Wednesday, December 8, 2021

December update

 We have moved into the detail phase of the driving range project. The cart path and parking areas have been shaped and 4" of crushed limestone has been smoothed over the top. The driving range mat areas are framed and in the process of having the concrete base poured. In addition, the chipping green and practice tee bunkers are being edged and filling in with sand.

The three pin oak trees at the top of the chipping green area are casting a significant amount of shade over the bentgrass green and need to be removed. This has already caused a poor growing environment for the newly seeded area. We have been battling some disease pressure because of the lack of sunlight to evaporate the morning moisture causing prolonged leaf wetness on grass blades. The increased moisture presence is a catalyst for many turf diseases and one in particular that has already occurred is damping off disease. Also, the trees are causing a tremendous amount of late fall and winter shade. Shade in the fall and winter hinders the grass to recover from the long, hot summer. This causes the grass to be weak in the spring and it may not have enough time to recover before summer heat occurs once again. In addition, the winter shade causes the green to freeze for longer periods of time, consequently, causing it to be closed more often. When growing in a green we need to optimize the amount of time it receives sunlight so it can become thick, healthy and ready for play as soon as possible. Once these three pin oaks are removed mounding will take its place and viburnum shrubs will be planted to block any errant golf balls coming from hole 6. For more information on shade and turf click here or click here for a previous post on trees and turf.


sand added to practice tee bunker

form for driving range mats

crushed limestone cart path in new chipping area


3 pin oaks set to be removed

pin oaks casting shade on new chipping green for the majority of the day

Damping off disease on new chipping green


Phase two of the driving range project is already on deck. This will begin during the winter months with removing of trees above the north range tee. Also, the dump area will be cleaned out and the cart path reworked. I will continue to update as this phase begins.

Holes #4 and #8 are healing in since the golf preservation project. They do have some scalping that occurred, and we have been watering them daily, however, the growing season has quickly come to a close and we may have to wait until the spring for these areas to fully recover. 

Hole #13 is just starting to root in. We have rolled and mowed the green using the walking greens mowers, but the sod has to become more rooted and stable before we can begin to get our bigger roller and topdresser on the green.  Also, we are mowing the green at .200" and we are mowing the other greens at .130" during the growing season. They recommend lowering the height by .005" every week until the desired height is reached. So once the turf begins growing in the spring it will take 14 weeks before the turf is at the same height as the other greens. In addition, right now the green is extremely bumpy and will need a significant amount of topdressing before it will be smooth enough for play. Obviously, because of all these factors it may be until mid-summer before this green is rolling like the others. This green will be closed until mid spring- mid April or early May.

The crew has been busy getting the course ready for winter. The fertilization is almost complete, and the irrigation system has been blown out for the season. Leaf removal is ongoing, and it will take some time before the oak trees are done unloading their leaves. 

The winter tree and limb removal list has been created. Many of the trees that are being removed are dead or diseased trees. Again, we are having issues with oak trees, in particular, becoming infected with ganoderma root rot. Also, some of the black locust trees have some fungal growth issues and need to be cut down. Some pin oak trees under cart paths have significant dead limbs that need removed and some limbs blocking fairway shots will be addressed. In house tree work will address many of the smaller dead trees that have to be removed.

pin oak root removed from #11 farway

area of exposed pin oak roots in #11 fairway


The landscaping team, headed by Kyle Brater, is in the process of making a garden wall next to the new paver area by #1 tee. The verdin clock plaque has been installed on the pro shop wall, with landscape lighting to illuminate it at night. The landscaping around this area has been removed and we will be replacing it with new trees and shrubs that are the right size and add color interest to this busy intersection.

Garden wall installation. The New landscaping will follow.


As we enter the winter season, I think it is important to touch upon winter closures and course conditions. There are five main reasons why the course may be closed or delayed during winter months.  They are snow, frost, frozen ground, thawing ground, and very wet conditions. The first is fairly obvious- finding a white, or even colored golf ball, after a snowstorm is virtually impossible and trying to putt would be comical. Snow does provide insulation from low temperatures and winter winds; however, melting snow can refreeze and cause crown hydration injury. Frost and frozen ground can cause significant damage to the turf when walked or driven on. Thawing ground can cause root damage from foot traffic when the top layer of soil is thawed, and the lower layer is still frozen. Any traffic during this scenario will break/shear the roots in between the two layers and footprints will be visible for months before they heal. Wet ground is also very common this time of year from the freezing, thawing, heavy rainfall, low evapotranspiration rates, and the dormancy of the turf (prohibiting any water uptake). Walking on highly saturated soil will cause deep footprints that will create craters and unevenness especially prevalent on putting greens. The golf course will have to be closed at times during the winter to prevent negative turfgrass damage. For more information on winter play closures click on this informative article by the USGA.  or this USGA video or this USGA video on root shearing.


Brad Piecuch

Grounds Superintendent