Fairway topdressing was performed yesterday on 5, 14, and 15 fairways.  17 fairway remains, and we will be wrapping up this project on Tuesday, April 27th.  We contracted the spreading of the sand through Hartmann Companies out of Victoria, MN. 

Approximately 40 ton per acre of sand was applied, and this was immediately followed by a solid tine aeration to allow the sand to work into the upper portion of the soil / turf canopy. 

The fairway topdressing program was initiated on these holes due to very soft conditions that are the result of excessive thatch.  By diluting the thatch with sand and getting air into the soil, we will begin the process of reducing the thatch and firming up the surfaces.  We will also be combining this practice with subsurface drainage installations, which will help dry these areas down and firm them up.  While the above fairways will be 'sandy' for a few days, the long term effect will be well-received.  This is just the beginning of our program, and with continued bi-annual or tri-annual sand applications, the lower holes will show very good results after a couple of seasons. 

The Challenges of Bent / Poa Greens in Early Spring

Not exactly the prettiest of photos, but this is very common right now on certain areas of our greens...the struggles of dealing with a mixed stand of grass on a putting surface early in the season! 

This photo is a section from #8 green.  Two different types of turf are apparent here:  the dark green color is bentgrass, and the light green color is poa annua.

The challenge associated with managing two different grass types has to do with their growth patterns.  On our greens, the bentgrass will exhibit growth earlier than the poa.  As the bent begins growth, the poa still hangs tight and gets itself geared up for warmer weather and moisture.  The overall result is bumpy greens early in the season.  As temperatures climb and spring rains move in, the growth rates equal out and we are able to manipulate smooth putting surfaces once again.

So how long will it take?  Aggressive growth of the greens arrives about the same time as when the trees are pushing leaves and home lawns need regular maintenance, i.e. mowing.  Right now, we have seen a nice 'green up' on all areas of the golf course, but true growth will come as we move further into the spring.  Again, moisture and improved soil temperatures play a major role in creating putting surfaces that roll true. 

Why not promote only the bentgrass, as this grass seems to exhibit more desirable traits?  We are moving into our second season of a bentgrass conversion program, and thus far I am very impressed with the results.  Proper cultural practices will continue to shift our stand of grass toward the predominace of bentgrass.  I am confident that our surfaces will only continue to improve. 

New Synthetic Tee Allows for Early Opening of Range

The range tee opened for practice on Tuesday, March 23rd.  With the grass barely getting started at this point, we are fortunate to be able to utilize the new synthetic turf that was installed last fall by Dave Sadlowski from the golf shop.  The synthetic tee will be utilized until May 1st, at which time the normal teeing grounds will be opened.  The point of utilizing the synthetic tee until that time is to allow the grass to get growing, which in turn will promote a better hitting surface later into the season.  The synthetic is very nice...it has good  'give' in that it does not hurt your hands, even with a poorly struck shot. 

You can also notice in the photo the brown / pink blotches that show up in from of the synthetic.  The tee took some snow mold damage this year due to the high volume of snow that we had on the ground from Christmas through Mid-March.  Not to worry...once the ground temperatures warm up and we receive some rainfall, this distressed turf will spring back to life very quickly. 

That was fast!  The golf course went from being covered in a deep snow pack to having 95% of the snow melted in a matter of days.  I was shocked to see nearly all of the snow gone from 15 fairway along the woods, as this area typically persists for weeks into the spring.  With the limited amount of frost that we had in the ground, the snow disappeared quickly.

As far as the turf goes, greens, tees and fairways look very promising at this point.  Our hope is for continued moderate temperatures.  The biggest thing that we would like to avoid is a sudden drop in temperatures, say from the mid 40's to the low teens or single digits.  A drop in temperature  without any snow cover would be very detrimental to the grass.  The long range forecast looks very favorable, so we will keep our fingers crossed.

The duration of the snow did produce ideal conditions for grey snow mold, and the roughs are blanketed in this disease right now.  Not to worry...once the ground dries out, a light brushing or scarifying will loosen up the mat and stand the grass back up.  Once this occurs, the grass will get moving again with warmer temperatures.  While it may look a bit ugly at this point, this type of disease is very superficial and will be gone with dryer conditions and warmer temperatures.

The March thaw is underway, and temperatures are above-average for this time of year.  With the volume of snow this winter, the rains and warmer conditions have created a good deal of run-off.  As a turf manager, my concern at this point would be an aggressive dip into very cold temperatures, much like we experienced in 2009.  Free water, exposed turf and plummetting temperatures is a solid recipe for fine turf loss.  Fortunately, the extended 10 day forecast is calling for highs in the 40's and low 50's, with nighttime temperatures hovering in the mid to upper 20's. 

The few exposed areas of grass that I can see right now are encouraging, but we still have a long way to go before I would state that the golf course made it through unscathed.  At this point, I am cautiously optimistic regarding the current state of the golf course.  Further melting in the days ahead will allow for a better view of the course. 

On a positive note, there is currently very limited frost in the ground ( less than 4 inches ) which bodes well for getting everything thawed and pushing the water down into the soil.  Again, free water is the enemy at this point - as the ground opens up and the water penetrates, risk of damage begins to decrease. 

As far as an open date goes, well, one never knows what March still has in store!  I will continue to keep the membership posted.  The staff and I are eagerly awaiting an opportunity to get out on the course and begin our spring cleanup, and the weather will let us know when we can get started.

Improvements for 2010

One of the challenges that all superintendents face is figuring out how to provide high quality playing conditions with minimal disruption from maintenance practices.  This can be quite a quandary at times, because these two ideas go hand in hand -  a smooth, firm surface is the result of the maintenance practices implemented by the golf course management team.  An example that sticks out in my mind is the management practices that we have been implementing on the tees and approaches.  An aggressive sand topdressing to these surfaces ( approaches in particular ) is met with golfer disappointment and frustration, as the topdressing temporarily disrupts the normal playability of these areas. 

In order to address this problem, acouple of different steps will be implemented in 2010.  First, we will look to topdress the tees and approaches at two different points during the season, namely late spring and early fall.  Next, the amount of sand applied will be reduced in order to promote quick recovery and return the surfaces to their normal playability.  Third, our mechanic, Jeff Lyons, has engineered a brush that attaches to our walk mowers for brushing the sand into the turf canopy.  The benefiit of this technology allows us to simultaneously brush and roll the tees and approaches , thus creating a smooth surface that will recover in a relatively short amount of time.  Couple this with a fertility application to allow the grass to aggressively grow through the topdressing, and we are left with a firm, smooth surface that is receptive to either putting or pitching from the approaches. 

Another item that needed to be addressed during the winter months was the internal hardware of our ballwashers.  The brush assembly that cleans the golf ball as well as the associated gaskets and plugs were all showing signs of wear, which in turn resulted in ballwashers that would no longer hold cleaning fluid.  I am happy to report that the problem has been recitified, as the entire fleet of ballwashers were reassembled with new components.  Stiff brushes and leak-free hardware should keep us in the clear for the next few seasons. 

Winter Maintenance

The off-season is really a misnomer when it comes to the maintenance team at Olympic Hills.  Despite the fact that we are not able to be out on the course, a great deal of work still needs to be accomplished during the winter months.  With an older fleet of equipment, overhauling machinery and intense maintenance is performed to ensure optimal performance during the golf season.  Every piece of equipment is addressed during this 4-5 month period.  In addition to the equipment, all course accessories are completely refurbished.  Ballwashers, benches, tee markers, coolers, range accessories and traffic control markers are all cleaned, sanded and painted to provide a good presentation for the upcoming season.  The maintenance staff is also responsible for all snow removal duties at the club, which can also eat up a significant chunk of time.  Combine all this shop work with tree maintenance that is also performed during the off-season, and our window of inside work shrinks rather quickly.  The off-season is not so 'off'!! 

A snow pack of 18 inches is keeping the ground frozen and insulated from any harsh winter conditions.  Thus far, the winter has been good to golf courses in the area as we have not experienced an extended thaw causing any melting conditions.  Free water situations during the winter months are a golf course manager's nightmare.  Ice accumulation on greens can be problematic when the duration of the ice cover persists for more than 60 days. Our hope for each winter is to keep temperatures below freezing with good snow cover.  We will continue to keep our fingers crossed as the winter continues on!