Friday, September 30, 2011

Weekend Update

Hopefully, the rain has stopped for awhile.  1.75 inches this week.  We were able to mow fairways Thursday and again Friday.  The back nine was mowed with a walker pm Friday.  It's not filling in as fast as I would like because of the cooler cloudy days.  Next week looks better for that and for finishing the front nine greens.

Carts should be good for the weekend.  Just be carefull of the wet areas.  As we finish up aerifing, the mulching season begins.

We had an early morning visitor this week

The seed on the new hill has germinated.  In a couple of weeks, we will plant an area of wild flowers that you will be able to see from the pro shop.

Wednesday, September 28, 2011

Rain

Another day of rain.  1.6 inches since Sunday night.  With the wet conditions, we will finish aerifing the front next week.  The plan is Monday 1,2,3,4, Tuesday 9, Wednesday, 5,6,7,8.  We will then finish up the tees and small fairways.

Tuesday, September 27, 2011

Tuesday, September 27

More rain.  The back 9 is closed until further notice.  We had another .3 inches of rain last night on top of 1 inch.  No carts on the front.  This really puts a hold on aerifing.  We may have to wait until next week. to finish the front.  The grounds staff will switch to a 6:30 start on Wednesday due to darkness.  This means no shot gun starts until 9:00.

Monday, September 26, 2011

Monday September 26

We had an inch of rain overnight.  The front is open for walking.  I don't see any aerification until Wednesday.

Friday, September 23, 2011

Aerification Update for Friday, September 23



The putting green, which was aerified on the 12th, is healing up nicely.


Here, Jose is finishing up green #18.  That completes the back nine as of Friday.  If weather holds up, we plan on starting the front on Monday.  We again will put a temporary pin in the fairway.  Just be aware of the workers as much of the equipment makes noise and they can't hear you.  If it's dry, we should finish the front on Wednesday.

Wednesday, September 21, 2011

Aerification Update

We finished 10,12,14 and 15 today.  Perfect weather with sun and wind. Thursday we will try for 11,13,16 and 17.  It will be cooler, but no rain in forecast.  We will again put a temporary pin in the fairway.  When we finish the green, the flag will go back on the green and will be ready for play.

Tuesday, September 20, 2011

Wednesday Aerification Schedule

We will go for 4 holes on Wednesday.  Our goal is to aerify 10,12,14, and 15.  The spoils will be used on the new chipping green and new #15 tee.  We will then blow the greens, topdress with sand, drag, fertilize and water.  It's a lot to do for myself, Jose, Juan, Jesus, Salvador and Dennis.  Dave will help after he takes care of some of the equipment that needs attention.  That's in addition to mowing greens, tees, and fairways in the morning.  The crew has experience with the process, so that makes it go faster.

Monday, September 19, 2011

Aerifing Update

With the overnight and morning rain, and cloudy conditions, we will postpone aerifing until Wednesday and Thursday.  We hope to finish the back nine on Friday.  This will leave the front nine for next week.

Sunday, September 18, 2011

Ball Marks

Please fix ball marks.  This picture is from Saturday.  A ball mark fix that days heals in a couple of days, but if done the next day or mowed, it may take a couple of weeks.

Just another reminder, aerification begins on Monday on the front.  Play will be allowed on the back.

Thursday, September 15, 2011

Seeding On New Hill

We seeded the hill under the power lines today.  We used a low maintenance mix that contained fescue and rye grass.  It was picked because once established, minimal water is needed.  I hope that it will germinate next week.  After it was seeded, Jose followed with bunker rake to spread it around more evenly.

Monday, September 12, 2011

Aerification Has Begun

Here, Jose is aerifing the putting green with a Toro walking aerifier.  We only have this machine, so it's going to take a few weeks to get throught the greens, tees, and small fairways.  In the future, we need to purchase a machine for the fairways.

Here, Salvador is shoveling the cores to the side.  They will be picked up and used as the growing medium for the new chipping green and new tee on #15.  When we do the rest of the course, we will use more workers.  High end clubs have special equipment that picks up cores.

This is the green after Jose applied the topdressing sand.

After the sand has dried, we drag the green with a special coco mat.  Our goal is to fill as many holes as possible.

This is the goal.  At this point we use a blower to remove any extra sand.  Holes that are filled heal quicker.  Later, we will go out and fill any areas that need more sand.

This is the 1st tee.  We do a similiar process except that we drag the cores instead of picking up.  The soil falls into the holes and we blow away the thatch.  After finish a tee or green, we apply some irrigation water.

Saturday, September 3, 2011

Vietnam Vet Outing





Thursday, we had a Vietnam Vet outing.  Many fished, some golfed, some sat in the shade and told stories. All had a good time.  There was also a Middle East Vet that attended.  Chef Bob was in charge of the burgers and hotdogs.

Just another reminder, we start aerify greens on September 19.  Please be patient as we do this necessary practice to keep the greens in top shape.  We are doing this in house this year, so it will take a couple of weeks.

Mike Locke supplied us with some seed for the hill project.  We plan on getting the seed out next week.