Course Update 8/30/18

It was another week of wild weather, from thunderstorms Sunday morning that flooded the course, to heat indexes in the mid-90's Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and back to thunderstorms last night that dropped over 1" of rain.  We're up to 4.74" of rainfall this month, when our average is 3.23".  6 staff members worked 9 hours today repairing washouts and raking bunkers to get them playable, while another 6 staff cleaned up sand and gravel that washed from the drain lines in fairways.  With all the moisture expect greens to be softer and rolling a tad slower than normal.  We also need to protect the fairways so don't be surprised if several holes are Cart Path Only throughout the weekend.

Course Update 8/23/18

It was another week of wet weather, and unfortunately the drainage contractor wasn't able to work due to the soggy conditions.  Our average rainfall during August is 3.23", and as of today we've received 3.29".   Even with 8 more days remaining this month, I am optimistic that we'll see more dry days versus rain days.  We're used to dealing with stretches of wet weather, but it seems to negatively affect the turf more in late summer and throughout the fall due to shorter days and the lower angle of the sun.  This also happens to be the time of year we look at heavily shaded areas to determine what trees need to be removed and formulate our plans for the winter.  The pictures below were taken recently and illustrate the need for tree removal in order to provide more sunlight and airflow for better playing conditions.

Lakes 8 blue tee.  The turf on the right side of the tee is in much better condition since removing most of the trees on that side 2 years ago.  The thin turf and soft conditions on the left side of the tee clearly indicates a problem caused by the dense trees left of the cart path.  This is one of the areas we'll be working on this winter.

Grove 3 green/approach looking down from the cart path.  This picture was taken around 10am and leaves no doubt about why there is weak turf on the front of the green and most of the approach.

Another angle of Grove 3 green/approach

Course Update 8/16/18

The drainage contractor was unable to work this week due to multiple rain events and wet conditions.  Next week's forecast looks drier and we anticipate being able to resume work on Lakes 1 and 3, and Orchard 8.  Unfortunately, two of the rain events were very intense and washed some sand and gravel out of the drain lines that the staff has been cleaning up.  We reused as much of the material as we could, and the contractor will top-off the drain lines with the sand/soil blend upon his return.

Speaking of wet conditions, the National Weather Service in Pittsburgh is reporting that as of 8/15, total precipitation so far this year is 9" above normal for the region.  Keep in mind that their readings are taken at the Pittsburgh airport, so there's probably some variance in the amount of precipitation we've received.  Being that far above the yearly average makes me think we'll have a dry fall.

Drainage Project 8/9/18

The contractor was able to work on Monday and Tuesday of this week before getting rained out the past two days.  Drain lines were installed in Lakes 9 fairway, just short of the green, along with Orchard 8 lower fairway, also near the green.  If you recall from last year, both of these areas were re-sodded as a result of significant turf loss because the excess water had nowhere to drain to.  We received almost .75" of rain the past two days and these areas traditionally would have had standing water.  Thanks to the new drain lines these same areas were mostly dry!

The next areas scheduled for new drainage are the right side of Lakes 1 fairway and rough, along with the beginning of Orchard 8 lower fairway.  As of Tuesday evening, 2,400 feet of drain line has been trenched and installed thus far.

Trenching on Lakes 9 fairway short of the green

Trenches on Lakes 9 fairway ready for pipe and gravel

Needed a short drain line in the depression on the right of Lakes 9 fairway

Backfilling the trench on Orchard 8 lower fairway in front of the green

Course Update 8/2/18

The past several weeks have been very busy leading up to the Men's Invitational, and I want to thank my staff for their hard work and dedication.  The course is in phenomenal shape and we are in a much better place compared to last year!

It was a short week due to the Invitational, but the contractor was able to install drainage on Lakes 4 and 8 fairways, while the maintenance staff continued sodding fairway spots on Orchard 4 and 5 fairways.  Sodding the fairway spots is a tedious process and requires someone with a meticulous eye to get it right.  It's not just throw some sod down and call it good.  First, the area is surveyed and we determine if drainage needs to be installed, or can we raise the depression but not cause an adjacent area to become water-logged.  If we determine that installing drainage isn't necessary, the outer edges of the depression are cut and pulled back, then a sand/soil mix is added and compacted so the new sod is equal to, or slightly higher than the surrounding turf.  The final step is to install the new fairway sod, roll smooth, then topdress with sand to fill any imperfections.  The goal is to make sure water will not lay in those areas for an extended time which originally led to the turf loss.  While out playing, please be aware of areas with the short, green and white stakes.  They identify recently laid sod that needs time to root before it's subjected to golf and cart traffic.  These areas should be treated as mandatory ground under repair.

One of the low areas on Orchard 4 fairway that did not require drainage

Same area on Orchard 4 fairway after raising the grade and sodding

New drain line at the end of Lakes 4 fairway that always stays wet

New lateral drain line on the left side of Lakes 8 fairway before the fairway bunkers

New drain line on Lakes 8 fairway in the swale before the dogleg that was holding water

Found the old drain line on Lakes 8 fairway while trenching the new line.  Notice the compacted soil on top of the pea gravel that kept water from draining off the surface and into the pipe