Cart Restrictions Lifted as Tifsport Fairways are Greening Up

Friday, April 29, 2011

During the late fall, winter, and early spring months we restrict cart traffic to the cart paths in order to maintain a quality playing surface and limit winter damage to our Tifsport bermudagrass fairways.  Today, we lifted these restrictions due to the warm weather and the growth of the fairways.  Here is a brief article from the USGA concerning this topic. http://www.usga.org/course_care/regional_updates/regional_reports/midcontinent/Bermudagrass-In-The-Spring---April-2011/ We will also complete our bunker work today.  We have...

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Dodging Storms and Wrapping up a long week

Thursday, April 28, 2011

We have successfully dodged the storms so far today.  We received a little rain but nothing to speak of.  The lack of storms will mean that we wont have to spend all day tomorrow fixing bunkers and the greens should stay firm and fast for the weekend.  There is still a chance of storms this evening but with luck we will have a great tournament prep day tomorrow for the 'Meet me at the Rock' tournament on Saturday.  The National Weather Service predicts that the James River will...

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VSGA One Day Outing and Regrassing area at Tennis

Monday, April 25, 2011

This morning, we set up the golf course for a one day VSGA event.  Since the golf course is so busy, we are taking the opportunity to sod the area around courts 5 and 6 at tennis and in front of the fitness building.  The areas at tennis were disturbed this winter during the installation of overhead lights on courts 5 and 6 and the installation of a new sidewalk and patio at the hard courts.  The areas at fitness are being regrassed and irrigation and landscaped beds are being reorganized...

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River back down, Project on #9 Wrapping Up

Tuesday, April 19, 2011

The river has crested and started its decent.  We are currently right below 12 feet which puts us back in the Action Stage and out of the Flood Stage.  We never really took on water but our drainage system was not able to flow into the river so water backed up and out of the canals on 15, 16, and 17 making 17 unplayable today.  I hope that the 17th hole is open tomorrow. We are currently finishing a project that will soften the knob in the center of the ninth green over the next...

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River Set to Crest at 15.1 feet at 8:00 pm

Monday, April 18, 2011

The river is currently at 14.55 feet and should steadily rise to a crest of 15.1 feet at 8:00 pm tonight.  http://water.weather.gov/ahps2/hydrograph.php?wfo=akq&gage=rmdv2&view=1,1,1,1,1,1,1,0 We should avoid any damage but will see internal flooding and a little extra water on the golf course.  The good news is that we are able to accomplish a lot today with the good weather.  We are starting to mow fairways and we have applied a growth regulator to our greens to help stabilize...

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River Predictions

Sunday, April 17, 2011

The last 24 hours has been devastating for parts of Virginia as well as many other States.  This storm system has produced tornadoes and heavy rain.  As of this morning, the National Weather Service in Wakefield is predicting that the river will crest at 14.8 feet.  This crest is very similar to the one that we experienced earlier this year.  At 14.8 feet the river should not come onto the golf course.  We will see internal flooding and the bridges at 17 and 15 may be under...

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Wrapping up our USGA Site Visit and a very busy week

Friday, April 15, 2011

I haven't been actively blogging or tweeting this week and I apologize.  Honestly, I haven't sat down long enough to type.  This will become easier as I transition into the new world of the smart phone.   We started with an action packed Monday and will wrap up today with three interviews for our vacant Assistant Superintendent positions.  Let me give a weekly update today and then try and dive into our USGA site visit this weekend. Monday:  We installed 300 feet of...

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Fore the Golfer: An article from the USGA

Friday, April 08, 2011

Fore the Golfer Ball Marks - An Old Nemesis by the Green Section Staff  The "Pit" Ball marks are always a hot topic with golfers and superintendents so this week we are offering a variety of resources to help you encourage others to take better care of the greens. The animation also can be downloaded from the USGA website. This allows you to insert it into a newsletter, blog, or other electronic communication. Or, you can simply link back to the USGA site or to this...

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Spring Tedium: Bunkers, Mulch, and Leaf Texture

Thursday, April 07, 2011

Its that time of year again; The golf course is greening up, winter projects are wrapping up and greens are recovering from core aerification.  The small details of the winter projects are coming to a close and weather permitting, the bunkers on 3, 8 and 9 will all be open and ready for play by the end of the week.  We have spread 30 yards of mulch on the club grounds and we are moving out onto the golf course.  Mulch should be finished by April 22. The real focal point right now...

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Willow Oaks Country Club hosts Golf and Government Relations Summit

Saturday, April 02, 2011

Willow Oaks Country Club in conjunction with the Old Dominion Golf Course Superintendent Association (ODGCSA) presented a Golf and Government Relations Summit yesterday concerning nutrient management plans, best management practices and other current and future events that are affecting our industry.  The goal of the summit was to help educate golf course owners, general managers and superintendents on the recent legislation passed during this year's Virginia General Assembly that will affect...

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