Before and After

When you stand in the approach to #4 green, it would be easy to think that there is a good deal more sand to avoid now than prior to the renovation.  Thus it may come as a surprise to many to learn that the square footage of greenside bunkers was actually reduced by exactly 50% on this hole.

Before

After

One of the constants we see in Andrew Green's design philosophy is improving the player's view of the hazards.  Clearly the bunkers do not need to be large to be effective.

Course Care Tips

We need your help!  Unfortunately, even with few outside golf events lately, we continue to see a large number of unrepaired ball marks on the greens.  Fixing your ball mark should be a habit.  To this end, here are a few suggestions:
--Go to your ball mark first when walking onto the green, then go to your ball.
--Repair your ball mark and one other on each and every green.
--Make sure those you play with repair their ball marks on each and every green.

Additional information on ball mark repair from the USGA can be found here:  Ball Mark Repair Quiz

Below are some step by step instructions:

In addition to unrepaired ball marks, as more players opt to wear shorts from early spring to late fall, we are seeing another turf problem:

What killed the grass, while leaving two spots unharmed?  No, this problem wasn't caused by some new turf disease.  Here's a clue:

In prior years there would have only been one cause we could point to:  Insect repellent applied while standing over turf.  However, some of today's aerosol, spray-on sun screen products also use alcohol or butane as propellants, and can do the same damage to the grass.  Please try to apply these products when standing on a cart path.

Your help with these issues will be appreciated by all!

Limited Light

Tournament prep is always a challenge, as we attempt to provide the best conditions for our members.  This time of year, an 8:30 shotgun becomes really tricky, since it doesn't get light until after 6:00. 

Here's a brief glimpse into greens mowing in the dark, on #9:

Even with lights, working in the dark has some risks.  It's difficult to thoroughly check the greens prior to mowing, observe the quality of cut, and be aware of potential fluid leaks on the turf.  Most importantly, we need to make sure the team is able to work safely with limited visibility.

The reward for the effort comes when the Sun rises and we can see the course looking good and ready for play.

A New Twist on the Turn

The work on the green surrounds has definitely created a few maintenance challenges.  For example, under normal circumstances, crew members are instructed to turn their mowers in the rough (not on the collar) when cutting greens each morning.  However, when the rough is now fresh sod that was just installed, we have to find other options.

A 2' X 8' piece of plastic lattice works well as a surface to turn on, as it protects the turf, is lightweight, and can easily be moved every few passes the mower makes.

 

We have now opened the bunkers on #8 for play.  However, #2 and 3 should still be considered GUR.  The lattice is being left in these bunkers as a reminder that they're still not to be played from.

Rough Road to Recovery

One week ago, we were looking forward to a small break in the heat.  As promised by the weather forecasters, we got just that--a very small break, before the heat and humidity returned.  During the past three weeks, we've experienced above average temperatures 18 out of 21 days, with 13 of those in the 90's.

By itself, these temperatures make for a rough road to recovery from aerification.  However, we also have had to rely largely on irrigation water to keep the turf going, as we are behind in rainfall by close to 75% for the month.  There's no better time to see the uniformity (or lack thereof) in irrigation coverage than under these conditions.  We've been hand watering 150-200 man hours per week, and the golf course still has the Goldilocks syndrome:  Too wet here, too dry there, and just right over here.

It shouldn't come as a great surprise, but any areas which were weaker going into aerification have been struggling to recover.  The extra strike they may be dealing with is high traffic, lack of morning sunlight, poor irrigation coverage, sandy soil, etc.

While the Bentgrass is looking good, the Poa annua in the walk-on/walk-off area of #14 green is still not loving life.

Given what we've experienced this year, one might ask the question, "If environmental conditions are so tough and the turf is weak, then why the heck are we aerifying now?"

Aerification in August generally coincides with temperatures dropping, a strong labor force to complete the task, and helps prevent Poa Annua encroachment in the fine turf areas.  In 2017, we will be starting the aerification process one week later, again, in hopes that the weather is heading in the right direction.  If we look back at how the process has worked over the past 10+ years, we find that the timing has worked well--aerify, heal, and get some great conditions for golf in the fall.

Not just hot, but record heat this month!

Unfortunately, for the moment, we need some patience until we have consistently seasonable temperatures, rainfall...and the needle drops below the red line.

Hoping to Heal the Holes

To be blunt, the past two weeks were a brutal time to be aerifying, and trying to have turf recover.  While aerification provides some great long-term plant health benefits (such as decreasing compaction, thatch removal, increased pore space), the short-term injury can be significant.  Couple this with the longest heat wave of the year, and it kept things interesting to say the least.

One of the other things we continue to see is the significant difference in recovery time from aerification, based on environmental growing conditions.  If you were to walk from #9 to #18 greens, you'd quickly see that 18 appears to be several days behind in filling in.  Even on the putting green, the inner half, which has less sunlight and air movement, looks totally different than the outer half. 

These two pictures were taken within 30 seconds of each other:

 

Fortunately, we'll be getting a brief break in the weather this week.  Some cool nights will do a world of good for the turf, as it looks to reach the finish line of a marathon-like summer.

In the blink of an eye...

There's certainly no shortage of topics to discuss surrounding the golf course:  Aerification, (another) powerful heat wave on tired turf, and the Master Plan.

While you can't blame anyone for choosing the pool over golf right now, you really should get out on the course and get a firsthand look at the work that's been done thus far.  The team from Mottin Golf works quickly and efficiently.  Below are a couple of pictures from #15:

We're falling a bit behind on documenting construction, as a huge amount of work took place on #2 and #3 this past week.  Hopefully we will catch up soon.

The Master Plan significantly reduces the square footage of bunkers on the course.  However, with the positioning of several bunkers being tweaked around the greens, it would be wise to keep the sand wedge handy!