Maintaining Wisconsin’s Historic Family Owned 9-Holer | All Grass Is Local | Pres. by Toro

Maintaining Wisconsin’s Historic Family Owned 9-Holer | All Grass Is Local | Pres. by Toro

[Music] Get the flag out. [Music] Oh yeah. Whenever we get out and get the water out the cups. Okay. I think I’ve showed you that before, right? With the squirt. You four are going to be on squeegee. Thinking about a good load out Spurs, Timmy Dy Parker. That’s us on the screen. Where shack? Yeah. Where shack? Best players on the screen. [Music] I think it was 2015 or 2016. I worked with John Morris out of Aaron Hills. He’s like, “Have you ever played Eagle Springs?” I was like, “I’ve heard of it, but I’ i’ve never played it.” And we were just floored. We were blown away. It’s just it’s a charming place. You’re like, are am I sure that I’m supposed to turn at this truck, you know, off whatever road that is as you’re you’re coming in and sure enough, there’s this tiny parking lot with this I don’t know what other word other than charming clubhouse. You know, the hand painted sign and you see like the well, you’re like, “This place is cool.” Everything about it. And I didn’t really know this until I’d went to like I couldn’t put like that feeling to it. And then like after going to Scotland and I remember returning and being like really wanting to get out to Eagle Springs more. It’s just like golf as it should be. Ain’t much room tours for you. Want it to be realistic. Well, how’s your breakfast, Adam? Really good. Eagle Springs is a lot different than any other course you’re going to see. It’s It’s quirky. It’s It’s a familyoriented course, familyowned. My name is Mark Deutchman. I got into the industry in St. Louis. I went to little two-year program. Got started at Bel Reef Country Club in my hometown where I grew up. Spent 2, three years getting ready for the PJ Championship. So, just fell in love with golf that way. What was it like when you got here? It was a bit of a different operation. They they’ve had retirees that have been here 10, 15 years or longer that kind of did their thing, weren’t too open to change, but I think slowly they started to see kind of my background, what I was able to bring to the table. It’s something different. You don’t find places like this anymore. It’s a really special place to many people. Just feel like you get sent back in time when you’re out here. My name is Michael Bolan. I’m fifth generation of the family who built the golf course. It started in 1866. The Tui family came and and farmed it to begin with. William Tui, his son, built the golf course in 1893. And the there was a hotel here because there’s a lot of railroads that came into this area. After that, Brian Tui and my grandmother, Mary Tui, they they ran the golf course. And then after that, my mother was involved with with running it. She would mow fairways, gang more with an 8 in. And my sister and I would sit on the the wells of the 8 and a couple setters to be run along while she was cutting. My sister stepped in as the primary for two or three years and then we did it kind of equally for maybe eight years and then then I became the principal with my first wife pretty much ran the whole business. So I was the superintendent and you know I was in here in the spring and fall you might I might be doing the morning cutting changing cups and then going and eating something to come back and close in the clubhouse. So I worked inside and outside. At that point, the course had no irrigation. It was probably in the worst shape of the courses around here. And slowly, you know, with paint and cutting and a lot of help from a lot of friends, you know, volunteers on aation crews and um um eventually uh we were able to bring it back. I didn’t meet Mike until I think it was 2020. But yeah, what a bright guy and just super passionate. It’s the TUI family knows how to, you know, preserve a really special place. So when I first got here, Mike was very influential, wanted to see me succeed here. He would almost talk to me every day. He’d walk the course, come out and find me, point something out. I love the information. And I love that he cares enough that he wants me to know and he still cares about the the property. He wants me to succeed. Mark has he has a more professional approach to it. I feel like I’ve earned his respect so that he’s finally kind of let me go and do my own thing. And it shows in the golf course. I mean, the greens are faster. The um it’s it’s in better shape. Um more consistently. I’d say we we would periodically hit this, but we couldn’t keep it like this. This whole property is just very rocky. The whole kettle marine area is not too much top soil. All my greens are native pushup greens. Mike Bolan’s done a good job of top dressing and building up that sand profile. It takes a little bit more water here than places I’ve been. My first year here, I was a little too cocky and turned off the water and then it’s not easy to rewet it. Mark, who’s done a phenomenal job. Truly phenomenal job. We played in this TUI Invitational last year and our greens, you know, we like keeping them firm and fast. I was like, Mark, these greens are better than Bloom’s greens today. Like, really? I’m like, yeah, these might be the best greens I puted on all month. Back in the day, this place used to be a potato farm, and they couldn’t grow potatoes. So, what’s easier than growing that? Let’s grow grass. I don’t know if that was I don’t know if that’s any easier on on rocks. Well, I’m sure I got something at home that will work a little. I got to go home anyways. All right. To get this spreader. I don’t want to break it cuz I have to go buy one. Okay. We could ask Joel if he has He’s here. No, I mean I can give him a call and see if he has any tools like that. Well, I got I’ll get something. Okay. Well, I’m going to need a hand when he put the chain on. Okay. On display with something to culture here is a bit different than any other country club you’re going to go to. And I don’t have an assistant. I don’t have a right-hand man. I have some older guys that have a lot of experience with with little stuff, but when it comes to the reels and making sure everything’s at the height, I I have to do that myself. Most days when I get in, most of my operators, retirees are already in, already mowing, have half the course mode just about by the time I get in. We have leagues here just about every day. That’s it’s the biggest money maker. Just about every one of my retired employees plays in one of the leagues out here. So, they’ll get in at 4:30 in the morning so they can get their task done and be ready to golf. That is kind of the coolest part of this culture here. They love the place. They want to get in and take care of it. So, I just get in and deal with the younger staff, some of my college, high school guys. I’ve got a great turnover on a lot of my younger employees. They all kind of just word of mouth end up bringing more guys on. They’re they’re all local. They played here for years and they know about the place and they figure out it’s, you know, a fun place to be a part of something. I got just about all of them from some of the coaches that frequently play here. One of the wrestling coaches is another employee of mine. He’s pushed them my way and I’m going to keep keep that train coming. It’s cool like the community of Eagle Springs like helps out. I’ll talk to him. He’s like, “Oh, we got, you know, the neighbor down there is going to we’re going to borrow his trailer. You know, we got a chipper coming from this guy.” You have to appreciate Eagle Springs and what it is, you know, cuz if someone came in there and said like, “Well, there’s just not enough money. There’s not enough things and not enough rollers and mowers and sprayers. It it it’s just very different.” A It’s nine holes, too. It’s just a smaller footprint. The greens are maybe I don’t know if it boils down to like an acre coming from a course where you have all the resources. If you see disease like you’re 100% going out to spray and you’re not the only guy who knows how to spray. You’re sending out two, three sprayers to go spray. I’m just doing what I think I’m okay with. I got to be smart about it still. Greens are going to take priority. I treat my greens and teas at the same program. So, I know a lot of people say that TE’s are kind of the left out afterthought. But that’s the first thing you see on the course is a tea box and then your last impression is how the how the final green played for you. It’s hard. You don’t have the equipment, you don’t have the resources. So, they have, you know, our 2000 top dresser. Mark has connections with Blue Mount and uh connections with Old Elm. they’re able to, you know, they they give them old pieces of equipment that they don’t want and a modern air raator is a way better tool than the old aators. So, I came from Chicago, didn’t know too many people up in the Wisconsin area, but they they welcomed me pretty well when I first got here. guys at Bigfoot Country Club, Lake Geneva Country Club. We did our ninth gra expansion and buddy of mine at Lake Geneva Country Club was nice enough to offer half of his nursery for me to s it all. Didn’t ask for anything in return. He brought up equipment for me to use to help shape it. Blue Mound Milwaukee. They bring out their 648 for me to airify. We don’t own an air fryer. half of our equipment. I seems like we we’ve purchased from them and they give us a pretty good deal on that. So, couldn’t be more thankful for all the guys in this industry. You know, you like loan him a sad cutter, but he’s the guy cutting the sad. He’s the guy lifting the sod. He’s, you know, got a like one cart. He’s doing it all himself. The first thing that improved things around here happened before Mark was here. I had always been hesitant to get a side roller. So, we had two rollers here. I bought a third roller. It was too small. So Mike said, “I don’t think it could roll one. It definitely won’t be able to get up the under the volcano green.” I was like, “I think it could. I think it could.” So it’s It was like probably the most fun I’ve ever had rolling greens. He let me roll the nine greens and it it got up all the volcano hole is something you’re not going to see anywhere else. One and two without question are just set the tone for the course. The first thing we everyone hears about the volcano green, but we got to one where like this might be one of the best greens in Wisconsin, but I didn’t realize until even like a year or two later like this is a Mike Bowling creation. There was no pin placements left. And I’m I’m a pretty good reader and I have engineering degrees, so science and math are not that. So I could read turf books and I did. I have like the Purdue textbook and the pretty much selftaught that way. Again, you run into the fact we didn’t have money for certain equipment, so we had to improvise. We probably bought wash sod from H&L it up here ourselves and laid that sod. And you know, I was probably looking for something just flat and then it settled into this thing that’s become the darling of the of the golf world. This and it is it makes it much more interesting. and there’s, you know, weird brakes and blah blah. In the beginning, I was utilitarian and and just wanted more pin placements. I say it’s serendipity that it it worked out. So, originally on on three, there was 1 2 3 4 5 six little ponds in a stream and we connected three of those ponds into a bigger pond. The green on six used to be round. It didn’t come down through those bunkers which were flat. Didn’t have the eyebrows. Put we put the eyebrows on and mowed it down down onto that tongue. [Music] Took number seven and probably added 30 ft to the front of the green. Duplicating the original little sand trap in front. So, we moved it out so we had more pin placements. The mounds on nine are spoils from that pond. And then the last last big thing we did was the new two, the second two, which my clientele was starting to drive past number two, taking a six and driving past number two as they were getting older. So I I used to say, you know, they drive past number two enough times, they’re going to drive past my driveway. So I tried to provide them an alternative. [Music] The course is what it is. There’s not too much we can really change. I think we can keep getting better. emphasizing certain features that we have. The biggest need right now is just overall infrastructure on our course. Irrigation system is dated. It’s from early ‘ 80s. It’s the first system that they put in here. I am thankful it’s lasted that long. Most people would have had two new systems in since then. You know, people always ask me, are you happy about selling the golf course? And I say no. I’d rather be 59 and grinding it than 70 and sitting here. But I don’t regret my decision. because the golf course has moved ahead. I’m going to get to play here it looks like until I can die, which is what I wanted. And uh hopefully it’ll give some enjoyment to, you know, they’ll keep it going and keep it rocking. And that’s one of the fun things I go when you sell it that you regret is that, oh yeah, I was going to do that and I was going to do that. I was going to do that and oh yeah, and you know, now I was going to enlarge nine and they’re doing it. So that’s good. When I first took the job here, I think the expectation was I was just going to be here for a few years as a transition. I I kind of started to fall in love with it here. Just the culture, the owner’s going to not be better to me. And they keep telling me, “We don’t want to hold you back. You got better, you got higher expectations.” But I think I could see myself being here for the majority of my career. I guess the one thing is that the people who have come through here and helped do this. I just I I know I’m the leader, but it took a whole, you know, this is going to sound kind of team, but it did. And and some of us was volunteer and some was the kids. And I’ve always said it’s like a little community down here. It’s different, you know, you know, from the the little dive bar clubhouse that’s unlike anything else to the to the just the the raw beauty of the golf course. I mean, it’s whether you like the game or not, a walk on that out there is a is a pretty walk. So, it it has a lot of all world stuff. Like, it really does. I hope it keeps improving because it is they’re like really thoughtful improvements. I just hope it doesn’t change too much, you know. You know, I hope they never get some new variety of bankrass that they can mow at 80 and have greens be like a 14. And it just it doesn’t need that. No one wants it there. It’s special for all like every all the minutiae that goes into it. You know, I hope the clubhouse always stays and the treerees always there and the you pull in and it’s, you know, gravel and the putting green’s kind of unputable and like it’s like Scotland, you know? You’re like, this is kind of quirky, but I love it. [Music] [Music]

Founded in 1893 by the son of Irish immigrants, Eagle Springs Golf Resort is Wisconsin’s oldest golf course. As charming as it is quirky, the 9-hole course — which features one of the most dramatic volcano holes in all of golf — has become one of the area’s true gems, highlighted by sixth generation family ownership, a thriving local contingent, and a new superintendent who continues to build on the course’s unique legacy.

Presented by Toro

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