Renovation of #3 Green

As with everything in life, greens, whether it be the turf covering the surface or the sand supporting the surface or the drain lines underneath the surface, have a life span.  Over the past several years #3 green has suffered from its poor growing environment and other factors to be a less than acceptable putting surface.  We have tried many different life support practices and have patched weak areas for years but the green still continued to go down hill and it was time for some exploratory and reconstructive surgery.

The issues that lead to the demise of #3 green compared to the other greens begins with its location.  Being located down in the "hole" as it is and surrounded by trees limits the amount of air movement to the green.  This lack of air movement along with the poor sunlight the green receives throughout the year restricts how quickly and well the green drains.  The excess moisture in the green complex has lead to anaerobic activity, leading to poor root development, increased disease pressure, weak canopy production, and the creation of surface algae.  Through the years we have tried many cultural practices to correct these issues, including aerification, DryJecting, and patching of the green.  None have been successful to bring the green back to where it needs to be.

So last week we began the renovation of the green by removing the top 4-5 inches of the green surface.  It took all day and a couple of changes in the process for the crew to get all the "bad soil" removed and stockpiled at the top of the hill for use in a later project.

The next step was to bring in 125 tons of new 85:15 greens mix from Golf Agronomics.  The new mix was spread and floated out across the green.  We were able to successfully disturb the top 2-3 inches of the existing greens complex by using the tracks of the Bobcat to fluff up the sand which I feel allowed for the new greens mix to blend with the existing green so we will not have a layer barrier and thus did not need to till the two layers together.

Once all the greens mix was added we spent some considerable time floating the sand out and moving it around inch by inch to ensure that once the grass was added to the surface we had created a fun and playable putting surface.  The contours of the green were changed significantly to give us more movement throughout the green, better surface drainage of the green, and increased our pinnable locations.  I think you will really like the subtle, but interesting, changes we made to the surface.

Renovating an ultradwarf bermudagrass green is definitely not something you would consider to be a winter project as warm season grasses need summer temperatures to grow but we are in a situation where closure of this green during the summer months was not an option, but this way we will enter next year with a newly grassed green.  The sod was delivered from Champion Turf Farms on Wednesday morning.  It took Thursday and Friday to install the 6,500 sq ft of sod.  I had forgotten how challenging laying small rolls of sod on a green could be but thanks to our dedicated agronomy staff we got it done, and done well.

Once the sod was down we rolled the green to smooth out the surface and ensure good sod to soil contact.  Willie is using a one ton roller to smooth out the green. You can see in the video how well the roller works.

The last step in finishing up the greens sod installation process was to use a Toro Hydorject 3000.  The Hydroject uses high pressure bursts of water, which you can hear in the video, which help to turn the roots of the grass toward the new soil.  This is probably the best method to smooth out a newly sodded area and help establish new roots.

It has surely been a process and a lot of work by our staff but the final product is one that we are very happy with.  There are still many steps to go, such as fertilizing, topdressing, more rolling and hydrojecting, and so forth.  By the spring we will have the greens surface ready for play and will hopefully not have to field the one question that I hated to hear, "What's up with #3 green?"

We thank you for all your patience and understanding as we continue to work to improve the golf course for your enjoyment.

Winter Projects for 2015-2016

Well the rumor mill is pretty active right now about what all we have on tap for this winter when it comes to course improvements.  As you may have noticed the parking lot has some new features being stockpiled in it which will be disappearing over the next couple of months.

The most important project is the renovation of #3 green.  We will begin this project on Monday the 23rd and it should take us a couple of weeks to complete if the weather cooperates.  We will move the pin to the top of the ridge in the fairway near the fairway bunker and play this hole as a par 3 while the green is being worked on and healing in.  We will be overly protective of this green this winter so I will not set a timetable for when it will reopen.  It could possibly be covered when other greens are not if the temperatures dictate it.

So what are we doing and why.  We will be removing the top 4-5 inches of the greens mix and replacing it with the new greens mix located in the parking lot.  The green will then be sodded using Champion Ultradwarf bermudagrass.  We will be rolling, hydorjecting, and topdressing the green throughout the winter months to prepare it for the spring. The work is being done to remove the excessive organic layer and various sand layers in the top of the soil profile which continues to restrict water and oxygen movement and producing the unhealthy turfgrass which we now have.

We have tried to modify the soil profile with standard core aerification, DryJect sand injection aerification, and many other ways not to have to take on this disruptive process but each year the green continues to get worse and it is time to rip off the band-aid and fix the problem.  I apologize for this minor inconvenience but the green will be much better moving forward and worth all the temporary pain.

Our biggest project which will take a couple of months to complete will be the installation of close to 5,000 linear feet of drainage pipe in the landing area on #10 fairway.  This area has struggled for the past several years due to lack of sun and poor infiltration and surface drainage.  We began correcting the issue this summer with the removal of select shade producing trees along the right side of the area.  This is one step but since the area has little to any surface slope we will need to install subsurface drain lines to remove the water and create a suitable surface for play.  The drain lines will start near the 150 yard marker and will continue every 10 feet toward the green moving across the fairway to a large collection pipe which will move the water to the lake.  We know this landing area has been a point of contention for many golfers this year and like our other projects we are going to fix it instead of patching it.  While we are working on this hole all tees will be moved to a teeing area about 100 yards from the green making this another par 3 for the winter.

Our other project that we will hopefully get to this winter is the continued installation of used railroad cross ties along the cart paths to eliminate erosion, direct water flow to surface drains, and to encourage golfers not to drive their golf carts in areas where they are not supposed to.  This will be third on our list and will most likely be carried out more toward the spring than during the winter months.

We will do everything in our power to not interfere with your round while we are making these much needed improvements to the course.  We trust that you will see the benefit shortly as we continue to work to make the course the best it can be.

Sprigging and Sodding from 2014 Winter Injury

We all enjoy seeing a snow fall across the golf course every now and then and while it is beautiful to look at the damage that cold temperatures and snow/ice cover leave behind can be felt for a very long time.  The winter of 2014 was very hard on turfgrass in the transition zone and we are still recovering from its effects.  We have worked to repair areas around the golf course, on greens, tees, and fairways, as possible.  This week and next we will complete our recovery efforts.

We had several small areas on the greens that did not recover and needed to be sodded or plugged. Our staff used the sod from our nursery/chipping green to make the repairs in the greens which turned out very well.  With the removal of so much plant material from the nursery it has been necessary to renovate the nursery again this season.  I guess that is what it was built for so we should use it as such. The process began last week with Willie and Tanner stripping any remaining turf from the surface, adding some new sand and smoothing and packing the surface.

The resprigging of the chipping green started this morning with a quick trip up to Knoxville where Champion Turf Farms was converting yet another golf course.  Upon returning to Harrison Bay it took us about an hour to introduce the sprigs to their new home.

Once the sprigs were completely spread across the green surface and had a quick drink of water they were "buried" in humate blended sand.  The sprigs were covered with enough sand so that they were barely visible.  This process will help protect them from drying out and from any movement by wind or water.  It also helps to begin the smoothing out process of the green during grow in.

Once the sprigs were sufficiently protected and they had another drink of water we used the bunker rake to pack or press the sprigs into the green.  This process will help the sprigs make better contact with the soil surface for better rooting.  I would have liked to have used a heavy roller or cutting tool but sometimes you have to use the best tool that you have available.

With favorable weather, the sprigs will take about 6-7 weeks to completely grow in and become a true putting surface like the rest of the golf course greens.  Until that time the chipping green area is closed to play.  Irrigation will be applied over the next several days on a regular interval so we ask that you stay clear of this area so you do not get wet by accident.

Other renovations to the golf course will include the finishing up of sod repair on #5 and #17 fairways.  The repairs on #10 and #15 have turned out very nice and we expect these two new areas to do the same.

We will also be placing sod on a couple of tee boxes and in some heavy traffic areas on and approaching greens.  Please be aware of these areas and avoid driving through, walking over, or playing from these areas until further notice.  We will not be placing ropes and signs around many of these areas since they are so small but we ask that you show care for the golf course and respect the hard work your golf course maintenance staff is putting forth to provide you with a high quality golf course.

Chipping Green Renovation Finally Complete

We have been working this summer to renovate and improve our short game practice area and today we were able to put the finishing touches on it.

This afternoon we removed the area at the bottom of the green and sodded it with new 419 bermudagrass.  We had hoped to carry the putting surface farther down the hill but the slope created issues with drainage and traction of the equipment used to maintain the green.

Since we have not had the greatest grow in weather this summer for the turfgrass we have a few thin areas on the green.  Willie and Jonathen took viable plugs from the area we were removing and placed them in the greens surface.  This will help the putting surface heal in quicker and be better for practice.

Once all the plugs were moved and the sod laid the area was cleaned up and watered.

It will take a couple of weeks to get the new sod and plugs to knit together and then we will have a vastly improved short game practice area from what we did just a few short months ago.

Special thanks to all the Bear Trace staff for all their hard work and for our friends at Champion Turf Farms for providing us with the sprigs.

Growing and Patching Greens

The change in the weather over the past week has done amazing things for our golf course.  We have been able to get the entire golf course mowed and we are off the paths on all holes for one of the first times this year.  The greens have responded great to the sunshine and are in the best condition they have been in some time.  Being able to get the course back in shape has allowed us to work on a few of the fine detail work this week, all in an effort to make the golf course even better.

We have a few weak areas on a couple of greens, mostly near the cleanup laps, which have failed to recover this summer due to the poor growing weather.  This week Willie and Jonathen spent a couple of days working on fixing these areas with some sod we received from Champion Turf Farms.  This area on #15 green is on the hump near the back bunker.

Willie cut out the bad area taking care to use the boards to turn on as to not damage any more of the green than necessary.

All the bad sod in the area is removed from the patch area.  Any usable sod for the corners was used in plug work on smaller areas.

After the area was packed and smoothed out the new sod pieces are carefully put in place and tamped down to insure good sod to soil contact.

After being trimmed and cleaned up the area was rolled and heavily watered. 

These patch areas are an unfortunate necessity but turned out extremely nice due to the care and concern of Willie and Jonathen.  It will take a couple of weeks for these areas to root in so we can begin mowing them down so in the meantime just consider them Ground Under Repair areas and take care to walk around these areas. 

Hopefully we will continue to have great weather for the rest of the season and we can play some golf.

Chipping Green Update

Well after a week of almost eight inches of rain we finally got out on the course to do some maintenance today.  It will take a few days of mowing to get the turfgrass back down to the heights that we are all used to, so please be patient with us.

 One thing we did today was remove the cover from the newly sprigged chipping/nursery green.  It has been nine days since Champion Turf Farms planted the green and with the very minimum sunlight we have had I was very surprised to see the sprigs greening up and trying to root down.

 The area down toward #10 tee which was added on is doing better than the original green area because of the lack of drainage in this new area and because of the high moisture holding capacity of this sand.  It might take the upper area a little bit longer to fill in but all in all it looks very good.

I am very pleased with the process of using the greens cover to protect the sprigs following sprigging.  We have had some very heavy rains over the past week and I can say almost certainly that if the sprigs had only been covered with topdressing sand we would have a pile of sprigs at the bottom of the hill.  I think the cover protected the sprigs from washing and also helped to heat up the soil or retain any heat generated during the day.  I also like the fact that the new sprig doesn't have to use any of its stored energy to emerge from a layer of sand, it can just start trying to root down.