Contraband Bayou Recovery

by Chaney Ferguson
The Times of SWLA


  Contraband Bayou Golf Club at L’Auberge, suffered major
damage during Hurricane Ike.  The turf sat under saltwater for
three days before the water receded leaving behind a layer of
salt, dead fish, and ruined plant life.

  Recovery is ongoing and multi-layered.  After the green was
cleared of all debris, a neutralization process was carried
out in order to extract the salinity from the turf.  The eight
lakes on the course, which facilitate drainage and serve as an
irrigation reservoir had to be drained of saltwater which took
three days and then had to be refilled.

  The course was closed for only seven days thanks to all the
L’Auberge du lac employees who helped with the clean-up.
"Everybody got involved. It didn’t matter what their title was
they got out and helped,” said Billy Rase, Golf Superintendent
at Contraband Bayou Golf Club at L’Auberge.

  Since the golf course opened in 2005 it has survived two
major hurricanes.  The difference between Hurricane Rita and
Hurricane Ike is the type of damage each hurricane caused.
Rita involved more wind damage resulting in fallen trees, and
overall the recovery was quicker.

  Ike covered the golf course with 10 feet of saltwater
providing lengthy and more complicated challenges.  The three
months following the storm involved changing the tires on all
the equipment because of punctures caused by fish bones.  This
unique problem is just one of many the workers had to overcome
in order to restore the golf course back to its natural
design.

  One problem plaguing the recovery efforts is timing.  “This
course is affected differently because our root zone is not as
deep into the soil as surrounding courses,” said Billy Rase.
Hurricane Ike hit in September leaving the grass to face
cooler days after the initial shock of the saltwater.

“Cold weather does not kill the grass, but causes it to go
into a dormant state,” said Bill Belcher, Head Golf

Professional, PGA, at Contraband Bayou Golf Club at L’Auberge.
The next several months of warm weather will allow the grass
to grow, helping it to become healthier in case of future
storms. 

  Hurricanes are a fact of life in this area and preventative
measures are being taken.  Before Ike hit, the staff reserved
a chemical from Georgia so they would be first on the list for
help once everything cleared enough for recovery to begin.

Belcher and Rase both acknowledge that the best preparation is
planning and using experience from previous hurricanes and, as
a result, flood control valves and reverse irrigation pumps
are being put in place.

  The natural design of the golf course created by world-
renowned golf architect Tom Fazio, actually helped control the
damage.  According to Rase, the water would have flooded
everything anyway, and the lakes and plants helped absorb and
contain some of the saltwater.

  There is still some turf damage in a few areas but they are
expecting a full recovery by July.  In the meantime, all 18
holes are open so go out and enjoy the warm weather while
developing your game at Contraband Bayou Golf Club at L’
Auberge, where even this non-golfer found herself drawn in by
the beautiful environment.