By Dan Hardenbrook
Less than a month after a major storm ripped through the Newberry Country Club, club owner Lance Byrns has announced that all 18 holes are now playable and the course is fully reopened. Damaging straight line winds tore through the course, wiping out dozens of trees along multiple fairways, tee boxes, and the driving range, scattering brush and limbs over most of the property, and causing multiple crews of professionals and volunteers to embark on a major cleanup effort.
Byrns continued to applaud the efforts of volunteers, many of whom are members or local supporters of the Newberry Country Club. And he had high praise for the work done by Keinonen Tree Service.
“Those guys are absolutely incredible,” Byrns said. “I can’t thank them enough or say enough great things about them and their work. They have worked around the clock and given every spare second to get this course back in shape and playable, and I would say it’s impeccable.”
In the immediate aftermath of the June 29 storm, Byrns was forced to completely close the NCC. Clean-up efforts allow them to reopen 15 playable holes one week ago, with broken trees and visible repair work still needed. Over the recent weekend, those final remaining holes got the all-clear and the course currently has no restrictions.
In some locations, rows of stumps remain where trees once stood. Byrns says that Keinonen work crews will return soon w to grind and remove stumps completely.
Among the hardest hit areas were the driving range, where trees snapped in half near the course’s famous water tower. The area surrounding the 12th green and 16th tee box, which looked like a tornado zone, has been completely cleared and cleaned up. At one point the bridge was inaccessible due to down trees that came down and blocked the pathway.
Despite the destruction, the bridge was not severely damaged, and held up under the massive damage all around it. The 6th green, a favorite spot for many, was completely covered but was in pristine condition.
While there are some slight changes, Byrns says he is thrilled with what he sees.
“We had so many trees that had to be cleared and removed, but the course really is in great shape. I can honestly say it’s in as good of shape as it has been,” he said. “Some areas you wouldn’t believe were even hit with a storm or suffered damage at all. If anything, the only major difference is it’s just more open in areas that had heavy tree lines and that’s not necessarily a bad thing.”
For more information visit newberrycountryclub.com or follow updates on the Newberry Country Club Facebook page.
