THE devastating scenes of floodwater crashing through levees that were protecting Riverside, Coomealla and Wentworth golf courses in late 2022 are unforgettable.
Hole after hole at each course was soon under water, which stayed for about four months.
Coomealla and Wentworth’s courses were completely flooded, while a small section of the 11th fairway and 15th green were the only areas spared from flooding on Riverside’s 18-hole layout.
A small army of volunteers were called on to support the minimal number of course staff in a monumental clean-up, before each club began rebuilding fairways and greens once the floodwaters had subsided.
It’s been 18 months since the once-in-a-lifetime flood of the Murray River brought play to a standstill.
Sunraysia Daily has revisited each club to check on the recovery efforts – and the results are a testament to the never-say-die attitude of committees, staff and, above all else, the dozens of magnificent volunteers.
Riverside rebirth
THE 2022-23 summer flood was one of Riverside Golf Club’s biggest setbacks since it opened on April 27, 1935.
All the hard work by greenkeepers Tim Peterson and Ash Whitehouse to get the course in tip-top shape turned to nought when the flood struck in November 2022.
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www.sunraysiadaily.com.au/news/6285734/riverside-rebirth
Coomie’s slow recovery
THE reawakening of Coomealla Golf Club from the flood had been a long and trying journey, the club’s golf manager, Warren Fitzgerald, said this week.
“We were shut from mid-November 2022 and we didn’t reopen till June 15, 2023,” he said.
READ THE FULL STORY:
www.sunraysiadaily.com.au/news/6285736/coomies-slow-recovery
Wenty’s woes
GLEN Walker says the floodwater was about 6m deep from Wentworth’s sixth fairway into 13th and 14 holes during the peak of the 2022 flood.
The Wentworth Golf Club president this week reflected on how the “stubborn” flood “just wouldn’t recede” at the back of the course.
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