Letter to Members
October 1, 2025
I am very sorry I had to cancel the Owners meeting but wanted to give an update on the club.
First, I want to thank everyone who reached out to check on me and extend their prayers after my burn accident. It was something that has changed my entire perspective on life. To know what it feels like to be on fire and no one else around to help was a very humbling and scary experience. Luckily, I must have been listening as a kid when they taught you to drop and roll, it was probably the only thing that saved me from still being in the burn center at UAB. The Good Lord must have been watching over me that day, for that, I am forever grateful.
Where we are at as a club:
We are just over 400 total members as of Oct. 1st. We started at 260 members 7 years ago when my wife and I purchased the club. We had 62 members from Canebrake join our club while their course was being renovated and several have decided to remain through December, and some have decided to remain as permanent members. Canebrake is planning to reopen on October 15th, and we wish them much success. We’ve enjoyed them here and hope as they transition back to their club they come down and visit us more often.
Pool:
We enjoyed a very busy pool season with approximately 40 families joining as summer pool members. Summer Pool members are extremely important as it costs approximately $45,000 to open, maintain and staff the pool for the summer.
Driving Range:
The resod of the range did not go as planned. After putting down a $10,000 deposit, the company we had contracted with wasn’t able to get us scheduled after all the rain in June, so we are revaluating the plan for next spring. Some members have asked why we don’t have a net on the range to catch balls before losing them into the pond. We did receive estimates of $35,000 to install a net and hoped to have it done this summer. Unfortunately, we had unexpected expenses that took priority. Please understand whether we lose balls in the pond or not, we change balls out at least 3 times a year and either sell or give away the used balls. Range fees have not increased even though we have seen a 35% cost increase in purchasing range balls. We are in the process of purchasing a new sanding machine so we can sand the range tee more frequently, allowing for hitting off the grass for longer period of time. You should see a difference next year. During the winter I’m sure we will go back to the matts to allow as much grass to remain on the tee box as possible going into the spring.
Clubhouse:
This has been a very busy year with outside events at our club. Some members have made comments that they feel we were spending too much time and effort on these events and should be focused on other concerns at the club. Let me make it very clear that my wife and I, along with the other staff, don’t bust our butts doing these events for no reason. These events bring in very needed additional funds to help operate the club. Without funds from these events, we would have to increase dues for everyone. One of the last clubhouse renovations is the upstairs carpet which we are planning to replace before the end of this year.
Our Friday lunch buffet has been a great success, and we are planning on keeping it permanently. If you haven’t been coming, you’re missing out. I know sometimes we have fallen short on service in the grill. This is strictly a personnel issue, and by that, I mean a shortage of, and we are constantly working to solve that problem. Our Trivia and Singo nights have been a big hit, thanks to Judy, and we will be continuing every 2nd and 4th Tuesday. If you want to attend, I would suggest you call ahead or go online and make a reservation, we get packed out.
Proshop:
Currently we have 3 assistants, Dayton, Garrett, and Zac, along with Peggy. Zac joined us recently, coming from The Ledges. All 3 Assistants are enrolled in the PGA program working on completing the appropriate classes to earn their PGA Professional status. All of them currently give lessons, so help support them and get signed up for a lesson.
We are working on getting additional merchandise in the shop. We have recently become a Stanley, Yeti, and LULU Lemon dealer, so you should start seeing those items being added. If there is anything you would like to special order, just let us know. Any of you that own your own business or order merchandise for a business you work for, please give us a chance to bid on items you may need. I can guarantee you that you won’t get a better price than ours. We can get just about any item you may need, not just the items we carry in the shop. We work through wholesalers, and we have our own laser, t-shirt, and monogramming machines and can do much lower amounts without the added costs and faster turnarounds.
Golf Course:
First, I want to thank those of you who have spent your own time coming out to help with some maintenance on the course. It has been another hard year keeping the number of maintenance workers needed. As an owner, I don’t think it is right for me to ask members to do this kind of thing. That is strictly up to members taking it upon themselves who see things they could do to help enhance the course and it is GREATLY appreciated.
This has been a very costly year for maintaining the course. Starting off, we had to deal with the winter kill. We spent $36,000 to have the sprigging completed. Before getting it done, we were told the normal amount that would actually take would be around 70-80%. I have had several members comment on this. I’m sorry but neither you nor I are the experts at this even though you may think you are. We followed the plan that they gave us, it’s the same company that just completed Canebrake. We were planning to put sod down where we still have bare spots, but the company we contracted with just could not get to it. Our plan in the spring is to sod whatever areas are still bare in the fairways. By waiting we will probably save over $30,000 because of the areas that have filled in during that time. It was strictly a cost issue as to why we sprigged instead of sodding in the first place.
We are getting bids on dredging #4 pond. As far as I know our ponds have never been dredged before. Over the years the silt has built up so much that we do not have the depth necessary to keep the weed growth from happening. We are getting bids on extending the wall around #3 pond on the carth path side so that we can eliminate the water problem we have after heavy rains.
Equipment repairs and replacement - We’ve had to replace our pump that pumps from our ponds to the course, and we are in the process of replacing the pump in our well that fills our ponds. The cost for doing the 2 pumps is $28,000. We also had to purchase a new tractor for $22,000. We purchased all new rakes for the bunkers. We ask everyone to rake the bunker after you play and to leave the entire rake “in the bunker” with the handle at the very edge but inside the bunker.
There is to be no “practicing” on the course. By this, I mean, no throwing down balls in the fairway and chipping to a green, we have a chipping green for that. I understand we don’t have a practice bunker, and we are working on that. If you want to practice bunker shots, rake the bunker.
We believe we have solved the problem with our greens. For the past 25 years we have used the same growth retardant. After consulting with an expert on greens, which neither you nor I are, we have changed the chemical we are using and it has seemed to help tremendously. We will continue to monitor it weekly.
Carts:
No cart should ever be past the cart posts on any hole unless you have been given permission by me and me only!! If you are given permission to go past the cart post you must go around the back of the green, never go past the post towards the front of the green. Anyone not following this rule will have that privilege taken away. Anyone with a personal cart that fails to follow the daily rules of the course, like “cart path only”, will have their private cart use taken away. We must have everyone following the same rules. We have a rule of 2 to a cart. Whether you are using a personal cart or a club cart, it’s still the rule, we expect everyone to abide by the rule. Anyone riding only one to a cart, when they should be 2, will be charged for the extra cost.
We will continue to strive to offer our members the best possible experience we can. Any ‘suggestions” and feedback are welcomed.
Always Striving to be the BEST CLUB in North Alabama
Belinda and Andy Villarreal
Owners, Burningtree Country Club
