Spring 2012 Slideshow

I hope you enjoy these pictures of the golf course.

Our newest piece of equipment.

I would like to introduce the Toro Groundsmaster 4700D.

This incredible new machine will greatly increase the amount of grass we can mow in one week.

The free-floating Contour™ Plus cutting decks follow the contour of the terrain for a championship quality of cut. With a powerful 60 hp  Kubota® engine and full-time 4 wheel drive, tough jobs get done quickly.

Please view the following video for a look at this impressive mower.

Maintenance Updates - Early March

Today we pumped up the Irrigation system for the first time in 2012.

Last Thursday the greens were fertilized.  We used a different type of fertilizer than we normally use.  This fertilizer is highly visible but is a very high quality fertilizer.

Monday all the fairways were fertilized.

Wednesday we will be spraying all the Greens and Tees.  This will be the first fungicide application of the year.

Rough mowed today!

Its the first day of March and the temperature is 61 degrees at 9:47 am.  The forecasted high today is about 70 degrees.  It looks like spring is not going to wait any longer.  Today we are cutting the rough for the first time this year.  The smell of fresh cut grass is a welcome scent the signals the start of another growing season.  We are looking forward to a great year in golf maintenance.

Aerification Notice:

We will be closing holes for fairway aerification during the next two weeks.  Please skip this hole and move on to the next.  We may have more than one hole closed.  We will be done as soon as possible and we appreciate your cooperation during this process.

I am sure some of you have noticed that #10 and #13 are once again open to cart traffic.  #16 will stay closed until after it has been seeded and grown back in.  #16 fairway will be returned to acceptable standards no later than the 1st of May. 

Final Winter Update

The Winter Projects are finished!

Steve sent me this picture of 18 green and approach.

It was one of the thickest frosts of the year.

The weather has been great all Winter long with only a few rainfalls slowing us down.  The maintenance crew was able to complete all the projects we had discussed earlier in the year with the Greens Committee.  In February we were able to complete a few extra projects that we have always wanted to do.  The total drainage completed was 4200 linear feet. 

Some highlights from February include:

#17 fairway drainage

#17 green surround face-lift

Additional drainage on #2 and #3

Mowed all greens, tees, and fairways.  This is very rare in February.

Repaired the bunker tongue on #6 green.

6 sprinkler heads leveled, bringing the total to 57 since October 2011.

The growth of the grass during the winter has helped us put on additional root mass.  These roots will recieve a good surge of growth in the spring as well.  This should make a very big difference in the health of our turf in 2012.

2.5 inches of good white roots.

Fairway aerification has also begun.  We intend to double aerifiy all the fairways in the coming weeks.  We will be closing some holes during this process.  We have a strong fertility plan in place for the fairways this year.

Looking ahead for the rest of the month:

Mulching, pruning, and edging in all landscape beds.

All sandtraps freshly edged.

Double Fwy Aerification

Greens Aerification Mar 19

Prep and Seed #16 Fairway Mid March

  

 

New Tee Markers

Every year we create a fresh set of tee markers from locust trees that we cut down from places around the property.  This year we are going with a different design that we hope will be a little more visible.  I think everyone will like the new tee markers when they make their debut in March after the tees have been aerified.

Fresh coat of paint looking nice.

Raw markers wating to be painted.

Some of the black tee markers.

Rolling the markers into storage area.

January Wrap-Up

Just heard on the news we may have had the warmest January in the last 6 years.  I am most certain it was the most productive.  The total amount of drainage we have finished has reached 3600 linear feet.

Our latest project is on #17 fairway.  We are putting 575 feet of drains in the landing area of this fairway.  In addition we are fixing the right side rough surrounding the green.  The ditch is being raised up in elevation and will be much less severe.

A view from the tee of our lastest drainage project.

Plywood helps us keep things clean and protects the fairway.

We knew we would have plenty of dirt from the trenches on #17 so it made the choice to renovate the greens complex an easy one.  The original drain pipe has been located and three catch basins will be attached.  This area will be regraded and will continue to slope slighty toward the creek for surface drainage.  The V shaped area the existed in the past will be gone.

A look a the fill dirt from the fairway.

Replacing the sod and finishing up on #17 fairway.

So the question is whats next on the agenda?  We have 2 smaller drains to complete on #2 and #3 fairway.  This will complete the drainage we will be doing for this winter.  We will then shift our focus towards edging and repairing bunkers, cleaning and edging landscape beds, mulching and pruning.  We are also contructing new tee markers and continuing to refurbish outdoor furniture.

On a Roll!

 Drainage Project Report

January 26, 2012

The weather in January has been very mild.  So mild in fact that we are going to easily finish all the promised drainage projects that were discussed with the Greens Committe back in the fall of 2011.  The decision to keep all the maintenance employees over the winter had really paid off for the club.  The amount of drainage we have been able to accomplish should increase the playabilty of many areas of both fairway and rough throughout the golf course.  We still have the entire month of February to continue with drainage and other needed projects.  I won't spill the beans on where we are going after number one is finsihed, but when you find out I am sure you will be pleased.

Current Project on #1

We are currently working on hole #1.  Drainage issues are being addressed in the upper left portion of the fairway.  This area stayed wet for most of the season.  The improvements we are making will make this area much better.  The first phase of this project was 296 ft.  This phase was finished yesterday and we are moving to complete the entire porject by the end of the week.

New drains in the approach on #1.

Clearly a very wet area.

Catch basins will immediatly drain any surface water.

A wide view of Phase 1 with Phase 2 in progess.

Our first drainage project began in early december and half of the staff had never installed a french drain or a catch basin.  We were not even sure if our old ditch digging machine would even be up to the task of completing the first project.  Today we are installing drainage like a well oiled machine and are completing projects at a very satisfying rate.

Small Project Updates

In between the larger drainage projects we have done some smaller projects as well.  These small projects have the potential to make just as much impact as some of the larger ones.  I have included a few snapshots of some of the smaller areas that we have addressed in the past week.

 #12 Approach

The approach area in from of #16 would always puddle.

2 new catch basins installed

These 2 new drains should eliminate puddles.

With more and more of the problem areas having new drainage installed we can really focus on smaller areas that have always been a problem.  This winter has been mild and his given us a great oppurtunity to address many problems on the golf course. 

#13 White Tee

 

More drainage added around #13 White Tee

#13 Runoff Control Ditch

 

Readjusted slope of drain ditch on right side of #13



The fix to drain ditch on #13 was a 2 day project that will make a large impact on cutting down the amount of surface drainage that was allowed to cross over the path and flood the fairway.  The changes to this ditch involved increasing the height of the berm towards the back of the ditch and resloping the entire length of the ditch to allow maximum flow.  This fix appears to be working nicely after the last 2 inch rain event.

#7 White Tee Steps

Fix to #7 Tee steps. 

The new slope up to #7 white tee.

The old and rotten crosstie steps that used to lead up to #7 tee box have been removed.  We stripped the sod from the entire bank and used the dirt removed from drain trenches to recontour the side of this tee.  This has resulted in a much milder slope up to the tee and no need for any dangerous steps.

Facility Signs

Club signage has been repainted.

All of the signs around the club have been taken inside and refurbished.  This included pressure washing, sanding, and wood putty helped put the sign back to original form.  A fresh coat of Kenmure's signature colors have been applied to the signs and they have been put back in place around the club's facilties.



Misc Drain Fixes

#8 right side fairway past pond 

#9 approach

French drains that were installed in the past few years that were not left open to the surface have seen decreased functionality and have been reopened to the surface with gravel.

Drainage between 3 and 4

A short video explaining the drainage work done between holes 3 and 4.


Drainage Between #3 And #4 from Josh Laughridge on Vimeo.

Latest drainage work completed

We just completed a short drainage project that I wanted to share with everyone.  This project took place behind the bunker on the right side of number three fairway.  The area behind this bunker and around number four cartpath stayed wet for days after heavy rain due to the amount of water that weeped out of the bank.

 A transit was used to insure slope.

 This bank was very wet and the ditch instantly filled with water.

Lack of drainage in this area led to the cartpath and surrounding turf always being wet.  This drain will collect all the water coming out of the banks and help dry up the area. 

Sprinkler head yardage survey results

We recently completed a survey of all the yardage plaques that are attached to the sprinkler heads in the fairways.  24 plaques were either missing or incorrect.  Thes new plaques have been ordered and will be attached to the heads over the next month.  There are no plaques on sprinkler heads closer than 50 yards to the center of the green or greater than 300 yards away.



#13 Drainage Project Completion Video

A video showing the end results of the drainage project on hole #13.

2012 First Update

This winter has been mild with plenty of rainfall and fortunately not much snow. This has given the maintenance staff the time needed to do many drainage projects on the golf course. Projects on holes 2, 4, 5, and 13 have been completed and we are now beginning to move forward on hole numbers 1 and 3. If we have enough dry days in the month of February we have some other holes in mind we would like to drain.

On cold days the staff preforms some work indoors. Most of these indoor jobs involve painting or refurbishing signs or other course accessories. The crew is also responsible for most of the indoor painting around the club. This winter we have sanded and repainted all the tennis and bocce area furniture. The patio tables and chairs have also been sanded and repainted. On the golf course we have pressure washed and stained all the cedar water cooler houses and trash cans. The small green metal trashcans have also been repainted. New tee markers are being constructed and this year we will be introducing a brand new design.

Other projects have also been underway on the golf course. The steps on #7 tee box have been removed and the bank is being reshaped to take some of the severity out of the slope. Additional work was also preformed on the right hand side of #13 fairway to help divert runoff water into a culvert. The yardage plaques on the sprinkler heads have all been surveyed and checked for correctness. Any missing or incorrect yardages will be replaced.

This year we are expanding our equipment lease package to include five new greensmowers and one very large rough mower. These pieces will offer our maintenance operation that very latest in new technology developed for walking greens mowers. The rough mower is double the size of any mower we have ever had in the past and will make a very dramatic impact on the frequency of cutting the rough. These new equipment pieces will make there debut in the 2^nd quarter of 2012.