FYI 11/15/19

11/15/19

Golf Maintenance FYI

·         David Forrey is the Manager on Duty this weekend and will be preparing for the Neighborhood Challenge 1 PM shotgun on Saturday.

·         The Men’s One Day Invitational was a great success with the course receiving many compliments. We did have the American Flag displayed on Hole 11 for Memorial Day which was greatly appreciated. Thank you to those that have served.

Hole 11 with the American Flag for Memorial Day

·         The microdochium, or Pink Snow Mold, disease found on the Tees has been retreated today with a natural mineral oil product to prevent a reoccurrence. Our greens remain in very healthy condition and are not showing any signs of disease pressure.

·         All greens were verticut last week to reduce leaf density and improve ball speed. This week the greens were edged, topdressed with dry sand, spiked with needle tines, brushed, rolled and fertilized. The spiking helps to relieve compaction, allow oxygen to penetrate the soil to improve root health and to allow water to penetrate the root zone. It is an extraordinary amount of work to have completed in front of play and I appreciate the efforts of our staff to get the job done.

·         Additional sod was installed along the lake bank at the end of Carraway Lakes to improve the appearance in that area. Sod was also installed throughout the common grounds in areas where the turf was declining. The pine straw application scheduled for this week has been delayed by the contractor until next week.

Hole 10 Greens perimeter edged to define the separation between the collar and the putting surface

Topdressing with dry sand on Hole 1 green

Spiking and rolling Hole 3 green

·         The weather has changed over the past week. Overcast, windy and lower humidity conditions have already impacted the quality and appearance of the turf. The higher winds coupled with the drier air desiccate the leaf tissue on the turf causing a discoloration, particularly in the rough where there is a higher mow height. Foliar fertilizers will be sprayed on the turf next week to help maintain the turf color, encourage new growth and provide quality playing conditions.

·         The new annual flowers, Sunpatiens, have been installed in the common grounds and around the Clubhouse. The vibrant colors will look fantastic over the coming months.

·         The plants for the golf course bathrooms have been ordered and will be installed next week to complete the bathroom improvement plan.

·         The front door of the Clubhouse was decorated with week with Fall colors. Thank you to Gail Pinault for her help – as always!

The entrance to the Clubhouse is looking colorful!

·         There was an incident during the week with one of the roofers falling off the roof in Sago Pointe. The individual was airlifted to the hospital where I am told he will be ok.

It is not every day you have a helicopter landing on your golf course. I’m glad everyone is ok.

·         The Green Committee is currently reviewing the Drop Zones on the Par 3’s. Several clubs in the area have installed permanent drop zones to eliminate inconsistencies and difficult lies in the turf. Maybe they should just be eliminated??

An example of a drop area at a local club

Greens encroachment

Over the past 11 years, the Tifway 419 Bermuda grass that is planted on the course and used for our tees, fairways and roughs has been encroaching into our Tif Eagle putting greens.

The 419 is designed to be mowed at 1/2 an inch or higher to provide superior playing conditions whereas the Tif Eagle putting greens are designed to be mown at 1/8 of an inch or lower.

During the summer months when the 419 turfgrass is actively growing, it persists into the putting green where increased moisture and fertility are used. Unfortunately, when the 419 is mowed at greens height, it is easily scalped and produces a white appearance around our greens perimeters.

The white/yellow color is the Tifway 419 Bermuda grass that is growing into the putting green as seen here on hole 18.

To help mask the issue, a specialised mower has been dedicated to mowing the perimeters of the greens at a higher height and which also utilises a solid roller to keep the blades from digging into the turf grass as it turns.

To correct the issue in the future, I am working with Green Committee Chairman, Ike Eikelberner, to gather costs to present to the BOD to have the affected areas removed next summer. This practice would involve spraying Round Up on the affected areas, mechanically removing the dead turf and then aerifying the greens. The cores generated would then be raked into the perimeter and encouraged to grow. The benefit of this program is that the turf being used is the original turf from Copperleaf and not one from an outside sod farm.

Although the entire process would take approximately 8 weeks to accomplish, the end results would be worthwhile. Only the outside perimeter of the green would be affected for golfers during the summer months.

I will keep you informed as to whether this project is approved for 2012.