Encino, Balboa Closed : Golf: For second time this decade, courses near Sepulveda Dam out of commission because of floodwater.

ENCINO — Before Dale Luckey made it to work Tuesday, he knew the golf courses located in the Sepulveda Dam area were in trouble.

Luckey, who works at the starter’s desk at the Encino and Balboa golf courses, was taking his customary route to work through the Sepulveda flood basin via Burbank Boulevard when he was stopped in his tracks by a roadblock.

An L.A. County lifeguard and well-known TV newsman stood in his path. Tread carefully or tread water, they warned, the rest of the road is under water.

“The lifeguard said, ‘If you’re in good standing with the Lord, be my guest,’ ” Luckey said.

Luckey took an alternate route. Predictably, the floodwater didn’t, leaving the two city-run courses in trouble for the second time this decade.

Both courses have been closed indefinitely, and once the water subsides the extent of the damage will be assessed. Most of the flooding has taken place on the Encino course, which sits on lower ground, closer to the overflow area than Balboa.

James Ward of the L.A. Recreation and Parks Department, the senior maintenance supervisor for the Valley region, said city-owned courses Woodley Lakes and Hansen Dam also were closed Tuesday for safety reasons. Woodley is located in the Sepulveda Dam area; Hansen Dam is located in a flood-control area in Pacoima.

When waterlogged Balboa and Encino will reopen is uncertain.

“It’s day to day,” Luckey said.

When the rain subsides and the courses reopen, Ward said, golf carts may be banned indefinitely because of wet grounds. Encino, though, likely will be open only in an abbreviated form.

A half-dozen fairways at Encino were at least partially flooded by mid-afternoon Tuesday, Luckey said, and city officials already were preparing for the worst.

In 1992, when rains flooded the Sepulveda Dam area, nine holes at Encino were closed for several weeks after they were buried under tons of mud and debris.

“As it stands now, we’re probably back to nine holes again (on Encino),” Ward said.

Encino also was flooded in 1978, 1982 and 1989. As a result, Ward said the city has taken steps to ensure that flood damage is minimal.

“It’s a fire drill around here,” Ward said. “Old hat.”

In measures that Ward characterized as “a little weird,” the city solves its water problems at Encino with more water. For instance, a fire hydrant is located behind each green at Encino, he said.

“As soon as the rain stops, we blast the greens with the fire hose to get the silt off them,” Ward said.

Ground saturation or not, course supervisors then activate the irrigation system around Encino’s tee boxes and greens, which helps workers locate the mud-covered sprinklers.

Water from the sprinklers keeps the mud and debris wet for easier removal. Fairways are scraped with graders.

Despite the recent downpour, Encino and Balboa were open for play Monday, though few braved the rainstorms. About 25 golfers played each of the three Sepulveda Dam courses.

“Buncha dummies,” Luckey said.