The last month has been wet to say the least. Over 11 inches of rain in the last 5 weeks has changed our management practices quite a bit. On a positive note, we pumped 6.6 million less gallons this June than we did in June of 2012. In fact, we have not run the irrigation system at night in over 5 weeks. Our team has been busy topdressing venting and spiking greens to help keep them dry and performing well. Venting, coupled with rain leads to softer than ideal conditions but is necessary to keep the greens dry and performing well. The wet conditions have also caused us to tighten our chemical windows i.e. spray more frequently as well as add more nutrients that continue to be washed away by the rain. Frequency and quality of cut on fairways, tees and rough has been reduced as well. Everything is being mowed as often as possible when we are dry enough to get out there. Overall, we have been very pleased with the course's performance. It was a great decision to drill and fill, dryject, add fans and add drainage this past season. All of these practices are paying huge dividends right now. Any drainage weaknesses are showing themselves this year.
The golf course will be closed on Monday, July 15 and Tuesday July 16 for scheduled maintenance. Greens will be vented, topdressed and receive soil amendments. Fairways will be sprayed to slow down growth, improve turf quality and produce a better surface. Our team will be installing a truckload of sod and a truckload of sprigs around the golf course. A few areas will be improved but the main area of disturbance will be between holes 12 and 13. Trees were removed this winter and this area will strongly resemble the project that we completed last year between holes 10 and 12. I am excited to renovate this area and continue to improve the southeast corner of the golf course. The area between holes 9, 13, and 14 is scheduled for renovation next year.
Next week looks to be drier and a bit warmer. I hope the course continues to dry out so we can provide more consistent playing conditions.
Have a great weekend,
Jordan
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| The Turf Pathology department has been on site a few times this year. Dave McCall (blue shirt) is studying the affects of fans on root health, soil temperature and soil moisture. Anecdotal evidence show that the fans work but Dave and his team are working to prove how and why they work. It is always great to have a great relationship with these guys and borrow from their expertise. |
