Dry spell taxes course efforts

Almost five weeks without rain has put the squeeze on Wanaka Golf Club course superintendent Jason LaRose (left) to produce conditions to suit the 200 competitors in the three-day Hirequip Charity Golf Tournament, which begins today.

The fairways will be hard and fast and, while the greens have been hand-watered, they, too, will be ''firm''.

''We try not to get them too fast because it's a charity tournament. We're trying to make them playable and enjoyable for everybody who comes out,'' Mr LaRose said.

The amount of water the club can take from its bores is governed by resource consent limits and he was ''pretty close'' to reaching the limits, Mr LaRose said.

''With no rain it just gets to be a bit of a challenge.''

The tournament has raised $163,000 for community groups in the nine years it has been running. Mr LaRose is pictured applying some of the precious liquid to a green.