Because Bad Things Happen

 So, what do you do all winter?  Every full- time golf course employee is posed with this question again and again, year after year.  Golf maintenance is, by nature, an occupation which is largely intended to be appreciated while being unseen.  It is understandable that one might assume that little golf maintenance is accomplished during the winter months- after all we're certainly not on the golf course when we have eight inches of snow and sub- zero temperatures.  This assumption could not be further from the truth. 

To put it simply, we utilize the winter months for preparedness.  We are preparing for the hustle and bustle of the golf season in all facets of our operation.  We've outlined various winter activities in the past which included the tangible stuff our membership has likely experienced at one point or another.

Today we are taking the time to outline preparedness of a different type, which we address each off- season.  We have administrative and compliance requirements just as any other organization or workplace.  This year we have spent time preparing for disaster- because bad things do happen.  Proper preparation can reduce the impact of catastrophic events such as fires, thefts, inclement weather, and employee injuries.

We recently performed an inventory of our entire maintenance facility.  A thorough, well documented inventory is intended to protect the club in the event our maintenance facility is destroyed or falls victim to criminal activity.  We already knew how expensive our golf course equipment was- $1.1 million in mowers, tractors, and vehicles used to keep the course pristine.  Throughout the past few days we have cataloged everything else in our maintenance facility- approximately $375,000 in total- from inspirational artwork to tools and toilet scrubbers.  These materials are in place to support our staff, machinery, and the golf course.  This process had not been completed this thoroughly in some time and was an eye- opening experience.         

 We collected serial numbers, took over 275 photographs, and made a video tour of our shop and everything in it.  We paid special attention to high value items which would likely be targeted by thieves, such as hand tools.

 We also utilized various internet shopping outlets to put a value to that which we had cataloged to ensure that our facility is properly insured in the event that we have a catastrophic event which results in a total loss of our shop and everything in it.  We were shocked when we researched replacement costs- especially for items which have been around for a very long time.  For example, the bench top vise in the photo above would cost approximately $4,000 to replace!  Hopefully Wakonda Club never falls victim to the unthinkable and we can forget about this documentation until next winter.  It does give us peace of mind knowing that we have taken steps to prepare for disaster. 

'Tis the Season

   As you all left your homes this morning, you noticed a small layer of snow and ice covering the ground. Unfortunately, the time of year has arrived to prepare the golf course for winter.

   In the past couple of weeks, we completed part of our winterization procedures. We began by taking down the nets that outline our driving range. Fortunately, this process is much less time consuming than the spring net installation and typically only takes a day to complete.

   A few days later, we began to drain our irrigation system in preparation for winterization. Once the irrigation lines have thoroughly been drained throughout the entire golf course, we bring in a giant air compressor to blow air into the system and push out the remaining water. It is vital that our air pressure is not set too high so we do not damage any irrigation lines or heads.

   In the past few days, we began removing most of the course equipment from the golf course; this includes: tee markers, fairway and tee plaques, trash cans, benches, and ball washers. All of this equipment is stored in our maintenance facility and it will be refinished and looking like new before the next golf season.

   Yesterday, we installed green's covers to all the practice greens and back-nine. Before a cover can be installed, each green receives a heavy topdressing which helps protect the surface during the extreme winter months. The green's covers are then pulled tight across each green and stapled every two-to-three feet around the perimeter. Hundreds of staples are used for each green, but this is important to prevent any of the covers from being blown off in high winds of winter.

 
   At this point, the front nine is still open for play; blue and red tee markers are still present and the greens are uncovered. Weather depending, the front nine will remain open for play until after Thanksgiving. We hope you've all enjoyed the 2013 season as much as we have! 

#12 Forward Tee

We've been hard at work on #12 this month.  If you've been wondering what we're up to, the structure is going to be a new forward tee.  The old tee is very small and gives players a very poor angle to the fairway due to the growth of trees located along the player's right. 

Old tee showing limited shot options.

The new tee will give a much better angle to the fairway and will open the hole for multiple shot options for all players.  This tee is also much larger.  The idea is to be able to place multiple sets of tee markers, allowing this hole to be played as a driveable par 4 from the blue tees.  We feel this wrinkle will add some fun and excitement from time to time, but we do not intend to place the tees forward very often for pace of play concerns.

Building the base to elevate the new tee.

 

Thoroughly drained.

Sand capped

Sod and seed.

 It is late to establish turf via seed, but plants established from seed usually always fair better over time.  We did not want to harvest sod from our bentgrass nursery for two reasons.  First, the tees are a different variety of turf than the fairways and we want the new tee to match perfectly.  Second, the differing soil properties would not be compatible and would require us to "wash" the sod (removing the soil from the roots) which is incredibly painstaking.  We will be utilizing a grow cover to give the seed a better chance.  Purchasing washed bentgrass sod is a more expensive option we could go to in the spring should Mother Nature not cooperate this fall. 

Managing Water in Drought Conditions

Water management for golf course turf varies when you consider what soil and turf type is present in each area.  At Wakonda Club, my two assistants (Jim and Shawn) and I are constantly monitoring weather patterns, soil types, and turf needs to apply water when needed.

Below you will find some interesting facts on how we create a beautiful golf course, even when mother nature is not cooperating.

•  Greens - Our new A1/A4 greens are very heat and moisture tolerant, meaning they hold up exceptionally well in dry/hot weather.
• Tees - Our tees are built on a sand base so they drain really well; therefore, requiring more water than the fairways and greens.
• Fairways - We have a nice stand of Penn Eagle II/Penn Links II bentgrass with some Poa annua mixed in. "Poa" is a shallow rooted plant that cannot withstand high temperatures and no rain. So, to keep this plant alive during hot, dry conditions, we water more frequently, resulting in softer fairways at times - especially in the valleys.

 Technology

• This season we are monitoring turf moisture with the help of the TDR 300 moisture meter - this device gives us a volumetric moisture reading in the soil. We use this data to set up the irrigation system each night.

• The irrigation system is run by a series of computer programs that control over 800 irrigation heads on the golf course. Each head is set to run different, for example, the hills receive more water than the valleys. This system is very sophisticated, but not perfect.

• This year we have implemented the use of soil wetting agents on tees and fairways. This product helps the soil absorb moisture more evenly and has helped us produce better playing conditions.

• To date, we are using 60,000 gallons less water/day compared to last year under similar environmental conditions. 

#1 Fairway 2012

#1 Fairway 2013

Tree Work

We recently had a few trees removed for various reasons and I thought I would give a summary of what's happening for those who might be interested.


We lost a tree on the left side of #14 in early July.  This tree was hollow inside and simply split in half under it's own weight.

# 14

#14

You can see the hollow cavity extending down to the base of the tree which is facing the camera.

 Below are pictures from the left side of #1.  This tree was in serious decline for the past several years and it did not produce a single leaf this spring/ summer.  This tree had such a prominent location on the first hole so we had an arborist inspect it before cutting it down.  We discovered some uniquely shaped concrete blocks lodged in the tree when we attempted to remove the stump.  The blocks are stacked together and we think they were some sort of post (possibly a property marker) at one point?  The tree likely started growing or was planted near the post and probably enveloped it as it grew.

You can see the concrete post in this view.  This was certainly not beneficial to the health of the tree and was devastating to our chain saws.

We had to carve the stump apart around the posts.  We ruined several saw chains and broke two saws in the endeavor.

A picture of the concrete post at #1.

To the left of #18 fairway we had a large oak that was struck by lightning.  It was splintered and split in dramatic fashion.  Again, we found some strange objects in this stump.  It took several hours of carving with a saw and swinging a sledgehammer to dislodge the foreign objects in preparation for stump removal.

This photo shows the treasures we found in the tree left of #18.  Eight bolts and a very large chunk of concrete were found in this stump.

Irrigation Repairs

I've never made irrigation repairs in the snow.... there's a first time for everything.

17th Hole Progress

   During the past couple of days, we experienced a nice break in the cold and rainy weather pattern that we've been stuck in, which allowed us to finally focus our efforts on preparing the 17th hole approach for bentgrass sod. Many hours were spent hand-raking and perfecting the soil sub-grade before the new sod could be laid out. Once we were satisfied with the soil preparations, we began to cut all of the necessary sod from our large bentgrass nursery, which you may have seen on the driving range.

Carefully laying out the new bentgrass sod.

The finished product.

   We are extremely happy with how the approach turned out. In the coming weeks, we will be fertilizing and frequently topdressing the approach so it can be ready to withstand excessive play. Also, we will be installing bluegrass sod around the approach and bunker to finish up the area.

   Also, we were able to finish our green's aerification on the golf course, yesterday. To date, aerification has been completed on the greens, tees and fairways. We still plan to aerify all the collars and approaches once the weather clears again.