New Tee, New Motor for Pump

 

We were finally able to get water to the new tee on #15 today.  We have been dumping aerifing plugs on the hill behind #15 for the last couple of years.  This year we got several donations to take the next step to make this possible.  I was able to purchase some used heads with money donated by Jim Weidenfeller.

 

Today, Rich Tabloff donated his time and machine along with pipe and wire to make the project happen.

 

We tied into the regular tee and had to rewire the hole.  The new tee adds about 25 yards, but also changes the angle to the green.  It still needs some time to grow in.  I plan on aerifing the tee and adding some more seed.  It should be playable in about a month when we start to lower the height of cut.  Don't worry, you can still play from the original tee if you choose.

 

We had some irrigation issues the last couple of weeks.  The motor on our main pump died on us a couple of weeks ago.  Here, Mark from Midwest Irrigation installed a new 50 HP motor for our main pump.   It took a week for the new motor to arrive, we used only our jockey pump.  Ok for the short term, but not  a long term solution.  I was able to pump only 175 gallons per minutes.  With the big pump back up and running, we got back to 700 GPM.

First Heat Wave of the Year

This has been a difficult week at Lansing.  The motor for the main pump failed on Sunday.  I made a few calls and got the system set up with only the jockey pump.  A new motor will be installed on Monday.  Our pumping capacity is 650 gallons per minute when both pumps are working.  With only a jockey, it is reduced to 175 GPM.  That has meant that I had to start watering very early and ending as play starts this week.

 

 

Many golf courses have been busy this week hand watering.  Even though we've had warm temperatures, it's been humid.  If we overwater during these conditions, disease will become a major concern.  By limiting water, we hit the hot spots with a little extra water during the day.

 

The greens have held up well this week.  A nice rain would be welcomed.

 

The fairways are showing the most stress during this heat spell.

 

This is Mike our newest employee.  His brother Ricardo has worked here for 2 years.  Even though he's a rookie. Mike has caught on quickly.  He has already learned greens mowing.  He will also do some rookie jobs like weed whipping and bunker work

Clean Up Continued

To be honest, our clean up has been much easier than the guys on the north side of Chicago.  While we are way above normal on precipitation, they've had to deal with major flooding.

 

 

A week ago on Monday, the big storm came through Lansing CC.  After over 200 man hours of clean up, its close to looking like a golf course again.  We've gotten behind in a few detail oriented jobs, but we should catch up next week.  Thank you for your patience.

 

 

 

We had a hydraulic leak last week on #2.  The operator noticed it quickly and got it off the fairway.  We will probably have to dig out some soil on the fairway and seed.  The part in the rough may fill in naturally.  If not, we will airify and seed. 

 

The cottonwood near #12 tee is finally cleaned up.  We were able to pull it down with a chain and a tractor.   Jose is very good and tree removal.