Ancient Green Hill facelift long overdue.

Byline: Bill Doyle

COLUMN: GOLF

Head pro Matt Moison still has dust on his shoes from working inside the clubhouse at Green Hill Municipal Golf Course for a few weeks while the 79-year-old structure was gutted around him.

Moison finally moved to a 12-foot by 60-foot trailer in the parking lot, and Green Hill will conduct its business there while the clubhouse is remodeled.

Moison thinks the temporary inconvenience for himself, his staff and his customers will be well worth it.

"It's way, way overdue," said Moison, who is beginning his 12th season as head pro.

Green Hill's pro shop will be remodeled into a function hall with a seating capacity of about 80. A smaller pro shop will open in the clubhouse where the former snack area was. Moison's office will be moved to the back of the clubhouse. His old office in the front of the clubhouse was removed so the front porch could be extended to the deck that opened last June.

The clubhouse will no longer house locker rooms. The former men's and women's locker rooms will be replaced by a kitchen and lounge with a seating capacity of 40 or 50 and with access to the deck. The rest rooms will be updated and made handicap-accessible. Ramps for handicap accessibility to the clubhouse have been completed.

Worcester Tech High School carpentry and electrician students have helped with the renovations to keep down costs.

Moison said the goal is to open the restrooms and pro shop by June 1 and the lounge, kitchen and function hall by the end of the year. Those, of course, are only estimated dates.

"The problem is," Moison said, "we compete against all the other public golf courses in the area with none of the amenities. We are strictly a greens-fee, golf-cart operation. It's getting too expensive. You can't just be that any more. So it's way overdue in terms of adding services to the golf course, adding revenue streams and making the golf course more appealing to a new demographic of golfers."

The master plan for the golf course calls for construction of a new access road off Skyline Drive and closing the entrance off heavily populated Marsh Avenue, but Moison said the current clubhouse will remain open. The pro shop may be moved inside the snack shack building near the 10th tee and 18th green, however.

The master plan also calls for the construction of a driving range between the current 16th and 18th holes, the rerouting of some holes and flip-flopping the two nines. It could take years for the master plan to receive the necessary approvals.

Other smaller improvements to the course are planned for this year: extending the first tee about 15 yards, construction of forward tees on the third and 16th holes and improving access to the 11th tee. The 16th hole will become a par-5 instead of a par-4 for women.

Golf operations manager Arthur Flagg and pro shop assistant Jim Fenner also return for their 12th years at Green Hill. Bud Rudge, who turns 87 this month, is also back and Bob Peterson has been added to the pro shop staff.

Valley Crest signed a second three-year contract to maintain the course, so Jason Brostrom returns as superintendent.

Leicester Country Club will go without a golf pro this season after not renewing the contract of Rick Morus.

General manager Mark Zenevitch said because LCC has no practice facilities, it could not take full advantage of Morus' teaching expertise during his three years at the club.

"Rick belongs somewhere teaching," Zenevitch said. "That's his passion, that's his love."

Morus will continue teaching at Tatnuck Driving Range in Leicester and will manage the golf department at Dick's Sporting Goods in Millbury.

"I've worked at golf courses all my life," Morus said, "but I'm looking forward to a change."

Prior to Leicester, Morus worked at Tatnuck CC, Dudley Hill, Auburn Driving Range and Green Hill GC.

Cheryl Orrico was hired as golf operations manager at Leicester. Orrico served as general manager of the Worcester Elks Club and worked as golf manager at Pine Ridge CC in the 1980s when it was known as Oxford Golf and Racquet Club.

Zenevitch said the club would be run from the grill room, not the small pro shop near the first tee.

Heritage Country Club in Charlton spent $10,000 to upgrade lighting in the clubhouse and plans to resurface the patio and purchase patio furniture this spring.

Cart-path paving will be completed once the fourth, fifth, 15th and 17th holes are done this year. Paths on the first, second, 10th, 11th and 14th holes were paved last fall.

The fourth hole's back tee, which opened on Labor Day, will be in use for tournaments for the first full season this year. Now playing 455 yards uphill, No. 4 is a monster of a par-4.

Heritage owner Bill Plante plans to build a new tee on the par-4 11th and a fifth bunker on the par-4 18th.

Director of golf Shane Bayer, director of instruction Liz Farland and superintendent Matt Simpson return.

Heritage will not raise its cart fees despite the hike in gas prices.

"We held our prices, which is brutal," Plante said. "It's difficult to pass them along to the customers. It's very scary out there because of the gas, oil prices and even the cost of food, which has to be trucked in. But if we produce a better product, hopefully the customers will come back and will offset the gas hike."

Golfers won't find a couple of holes at Bedrock in Rutland as tight this year. Trees and brush have been cleared from both sides of the uphill fifth hole and from the left side of the eighth hole.

"When you get up on the fifth tee, the hole looks like a super highway, not a bowling alley," head pro-owner Joe Carr said.

Mary Gale, Carr's sister, plans to spend more time at Bedrock this year in her role as club manager.

Director of golf Jim Bombard returns for his 10th year at Blackstone National GC in Sutton. The club will host the second annual Rick Karbowski Charity Golf Tournament to benefit the Seven Hills Foundation on Sept. 16.

Blackstone offers a reduced rate of $49 weekdays and $59 weekends to walk or ride through April.

For the second year in a row, Petersham CC has reduced its greens fees. The 18-hole rate will be $20 weekdays - down $1 - and $25 on weekends - down $2.

"Nice round numbers," said Tim Bishop, who enters his fifth year as head pro.

Trees have been cleared from around the second green, behind the third green, along the right side of the fifth fairway and from the triangle formed by the sixth, seventh and eighth holes.

Within the next year or two, Petersham plans to build four or five new tees to lengthen the course by 100-200 yards. Construction of tees on the second and sixth holes are planned for this year.

Petersham has had success with its junior golf camps. About 100 youths took part in camps at the club last July.

Patrick Lange has replaced Drew Cummings as superintendent at Red Tail Golf Club in Devens. Lange was the assistant superintendent at The Country Club in Brookline last year and has also worked at New Seabury, Taconic and Charles River.

"Nothing but the best for Red Tail," director of golf Jim Pavlik said.

Cummings left to become superintendent at Agawam Hunt Club in Rhode Island.

Royal Oaks CC owner Raymond Pontbriand turned 84 in January and isn't sure what the future holds. The Southbridge club has been for sale for more than a year, but he hasn't had any firm offers.

"I think something will happen this year one way or another," he said. "I can't keep going at my age. It's tough, but things turn around all the time."

The third, fifth, sixth and 12th greens were resurfaced last fall so temporary greens will be used until the middle of May.

Mike Herrick returns for his 10th year, seventh as head pro, at Shaker Hills GC in Harvard. The club has added a senior rate of $60 Monday through Thursday, a savings of $15. Shaker will host a Mass. Open qualifier on May 27.

Jason Vanbuskirk has been promoted from assistant superintendent to superintendent at Stow Acres CC. Former superintendent Eric Koskinen went to work for a private turf company. Golfers playing the North Course will notice that trees have been removed between the fourth and fifth holes and to the left of the fifth hole to promote grass growth.

Twin Springs CC in Bolton will conduct a junior clinic for youths ages 8-15 the week of April 21. Visit the club's Web site, www.twinspringsgolf.com for details.

Owner Joe Videtta is committed to sprucing up Pine Ridge CC now that Pulte Homes has decided against purchasing the Oxford club to build houses, according to general manager Ken Duquette.

The clubhouse has been stocked with four HD televisions and Duquette said construction will begin soon on a clubhouse deck facing the practice green. The pro shop has been expanded and the parking lot and cart paths are scheduled to be paved. The area surrounding the 12th tee has been cleared and rocks were removed from the 18th hole.

Duquette said the number of golfers registered to play in leagues is at 550, more than 100 more than last year.

LPGA pro Betty Donovan returns, but will reduce her hours.

The new 18,000-square foot clubhouse at Highfields in Grafton is scheduled to open on April 19.

"It's fantastic," head pro Roger Adams said.

The ballroom seats 240 people and the restaurant and bar 100. The men's and women's locker rooms accommodate 80. At 2,000 square feet, the new pro shop is nearly as large as the trailer that housed the pro shop, restaurant and office the past five years. The trailer will be removed after the new clubhouse opens.

"It's been a challenge," Adams said of running the club from a trailer. "The club will seem a little more complete now."

A fleet of 76 new electric carts will be stored under the new clubhouse.

Adams said several weddings and outings have already been booked.

"We'll be a lot busier," Adams said.