides Job Seekers Employers Products & Services Coupons Guides Sports: | | | | | | | | | | Cordova course goes from pasture to (almost) paradise CONDITIONS HAVE IMPROVED AT THE MUCH-MALIGNED, 90-ACRE LAYOUT By Steve Pajak - Published 12:00 am PDT Wednesday, October 8, 2008 Story appeared in SPORTS section, Page C1 | | | | Cow pasture. Cordova Golf Course players and staff for decades accepted the prevailing description of their 90 acres off Jackson Road because they knew, minus the cows, it was pretty much true. Not anymore. Their little slice of paradise, long a target of derision among Sacramento golfers, is evolving into a course the likes of which they can be proud. And they're not afraid to say so. Dozens of club members called and e-mailed to dispute an unfavorable characterization in last week's Course Report, a weekly Bee feature detailing area course conditions. Players often take the time to complain that assessments of their course are too kind, or to say their course stinks, but rarely to emotionally defend their place of outdoor worship. "It was worded as if it meant yesterday, today and tomorrow," said Bob Bachmann, Cordova Golf Club president. "It was open-ended like this has always been and will always be a bad place to play golf. Our image was not good and it's still not good, but things have honestly improved, and the negativity is counterproductive to a lot of hard work." Yes, Cordova's greens are slow. They're cut to three-sixteenths of an inch, one-sixteenth longer than typical around town because it helps keep them healthy and, frankly, that's what regulars have come to expect. But, save for a few bare spots on some edges, they're full and lush. The fairways have undergone an aerification and Bermuda grass overseeding program that has rendered them fuller and greener than ever before, prompting Bachmann to proudly institute a club policy this year that members play the ball down between April 1 and Oct. 1. The price continues to be right at $13 weekdays and $19 on weekends. "When I came here, I had visions of what it is now," said Jim Marta, Cordova's head pro for 27 years. "For years, it was stagnant and just about survival. Now it's, 'Let's hang out and enjoy the course and talk about it.' "It's like having a beat-up car that was drivable, but you put some time into fixing it up and suddenly it's so much better." Bachmann, a course regular for 18 years, Marta and Stu Varner, who has run the course's restaurant for 30 years, acknowledge that Cordova deserved its reputation even when it was hosting more than 100,000 rounds for a lot of years. It's now does about 70,000. Things started turning around four years ago, they say, not coincidentally with the arrival of superintendent Gary Williams. He faced the same obstacles as superintendents at other municipal courses: an ineffective and aging irrigation system and an annual budget that didn't grow with the grass. Williams and his staff have been replacing and repositioning sprinkler heads for four years, leading to fewer wet spots and dry patches. There's two more years worth of work there, he said. The hardpan fairways were punched for the first time after Williams' arrival; his goal is weed eradication and Bermuda coverage. "You look out over the course now, and it's predominately green," Marta said. "It's never been that way in October before." There's now a definition between fairway and rough, something Bachmann appreciates. "They used to mow from one end of the property to the other," he said. "There were no fairways." Improving curb appeal is next. Too many people zip past Cordova while driving down Jackson Highway and see only an asphalt parking lot, driving range nets and no reason to stop. The new attitude at Cordova has seeped into fashion. While members used to be sheepish when playing in Northern California Golf Association team home-and-home matches, they now have sporty shirts and caps with colors for both spring and fall leagues, emblazoned with "Cordova Golf Course." "We're a blue-collar group, and the guys are really into it," Bachmann said. Club membership is more than 100, and tournament participation is healthy, tournament director Lloyd Tande said. Handicaps range from 6 to 31  the 4,800-yard, par-63 course has its share of challenging par-3s and decent players. It always offers grass off which to hit at the practice range and a community feel. Everyone involved knows it's not a pro-caliber place, but when it comes to combining a place to work on, play or learn the game at a reasonable price for young or older players, the "new" Cordova is a steal. The course always has offered low fees, Bachmann said; now it's offering great value. "We now take pride in what we're doing as opposed to just playing somewhere because it's cheap," he said. About the writer: Call The Bee's Steve Pajak, (916) 326-5526. Recommend this story at Yahoo! Buzz: Unique content, exceptional value. Most Popular More Stories in Sports QUICK JOB SEARCH Enter Keyword(s): Enter a City: Select a State: Select a Category: | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | Copyright © The Sacramento Bee 2100 Q St. P.O. Box 15779 Sacramento, CA 95816 (916) 321-1000 Contact The Bee: (916) 321-1000 | Guide to The Bee