SEASON RECAP
As the 2025 golf season comes to an end, I’d like to share a few highlights from another successful year at Meadowlark Hills.
We opened the course on March 10, the earliest possible date given the dry winter conditions. Participation in our leagues and lesson programs remained strong:
- Business League: 144 players
- Men’s League: 120 players
- Women’s League: 56 players
Our Junior Golf Program was a major success once again, with nearly 130 juniors learning the game across four sessions. It’s always exciting to watch the next generation of Kearney golfers take their first steps in the sport.
The PGA HOPE Program welcomed 17 Veterans this season as part of PGA REACH Nebraska’s mission to improve physical, mental, social, and emotional well-being through golf. We are honored to host this impactful program each year.
We also hosted several notable events that brought families, businesses, and exceptional talent to our community:
The Nebraska Junior Amateur Championship, highlighted by strong play from the state’s top young golfers. Congratulations to Jaxson Hinze, the boys champion with a 54-hole score of 211 (-2), and Brooke Thiele, the girls champion with a score of 222 (+9).
NRCSA, our largest event of the season, featured 176 players and produced our best single-day revenue of 2025.
September closed out our fiscal year with 30,008 total rounds played, and we capped off the month with our league championships—great events to conclude a memorable season.
Thank you for your continued support of Meadowlark Hills. We look forward to seeing you in 2026.
Happy Holidays! Dave James, PGA
Superintendent Report
WINTER PREP
Preparing Meadowlark Hills for the winter off-season comes with many moving parts and plenty of “what-ifs.” Will it stay mild until Christmas again this year? Are we ever going to see the consistent snow cover we used to? Will we need to turn the water back on mid-winter just to get by?
Our primary concern is always the greens—the most susceptible and the most critical playing surfaces on the golf course year-round. Winter preparation for them actually begins back in September during aerification. This process removes roughly 12% of the total surface by pulling cores, and we replace that space with sand. Doing so helps the root zone breathe again after a full season of traffic and stress.
Throughout the fall, we continue to apply additional layers of sand that are dragged into the canopy. This protects the crowns—the connection point between the roots and the start of leaf tissue—of the bentgrass. Safeguarding the crowns with this insulating sand layer is absolutely essential in preventing winter desiccation and turf loss.
A secondary benefit of this preparation is that the greens remain smoother and firmer throughout the fall, giving us a head start when spring arrives. After all, on April 1st, the course can only be as good as it was on November 1st.
The final step in winter prep is shutting down and winterizing the irrigation system—the heartbeat of keeping the golf course alive. Thanks to our great relationship with the City Street Department, we are able to connect high-volume air compressors to our water lines, allowing us to blow out all moisture from pipes and irrigation heads. With each irrigation head costing $475, this step is absolutely essential in protecting our critical infrastructure.
Thank you for an outstanding 2025 season. We look forward to seeing you again for an exciting 2026
Kevin MansfieldGolf Course Superintendent I
Club Championship
It was a hot but exciting weekend of golf at Meadowlark Hills! Congratulations to all competitors and winners.
Club Champion: Koji Kitabatake – 140 (-2)
Koji, a standout jr. golfer for the Bearcats, delivered an outstanding performance to claim the title.
Runner-Up: Josh Weaver
3rd Place: Tate Redinger
Senior Champion: Jim Heineman – 141 (-1)
Other Flight Winners:
• Yuji Kitabatake
• Dave Frost
• Carter Kruise
• Scott Maline
Club Championship – Derby
PGA HOPE
David Carl, PGA HOPE Ambassador is utilizing the Solo-Rider golf cart during a PGA Hope class.
PGA HOPE (Helping Our Patriots Everywhere) is the flagship military program of PGA REACH Nebraska, the charitable foundation of the Nebraska PGA. The program introduces golf to Veterans as a way to enhance their physical, mental, social, and emotional well-being. Meadowlark Hills is proud to be one of few courses in Nebraska to host this outstanding program, helping our local Veterans experience the many benefits of the game.
2025 Graduates
GPS
We added new GPS units to our cart fleet with options to purchase sponsorships.
Revised sponsorships pre-sales coming soon.
Pro-Shop
PRO-SHOP HOURS
The Golf Shop will remain open Monday-Friday approx. 10:00 AM to 5:00 PM, weather permitting.
Lessons and Gift Cards are perfect stocking stuffers for the holidays! Stop by this fall and check out everything we have in the shop:
- Hard Goods
- Hats
- Apparel
- And more!
Plus, new 2026 passes are now available—grab yours today!
THE NET RETURN
Looking to keep your swing sharp year-round? The Net Return offers the perfect at-home practice solution with professional-grade durability and easy setup.
The Home Net
$649 + tax*
The Pro Net
$795 + tax
Stop by the Pro Shop or call us for details — limited availability this fall!
Golf Advisory Board