Stray balls continue to bother residents near golf club

Gurnee resident Steve Geotsalitis never thought he'd have a reason to donate more than 100 golf balls to Warren Township High School students.

All the balls Geotsalitis said he's given away had landed in his yard, courtesy of players who can't find the No. 2 fairway at Bittersweet Golf Club.

Geotsalitis and other homeowners near hole No. 2 approached the Gurnee village board this week to say they want relief from the golf-ball barrage. An effort to remedy the situation five years ago hasn't worked, the residents said.

Not only has Geotsalitis collected those stray golf balls, but he says his home has been struck by 92 errant shots since he moved there in June. He provided photographs of the damage to village trustees.

"I expected the house was going to get hit," Geotsalitis said, "but this is over the top."

Called "The Snake," the par-5, 531-yard second hole's fairway pond was partially filled in after residents started complaining about wild shots five years ago. The idea was golfers wouldn't be prone to drastically aim away from the hazard and shoot toward the homes.

Roughly six single-family homes are in the line of fire on hole No. 2 at the privately operated Bittersweet. The course is on Gurnee's west side near Almond Road and Grand Avenue.

Bittersweet co-owner Alan Richards said he'll meet with village officials and affected residents to take another shot at improving the No. 2 layout. He said federal engineering guidelines limited what Bittersweet could do to the pond.

"We tried to eliminate as much of the water as the Army Corps of Engineers would allow," said Richards, a Vernon Hills-based attorney.

Along with reducing the pond size on No. 2, Richards said, some trees were planted near the affected homes for protection from poor shots. However, he said, the trees likely don't do much to block stray high shots.

Josephine Pflieger said her home has at least 40 dents from golf balls. Pflieger said she didn't think the Bittersweet golf-ball onslaught would continue after she and other residents brought the issue to Gurnee village trustees in 2002.

"We were left with the understanding that something would have been done to fix the problems we were all having, and we have been waiting pretty patiently to have that happen," Pflieger said. "And so far, nothing has happened."

Richards said he'll look into the possibility of moving the No. 2 tee box. He said he was unaware the problems at the hole continued after a section of the pond was filled.

Meanwhile, changes are planned on Bittersweet's 361-yard, par-4 hole No. 5, known as "Scottish Links," in an effort to reduce the number of stray shots that reach homes in that area.

Village Administrator James Hayner said public works employees will assist in moving dirt on the hole to create a new berm as protection for the homeowners. He said the work is expected to start Oct. 1 and last about a week.

Richards said residents near No. 5 didn't want a 50-foot-high net erected to stop the poor shots.