One of the most iconic photos that captures the brutal force of Hurricane Ian, on September 28, 2022 was taken at The Dunes Golf & Tennis Club in Sanibel Island.
One of those images can make you laugh or cry.
The storm was so fierce that the water surge and strong winds washed out stretches of beach and left cars and boats in places you would never imagine. It also cut the barrier island off from the world briefly when the road connecting it with the mainland was damaged.
It left behind a hot-tub on the 18th hole at The Dunes.
Brian Kautz, The Dunes’ general manager of the last seven and a quarter years, said: “We had two other hot tubs floating in our lakes.” Funny, nobody ever called to say they were missing a spa.
Kautz and his team found it easy to remove the hot tub from the semi-private club that was opened 50 years earlier, and sits on an area of 63 acres. The Dunes belongs to the Dahlmann Family, who also owns Periwinkle Place, Sanibel Outlet Mall, and four hotels.
Sanibel resident Gerry Severynse takes off on the 7th Hole of the Dunes Golf and Tennis Club, Tuesday, December 19 2023. On Monday, December 18th 2023, a section of the course was reopened to the public. The course was severely damaged by Hurricane Ian in 2018.
They and the members of the club celebrated the reopening the front nine holes of the course on Monday, December 18. The Dunes Golf Course is the last course to reopen in Southwest Florida after Ian.
“It is important not just for us, but also for the owners of our Florida properties,” Kautz said. Kautz added, “But it’s important for our members, our community and our frequent guests who come back to us.” This has been a remarkable 14 months in so many different ways. “We are grateful for the support of owners, and we hope that guests will return and enjoy the club.”
Why did it take 15 months for golfers to hit tee-shots and sink putts again? Kautz cites a number of factors, including the destruction of “the heart” of the irrigation system – the pump station on the golf course – and the loss of sprinkler heads as well as the wiring. Kautz stated that the 15 sprinkler control boxes, as well as all the sprinkler heads and wiring on the course, had to be replaced.
Kautz stated that “that is not only expensive, but also time-consuming.”
Kautz spoke with us about the recovery and challenges involved in bringing back this semi-private course and its significance to the Sanibel Community. What happened to the hot tub?
Q. Q.
KAUTZ : The course was mostly brown due to the salt water that had been sprayed on the turf. The course was covered in dead turtles and fish. The turf was completely absent from the 17th and 18th holes. The grass was simply peeled away as it was removed. Damage was caused in the first fairway, where helicopters used to land and take off. The sand from the bunkers has been completely washed out throughout the course.
Q. Q. Was the main reason for the long-term closure of the Golf Course due to what salt water does to the grass? What else?
KAUTZ: We had originally hoped to start playing on the course in January, knowing that the conditions would be substandard. We also did not fully understand the extent of the damage. We were forced to completely rebuild 17 and 18 greens. So we abandoned the idea of temporary grass for these two greens and targeted March. We were in mid-March when we realized that the only green grass we had was on the greens. We had to make a choice. While we were watering the lawn with a tank of water or connecting hoses to residents’ homes or clubhouses, we made a decision.
Q. Q. What were your options?
KAUTZ: I felt that we had two choices.
1. Either we could stay closed the entire summer to see what rains the summer brought and how the product looked in October. We knew that business would be abysmal, no matter what.
2. We could tackle the project to re-grass everything but the greens using Paspalum a salt tolerant grass. The re-grassing took about a week to complete. Clarke Construction was here for a good part of the winter re-building the greens, and we spoke and they took us on.
Sanibel remains damaged nearly seven months after Hurricane Ian ravaged Southwest Florida. Photo taken Thursday, April 13 2023.
Q. Q.
KAUTZ: The fairways, rough and greens were all 419 Bermudagrass.
Q. The Dunes is known for its wildlife. Has that returned to “normality” after Ian’s death? What do you see from birds to other animals?
KAUTZ: We have seen a few gators and birds. We used to see them everywhere and turtles. But we haven’t seen any yet.
Q. Will someone who plays the course for the first since Ian notice any dramatic differences?
The course is in excellent condition.
Q. What happened to the hottub that floated onto the 18th hole green?
KAUTZ: My Son and a team from South Florida Pine Straw – the company for which he works – came out to help us start the cleanup. They removed it the day after Ian arrived.
