A Masterful Recovery
Applewood welcomes golfers despite tornado's effects
By Anne Marie Kyzer annemariek@thetruecitizen.com

Chuck Baer stands where a tree once towered over the 18th green on his Applewood Golf Course. Staff - Anne Marie Kyzer

Indiana, Ohio, New York ... the car tags in the packed parking lot at Applewood Golf Course are from all over.

Chuck Baer scans the lot and smiles. He's glad to see them here.

The owner of Applewood has spent the past three weeks preparing for his guests. After all, Masters Week represents his largest surge in business all year.

Typically, Baer would concentrate on making sure the grass was carefully manicured and trees had their branches trimmed for the occasion.

But this year, there were few trees to trim.

Instead, Baer was busy mitigating the effects of a tornado that ripped across the property three weeks ago.

The storm plucked up some 317 trees by their root balls. The siding on a portion of the clubhouse was shredded into thousands of tiny pieces and blown across the course. One wall of the cart barn was missing.

But thanks to help from countless volunteers, Applewood was cleaned up inside of a week and should still be able to accommodate the additional golfers during the Masters.

Baer said course marshals, members, Shriners, even the president of Southern Bank, showed up to help clear debris right after the storm.

This week, guests won't see the damage to the clubhouse or cart barn. They've been repaired, and all of the debris has been cleared from the course.

But guests will see the longer-lasting effects.

Baer jokes that all 18-holes have been renovated by Mother Nature.

In the process, he says the course actually became a bit easier.

"I think some of the less-accomplished golfers like it a little more. People actually started playing better because of all the free drops and fewer trees," Baer said with a chuckle.

Holes 8 and 18 play much differently now. The trees that once created dog legs are gone, and players are free to cut the corners.

Baer doesn't plan to let them get away with it for long, though. He'll have hundreds of trees planted this fall.

"I think in the long run people will remain happy with Applewood," he said in all seriousness.

Though he knows it will take years for the course to return to its previous condition, he's maintained a positive outlook all along.

"What else are you going to do?," he asks. "It was just meant to be."