Ballmarks

The extended stretch of 90+ degrees and lack of rainfall has required us to water more frequently to keep the turf from wilting.  This has resulted in softer putting greens that are more prone to ballmarks.  A properly repaired ballmark will heal in just a few days, as compared to one that isn't repaired properly will usually take a couple weeks, if it heals at all.  The maintenance staff repairs what we can prior to mowing greens in the morning, but it is the golfer's responsibility to fix their ballmarks.

Click Here To Watch A Short Video From The USGA On Repairing Ballmarks

Here's a typical, unrepaired ballmark on a putting green.

Here's an improperly repaired ballmark.  The damaged center has been popped up and will remain in this condition for several weeks.

The ballmark in the first picture was repaired following the guidance in the USGA video.  The ballmark is in the center of the picture, but it's very difficult to distinguish since it was repaired properly.

Bees In The Bunkers

Some concerns have been expressed about the "bees" that invade our bunkers every year around this time. They are actually Sand Wasps (Bembix species) and surprisingly pose no threat to humans.  Keep in mind that our staff maintains the bunkers daily and we are constantly disturbing them.
NOT ONE STING!

Sand Wasp (Bembix species) burrowing in the sand

For a few weeks every summer we have visitors that take up residence in our sand traps. These fast fliers are officially known as the Bembix Sand Wasp. They dig numerous burrows in cool, moist sand (ie- bunkers) to lay their eggs. Juvenile wasps, known as larvae, emerge from the eggs where they remain in the sand and grow into adults. Adult females congregate together in large numbers when making nests to bait their prey. The higher populations of larvae in nesting sites attract flies, beetles, caterpillars and grasshoppers. These insects are captured by the female wasp and taken back to the burrows to be fed to the growing larvae.

The existence of these insects in the bunkers is a nuisance to golfers, but beneficial to the course as they help to control the population of flies and detrimental turf beetles by preying on them.

The greatest concern for golfers is that they will get stung by these wasps when entering a bunker to play a shot.  Studies have proven that this particular wasp is not aggressive and of no harm to humans.  Both male and female wasps will not sting humans unless they are stepped on or smashed between your hands.  When approached by a human the sand wasp will initially swarm, looking for food, and then go back to their burrows to protect their larvae.

Course Update 7/9/20

We vented greens and collars this week to allow for gas exchange and better water penetration in heat stressed areas, along with relieving surface compaction.  Venting is aerifying with small (.25") diameter solid tines that penetrate up to 3" deep.  The process involves mowing the green first, then venting, followed by rolling to smooth any imperfections on the putting surface.  We typically perform this process several times during the summer in addition to our traditional core aerifications in the spring and fall.  Most golfers don't even notice we did anything since the process causes very little surface disruption.

We use our regular greens aerifier outfitted with 60, .25" diameter solid tines spaced 1.5" apart.  This setup creates 72 holes per square foot, which sounds like a lot, but only affects 2.75% of the greens surface area.

This picture was taken prior to rolling so the holes look more pronounced.

The tool in this picture is a soil probe that removes a small core from the green that is checked for moisture content.  The probe is laying on a patch of Bentgrass on one of our greens.  The turf around the Bentgrass is Annual Bluegrass (Poa annua).  The greens were originally seeded and grown in with Bentgrass in the mid 90's, but the Poa eventually got a foothold and has become the dominant turf.  Poa does not like hot temperatures or high humidity, and needs a lot of TLC in this kind of weather.

Course Update 6/30/20

We recently applied a wetting agent to greens, tees, and fairways in preparation for the hot and dry weather this week.  Wetting agents, also known as surfactants, are a chemical compound that reduce the surface tension of water, allowing it to spread out and penetrate the turf and soil easier.  Wetting agents can be something as simple as dish soap, and are very safe for both people and the environment.  In fact, using wetting agents can reduce the amount of water needed during irrigation cycles because most of the water applied will be able to infiltrate the soil instead of puddling and becoming runoff.

In this type of weather you will also see the staff hand watering throughout the day, including running some irrigation heads if large areas need water, typically fairways and rough.  Hand watering is a slower process than running irrigation heads, but it allows us to better manage the water given to a specific area.  We are fully aware that watering during the day may be disruptive to your round, but please understand that we need to keep the turf alive for your future rounds.

Irrigation heads running on Grove 6

Hand watering Grove 7 green

Course Update 6/27/20

We've been sodding worn areas in the rough over the past couple of weeks to improve the aesthetics and playability of the courses.  The excessive rainfall the past two years has led to ruts and low spots from carts and mowing equipment, which only get worse unless repaired.  We're using leftover rough sod from the driving range tee project that is 100% Kentucky Bluegrass.  This turf is a better choice for the rough because of it's deep rooting, reduced water requirement, consistent texture, and great color.  It's a noticeable contrast to our existing rough which is a hodgepodge of Perennial Ryegrass, Creeping Bentgrass and Annual Bluegrass.

Worn areas in the intermediate rough marked for repair.

Worn areas repaired with Kentucky Bluegrass sod.

Area below Grove 8 fairway bunker continued to erode with every thunderstorm.  In bad storms the bunker sand would wash onto the fairway and was reducing turf quality.

The bunker edge was re-established with thin, flexible wood panels that would provide a smooth curve.  The next step was to build up the eroded area with screened topsoil to provide a stable base for the new sod.

Here's a better look at the re-established edge.  The new piece of sod was used as a guide to determine how much topsoil to add to achieve the final grade.

The finished product is a huge improvement!

Course Update 6/11/20

As was done in previous years, weekly topdressing of the greens has resumed.  Now that we're in season and mowing greens daily only a small amount of sand is applied weekly.  We refer to this as a sugar coating and it has minimal effect on the mowers.  If a heavier amount of sand is applied it would dull the mowers after the first green and take longer for the sand to be incorporated into the turf canopy.  We normally apply heavy amounts of sand in the spring and fall in conjunction with aerification.  Frequent topdressing of greens in season has become more common as the benefits of applying sand are better understood.  Firmer, smoother, and drier putting surfaces can be expected by golfers, while Superintendents are seeing healthier turf that requires less water and can withstand increased foot traffic and extreme weather events.

Lakes 8 green after a weekly topdressing.

A small area of sand was brushed in by hand to give a better idea of the "sugar coating" reference.

This is a 7" deep rootzone profile from a green.  Our greens are sand based (USGA spec) and the lighter colored column of sand is from a DryJect injection in a previous year.

Here you can see some roots from the turf hanging out the bottom of the profile.  That's pretty good for Poa greens in June!

Course Update 4/30/20

The maintenance staff have been very busy completing the necessary cultural practices the past several weeks to have the courses ready for our eventual opening.  I mentioned in an earlier post about greens aerification being complete, which we followed up with core aerification of tees and fairways.  These are important practices that must be performed every year to ensure the long term health of the playing surfaces.  In addition to aerification, routine mowing of all areas are underway along with preliminary bunker maintenance.

Core aerifying tees.

Driving range tees were also aerified and a heavy layer of topdressing sand was applied to help divot recovery and level the hitting surface.

Greens were verticut 1/8" deep to remove excess leaf tissue and equally distribute topdressing sand across the putting surface.  Verticutting also helps stand the grass blades up for a cleaner cut which results in faster and smoother ball roll.

Here's what the putting surface looks like immediately after verticutting.  You can see all the individual rows of verticut blades.

Here's a putting surface after blowing the debris and brushing the sand in.

The staff is prepping bunkers by removing rocks and vegetation from the sand, then pushing sand back up the slopes that washed down during the winter.  We will also be adding sand as needed over the next few weeks.

Many thanks to the staff for their hard work and dedication during these uncertain times.  The golf courses are in great condition and we're excited for the players to return!

Course Update 4/11/20

The golf courses may be closed, but the maintenance staff has been busy with a long list of items that can't be postponed.  Greens, tees, fairways have all been mowed several times and the rough is being mowed daily.  Greens have been core aerified and topdressed, and are healing nicely given our erratic weather.  Tee and fairway aerification are also planned for this time while the courses are closed to minimize disruption once everything re-opens.

Irrigation systems have been started for the year and we've had to replace a few older heads that couldn't be fixed.  Also had to troubleshoot electrical wiring issues.

All 29 putting greens have been core aerified and topdressed.  We used a .25" diameter tine on a 1.5"x1.5" spacing resulting in 72 holes per square foot.  We typically use a smaller tine in the spring for faster healing of the putting surface given our erratic weather.

Here's a closeup of a green just after being aerified.

We've had to get creative in cleaning up the putting surfaces with a smaller staff and fortunately an older piece of equipment came through for us.

Here's a recent shot of a green several days after topdressing, brushing, and rolling.  A few more warm days and all the holes should be closed.

The maintenance staff aren't the only ones taking care of the golf courses during this time.  Joe Boros and Jimmy Brahm have been out filling tee divots to ensure the courses are in the best possible condition once we re-open.  Thank you Joe and Jimmy!!

Course Update 3/19/20

Due to the unprecedented situation and concerns involving COVID-19, the Golf Operations Team has worked to find a solution to accommodate your desire to golf during this concerning time.  The health and safety of our Treesdale Community, both membership and staff, is of great importance and we hope you understand that the precautions listed below have the best interest of everyone in mind.  Thank you for your patience during this challenging period.

• All benches, rakes, divot mix bottles, and water coolers have been removed from the golf courses to minimize touching shared items.  We have also taken measures to prevent you from having to reach into the cup to retrieve your ball and ask that the flagstick not be touched or removed.  We will continue changing cups as needed based on weather and the amount of play.

• Due to the time of season, as well as concerns for your personal health and safety, the on-course restrooms will remain closed until further notice.

Several ideas were discussed, but we felt using 6" long sections of foam pool noodles slid over the flagstick were the best solution to prevent balls from rolling into the cups.

Course Update 3/9/20

Tree work continued last week and we addressed some areas that were postponed in previous years on Orchard 2, 4, 6, the Chipping Green, Driving Range Tees, and Grove 2.  In addition to tree work, we also corrected a drainage issue within the yellow hazard on Grove 2.

Clearing vegetation behind the gold and blue tees on Orchard 2 to allow for more sunlight.

The overgrown vegetation on Orchard 2 was choking out the turf on the back of the tees and surrounding rough.

This shot was taken last summer on Orchard 6.  A portion of the fairway was still obstructed by the trees on the right.

Here's the most recent view of Orchard 6 after removing 4 trees.

We removed these two Poplar trees that were growing too close to the Chipping Green.

Thin, weak turf along one of the bunkers at the Chipping Green caused by the Poplar trees.

Mature trees near Grove 2 green and bunkers creating less than ideal turf conditions.

Here's a better view of the lack of turf coverage around one the bunkers on Grove 2 caused by overgrown vegetation.

One of the trees on Grove 2 had a significant amount of rotted wood and was removed for safety reasons.

Easy to see how much decay there is once the tree was on the ground.

Water was draining onto the golf course from the yellow hazard (marsh area) below the tees on Grove 2 from years of sediment building up and diverting the water from the active drain.

We excavated the sediment on Grove 2 and re-established a channel for the water to reach the drain and not run onto the golf course.