From the Golf Course Superintendent . . .
From the Golf Course Superintendent . . .
Another spring has arrived at LFCC! The weather has warmed, activity on the course and around the club has picked up, and the grounds staff has been busy. This is always a challenging time of year within the grounds department, as much has to be
accomplished in a relatively short period of time, a period made even shorter this year as winter seemed to hang on forever.
Following are several updates of Grounds Department information:
Course Status:
The golf course has come through the winter in pretty good condition, and the recent mild weather has allowed all turf areas to begin to green-up and initiate active growth. As in most years, the bentgrass playing surfaces will lag behind the other cool-season grasses in color and growth rate until our temperature fluctuations become less erratic.
Ongoing Projects:
Approximately 55 trees have been removed during the off-season, with a few more removals still scheduled for this spring, as well as grinding of all remaining stumps. All trees that have been removed were either completely dead, or in some stage of decline. In addition to the removals, 45 new trees were planted last fall, with another 15 recently delivered for spring
planting. These newly planted trees were the remaining replacements for the Scotch Pines that had been removed from the course during the previous two years. These new trees, many of which were of the ornamental flowering type, have made a significant positive impact on the aesthetics of the golf course this spring, as the flowers have added considerable color to many areas where it had been lacking.
We have been working with an irrigation contractor to plan for the installation of additional irrigation at various locations on tees and fairways. This irrigation enhancement project was approved last fall within the Development Fund, and will improve irrigation coverage on the perimeter of many fairways and a few tees, that currently suffer decline during extended periods of drought. This year’s project, which may involve some work during late spring and again in the fall, should address more than half of the areas of need, with a second phase to be completed in a future year.
Maintenance Activities:
The grounds staff has been busy with many early season maintenance projects. Spring cleanup was a much larger project this year, as the flooding that occurred during the winter months left much additional debris on the golf course. We are now well into normal course mowing and maintenance schedules, which will continue to increase in intensity and frequency as the weather warms and levels of play increase. Other ongoing and/or completed spring projects include: installation of all course accessories, bunker restoration, landscape bed pruning and mulching, annual flower bed preparation, irrigation system repair and maintenance, tree planting, patching of cart paths, tee aerification, as well as various pesticide and fertilizer applications.
Putting Green Aerification:
By the time you read this newsletter, spring aerification of the putting greens should have been
completed. We will be using the Dryject process again this year. This relatively new process was used on the greens for the first time last spring, with good enough results to warrant a second try. In summary, this process utilizes machines that use high-pressure air to create holes, which are immediately backfilled with topdressing sand in a fast and efficient one-pass operation. Last year’s results showed this to be a much less disruptive method of aerification, yielding the desired agronomic results with relatively minor impact on playing conditions.
Range-finder Use:
At the request of, and due to the generosity of an un-named donor, we have recently installed reflective devices on all of the course flagsticks. These reflectors should enhance the performance of most available range-finding equipment.
Hopefully, the improved accuracy of these yardages will help to shave strokes off of everyone’s handicaps!
Course Etiquette:
Since another golf season is beginning, it is an appropriate time to revisit the following course etiquette
responsibilities:
Ball Mark Repair – Please repair yours and at least one other ball mark on all greens as you play. Proper ball mark repair involves using some type of acceptable tool to pull the outer edges of the ball mark toward the center, never lifting the turf, and then lightly tamping down until smooth. If repaired properly, in this manner, ball marks are immediately smoothed to the point of not disrupting ball roll, and also will heal very rapidly. Improperly repaired and non-repaired ball marks continue to disrupt ball roll and require an extended time to heal and recover.
Divot Repair – This important task is a little bit more complicated than fixing ball marks. The bottom line is that we would like all divots to be properly filled with divot mix, or properly replaced. The complication involves the time of year that the divot is repaired. During the off-season period between approximately mid-October and mid-April, it is acceptable and even preferable to replace any substantial divots. However, during the primary golf season, we would like any divots tossed into the rough and filled with appropriate divot mix. The difference in these two time periods involves both the warmer weather that causes
replaced divots to dry out, and the frequent mowing that often dislodges the divots. For those walking golfers, or those without access to divot mix, it is preferable to replace the divot as opposed to doing nothing. Just remember that when filling divots, please fill only to soil or ground level. Excess divot mix will be picked up by mowing equipment, causing damage to mowers and a poor quality of cut.
Cart Traffic Control – This is a very important etiquette topic at LFCC, as the greatest majority of our rounds of golf are played in riding golf carts. This level of golf cart traffic can have a very negative impact on turf quality and playing conditions. For this reason, we ask that all cart operators please be aware of and obey any particular cart restrictions on the days that you play. We would also ask that you use good common sense as you tour the course, avoiding obviously wet, worn, or stressed areas.
If each and every golfing member of LFCC makes a sincere effort to perform the above mentioned etiquette responsibilities, the golf course will be much more enjoyable for all.
In closing, it’s great to begin another golf season at LFCC! I look forward to great weather, great golf, and fun for everyone! Please don’t hesitate to say hi if you see me around the course. I am always interested to hear your thoughts and input.
Sincerely,
Scott Werner, CGCS |
