The Tilling Continues

Yesterday, we had to stop the tilling of the greenside bunkers since the Yo-Yo tournament was starting and we wanted to give our best to all of the guest, as well as members, who showed to express support to one of our beloved past members.  So this morning we are starting back up again on the tilling of the bunkers working 18 backwards.  The goal is to have the bunker team which is working 1 forward to smooth these tilled bunkers before the Ladies Trophy Day tournament starts.

At this time of year with all of the events occurring it gets more and more difficult to get routine maintenance done before any events or without some kind of interference.  Rest assure the team will do its very best not to be too intrusive will preparing the golf course in the premier conditions that our members expect.  However, that being said, especially while doing bunker tilling if you find yourself in a tilled but not smoothed bunker consider it as GUR and enjoy a free lift from the bunker.

Founder's Went Well, Tilling starting Today

With the first big event of the year, The Founder's Cup, being complete everyone I talked to that played in the event seemed to enjoy the golf course conditions and the course itself.  We kept the greens rolling throughout the event about at 11 on the stimpmeter, but now with the event over we will be going back down to the 9.5 to 10 range ... on purpose.

Higher stimp speeds, although enjoyed by your lower handicappers, are not enjoyed by the majority of members due to the size of our greens and the limited pin placements on them.  Additionally, these higher speeds are quite harmful and stress the turf.

Today, besides our weekly foliar application of the greens we will start tilling of the green side bunkers.  Due to the type of sand we have here at Avondale this tilling at first will make them too soft thus conducive to foot printing by our team members as they rake them.  The issue will settle in a few days after tilling.

Founder's Cup Starts Today

Although there was some activities yesterday pertaining to the Founder's Cup today is the first day of the main event.  My team is dedicated in giving premier conditions for the event that exceed our already high levels of standards.

I am so proud of my team's hard work in cleaning the golf course after last weekend's major windstorm that reeked havoc on the trees.  The clean up efforts required numerous man hours and multitasking to keep the course prepared while removing three 30 yard dumpsters of fallen debris.

We hope everyone enjoys the event and has fun on the golf course.

Fertilizing Fairways & Rolling Greens

With the shotgun this morning we have several things that we have to get out of the way before it starts.  Today, we will be foliar fertilizing the fairways and double rolling the greens.  The reason for double rolling the greens is because our heavy roller has been for the most part out of commission this season.  This rolling is never as good as our heavy roller but will do in a pinch.

Spraying the Fairways with Fertilizer

Clean up of the golf course is almost 100% complete with a couple of smaller branches here and there.  Now we are going to focus on the cleaning of Country Club Drive which also suffered the effects of the wind storm on Saturday.

6's Green and Surround After Clean Up Efforts

The coots and ducks are starting to get use to the decoys and venture closer and closer everyday.  We move them a couple times per day but you as members can and are encouraged to move them anytime you are near one.  Before the weekend we will remove the decoy for a couple of days then return them on Monday.

Coots and Ducks Hanging with the Decoys

Topdressing Today

Why is it when plan events to better the greens someone on the crew calls in sick?  Well, of course, that happen today but the lightly topdressing the greens is critical in improving the speed and playability of the greens, thus we will continue with the plan.  Multitasking the team is becoming the norm anymore just to get the golf course prepped, and with equipment and personnel issues is becoming more of a challenge everyday.

Tomorrow, we are still planning the foliar application of fertilizers on the fairways and surrounds.  Even with the 8:00 am front nine shotgun we should be able to complete this task ahead of play.

Clean Up Progress

We are still cleaning the golf course with all hands on deck.  Total we will have 400+ man hours into the clean up by the time we are finished.  The good news is by the day's end today we will be 90% cleaned we minor small branches that require our attention.

Hydraulic Leak & Clean Up

Yesterday we discovered that that hydraulic leak that occurred on 1 and passed through 9 on its way to 1's fairway in fact began on 18.  We doubled checked the motors and hoses on the fairway unit to be sure and found no new leaks.  Ernie is treating the leak with charcoal.

Clean up is going slow due to the sheer amount of debris left from Saturday's wind storm that last night on Channel 3 News they said was the worst in 20 years.  So far we have mostly cleaned 8, parts of 10, 11 - 17, and most of 18.  We will finish those holes today and continue on the front nine with our clean up efforts and hopefully will be almost completed at the day's end.

Saving The Club Money

With having a safety risk with having bees in play while it was still dark we addressed the bee hive issue.  A couple of years ago I purchased a bee suit for my team to address bee hives in valve boxes which were costing the Club $500 each time we had to call to have them removed.

Well today we donned that suit on again and bagged up the bee hive.  We removed it from the area and thus later the remaining bees should dissipate considering the queen is gone.  Thus the team once saved the Club some money.

This is the Mess We Still Have to Deal With Today

Please remember today that the team is trying their best to clean the golf course thus it may be more intrusive than normal.

Clean Up & Bees

Due to the high winds Saturday afternoon the golf course was littered with debris and even a bee hive was blown out of a tree.  Caution should be used around 9's fairway and approach until the bees can be dealt with by their removal.  This most likely will require an outside vendor to address the problem.

Clean up process will continue today that we started yesterday and hopefully we will be finished before the Founder's Cup which is starting on Thursday.  This may mean that we will be slightly more disruptive just to complete the task for debris removal than usual but the good news is that the golf course will be sooner ready for everyone to enjoy.

High Winds Yesterday

One of Numerous Large Branches

Yesterday afternoon became very windy seeing gusts on 90+ mph in La Quinta and here at Avondale we experienced gusts over 60 mph according to the wind meter.  Numerous branches broke, debris was thrown all over the golf course and a large tree between 18's tee and 17's approach was blown over.

Lost Tree Near 17's Green

Our tree service company is coming out this morning at 7:00 am to address the fallen tree and I am having all the team members except the set up guy and another to roll the green ... both of these team member will also focus on blowing the debris off the greens just to make them playable.

Greens Loaded with Debris

Fairways and Roughs Even More Debris

An update:  We were only able to remove the largest items, blow the greens, roll the greens and set up pins.  Since it is the weekend the crew has to leave for now but rest assure we will addressing the issue tomorrow too.

Stuff and More Stuff

Today we are going to be lightly rolling the green and spraying them with the years first insecticide treatment to attack the grubs that are starting to grow.  Additionally, due to the vast area that was contaminated by the hydraulic leak we will be continuing the charcoal application on 1's fairway.

Hydraulic Leak on 1's Fairway

Gads .......... another hydraulic blow out occurred while my fairway unit was mowing 1's fairway.  Due to the moisture of the grass and the amount of daylight at the time of mowing, my operator did not notice the leak until over half of the fairways was mowed.

The Black Lines are Charcoal on the Hydraulic Leak

Of course the leak did not start on 1's fairway, it occurred on 18 upon leaving, thus the hydraulic line goes from the 18th hole, across 9's fairway, in front of 7's tee, across 6's fairway and then to 1's fairway when it was finally discovered after half of the fairway had been mowed.

Untreated Leak in Front of 7's Tee

We are treating the hydraulic leak with charcoal to aid in the recovery of the turf.  This is the same thing we did on 16 with quite a bit of success.  The sad part is only three days ago that hose was discovered to have any issue and was ordered, however, we received the hose 4 hours too late.  Good news is that other suspect hoses were also replaced so hopefully that will be the last leak we see for a while.

Frost & Its Causes

Once again this morning we had frost which led to a short delay.  But while informing the pro shop and coming up with a plan to get the golfers off as soon as possible someone stated there could not be frost because it wasn't in the thirties.  Let me assure you there was frost and on the golf course the temperature reached 38 degrees.

Here are some facts on frost:  First, the temperature gages on the walls at you home or at the pro shop show only the temperatures in areas where there is radiant heat of the building and concrete.  Second, I have seen frost in temperatures as high as 44, and not seen any in temperatures as low as 36 degrees.  So why such a big temperature range?  Well there are many factors that led to the development of frost including but not limited to dew point, night irrigation, humidity, wind or lack there of, shade and of course temperature.

The point is to always check with the pro shop before entering the golf course if the temperature is below 48 degrees or 50 at your home.  Due to the topography of golf courses and other issues frost can be waiting for you to guess wrong and leave permanent damage to the turf as in the picture below caused by my team.

Damage Near 9's Green By My Team -- Still There After a Month

Spraying Fairways Today

Depending on the weather (how cold) we will be foliar spraying fertilizers today to continue to add color and thickness to them.  In most cases my team member is completed long before play starts.  Additionally, we will be training our two new employees (long overdue) on mowing greens so that any team member in the maintenance department can help anywhere we need them.

Coyotes had puppies ... just kidding, but we did receive four more decoys and placed them around the property.  I do ask that we do not shoot these decoys.

Bunker testing is progressing well but so far we haven't found a rake (four styles tested now) that will achieve what we are looking for in their presentation.  I have an another style ordered and we will try that one too.

Fertilizer and Its Importance

A friend sent me this picture from a golf course in the Valley that show just how important fertilize is to having a high end golf course.  The entire area was seeded and the green spot is where the dog did its business.  Due to budget reductions he was able to seed the area but not fertilize therefore the ryegrass will not grow except where the dogs do the thing.

To a much lesser extent this is what you see in our roughs ... plenty of seed yet slightly yellowing since with the rising costs of fuel and fertilizer (both almost 100%+ in the past two years) has forced us to mainly concentrate in the greens, fairways and tees.  Mind you this is not a bad thing just explains the "thinking outside the box" that superintendents have to do to produce the best product we can with the resources we have currently.

Thankfully, Avondale is looking great and getting better each day.

Bunker Test

Before

During

After Completion

Frost??

It is cold enough this morning and always at sunrise it gets colder ... thus please check with the pro shop before entering the golf course.  So far this morning there isn't any frost but we still need to be careful as the sunrise occurs.

Rocks in Bunker

You may notice that we put 12's bunker back under GUR.  Well the truth is that the sand we got for free had rocks in it ... we thought we got them all but sadly no we did not.  Thus, we are removing all of the added sand and using it for fill in the hole that we are going to dig in the back of the range to get better soil for the bunker.  Sorry for the inconvenience.

Cold Upcoming Week

Jack Frost is back again and this week is expected to get back to the thirties again.

With potential frost in the mornings I ask you please to check in with the pro shop to determine when it is safe to drive the golf course.  We are almost at the end of the frosty time so help the maintenance team keep your golf course in fantastic shape by not driving or even walking on the golf course until the frost has lifted.

Bunker Testing & New Rake

This morning we had some issues with the new rake thanks to our high organic matter and fines sand in the bunkers.  We were finally able to smooth the wet sand but it was taking twice as long as it should ... we will be testing other rakes soon.

4's Right Front Greenside Bunker Rake with New Rake

Additionally, being slightly behind thanks to a two and half hour frost delay we got started on the test bunkers.  !0's test bunker, front right, we tilled deeply, watered in and smooth and is already back open for play.

10's Right Front Greenside Bunker After TIlling

10's Right Front Greenside Bunker Upon Completion

10's bunker is so soft it is difficult to smooth out and will take a couple irrigation cycles to become smooth again.  We also added sand to the front right bunker on 12 but sadly this sand that we had was full rocks and took a while to clean ... it will be back open for play today at the end of the maintenance team's shift.

12's Right Front Greenside Bunker After Having Blow Sand Added

The last test bunker located on 11's left side front of the green will take a bit longer to complete.  Due to sod being added it hopefully will be completed today and will be GUR for at least another week after.

11's Front Left Greenside Bunker Marked and Ready to Go

Soil Line Dropped on 11's Greenside Bunker

Heavy Rolling Greens

Today, we have frost again ... please check with the pro shop before entering the golf course.

Trying the new rakes this morning ... so far they are not working on the wet sand ... they worked fine on dry, but not wet.  It appears that this model of rake thanks to the high organic matter content and fines ends up "smearing" the wet sand that we have in the morning caused by the irrigation at night.  We still will continue the test this morning but be aware the results may be less than desired.  Other styles of rakes are coming in soon to test.

We were going to heavy roll the greens today but even after recent repair the Greens Iron roller is having difficultly working correctly.  We may have to use the light roller instead.

Course Updates

Hydraulic Leak on 16's Fairway -- Dark Color is Just Charcoal

First, the hydraulic leak across 16's fairway ... we got charcoal on the leak it looks like just in time. The impact and damage seems to be quite minimal and recovery should occur very soon.

The Green Color is the Algae Bloom

The faint "funky" smell coming from the lakes ... well, this is weather related and is due an algae bloom that is occurring.  We are treating the lake today and the other two smaller ponds as well.  This should limit the algae bloom by blocking the photosynthesis of the algae.

Dying Tree Next to 6's Green

Dead and dying tree.  We have another one of our pine trees fading into the sunset.  This tree is located near 6's green and has only one small live branch remaining.  We will keep an eye on it to see if removal is necessary.

The New Type Rake for Avondale

New bunker rakes for the maintenance staff just got in today.  We testing the first and only new rake we got today and it appears that the surface is smoother than it is with the fan rakes.  Tomorrow we will be testing it in the morning to evaluate its performance.  If all goes well we will be purchasing more and this will be the new rake that the team will be using.

Left Side Fan Rake -- Right Side New Rake

Left Side New Rake -- Right Side Old Fan Rake

Fertilization Today

Today we are going to be finishing the fertilization of the tees and fairways.  All we have remaining is the practice area and holes 1 - 3.  We will be finished long before play and the ladies Eclectic shotgun at 8:15 am.

Yesterday was a day of equipment repair in which we repaired our heavy roller for the greens, installed the new tank on the pull behind sprayer (which is used to foliar fertilize the fairways), and assorted other broken pieces of equipment.

Tomorrow, the test bunkers will be installed thus please remember that any roped off bunkers are considered GUR.

Topdressing Greens Today

This morning we will be lightly topdressing the greens.  The topdressing aids in smoothing out the greens, speed and removal of the ballmarks.  Sometimes at first this process slows the greens slightly but overall improves the quality of the surface.

Tomorrow, we will be finishing the fertilizing that we started on Tuesday of the fairways and the tees.  Good news, we just got our 300 gallon tank thus we should be starting the foliar fertilizing program again quite soon.

Green Committee Decisions

10's Test Bunker -- Deep Tilling

Yesterday, the monthly meetings of the Golf & Green Committees met.  The following are some of the decisions that were made:
1)  To preform a couple of test bunkers to see if we can increase their desirability.
           - One on 10's front right
                  - will be deep tilled, watered in and have the edges pulled up
           - One on 11's front left
                  - will have the sod line pulled down.
           - One on 12's front right
                  - will have plain blow sand added.

11's Test Bunker -- Sod Line Moved Down

2) Bunkers will have edges always raked -- in or out alternating
3) Rake handles will be labeled stating their location -- outside for now.
4) DR tee will be mowed in a way to eliminate the front and back slope.
5) The Poa Annua will be killed in 4's nursery.
6) Cart paths will be blown by day's end of days they are edged.
7) Green speed will be kept to 9.5 to 10 
       - currently they are slightly higher than wanted.

12's Test Bunker -- Blow Sand Addition

As you can see most of the issues addressed the bunkers and our team is working hard on this issue to improve.  The test bunker project will start on Friday and these areas will be roped and considered at first GUR.

Hydraulic Blow Out on 16's Fairway

Two other notes:  We have treated the massive hydraulic leak on 16's fairway that occurred last Friday and seed has been applied.  Second, the tree on 5's right side in front of the bunker in the fairway has been tabled after a split decision.

Start of the Real Season -- Play Increasing

I was a church yesterday ... much needed during these times ... and the service or sermon was about community.  It so reminded me of Avondale and the glue that keeps us going even during troubling times in the Nation.  I see this from the long-term employees, to the Board and Committees, to the members themselves wanting nothing more than the success of Avondale -- my team and I as well strive for this success.  As we go into the season's heart I promise that we will stop short of nothing, given the resources we have, to offer in fulfilling this enjoyment for our membership.  Critical times require this sense of community to succeed and here at Avondale we have plenty of that to offer.

Please Don't Shoot

Please Don;t Shoot Me -- I am Here to Help

Two days ago we put out a coyote decoy to see if we could scare the coots away.  This decoy is quite realistic as we found out yesterday when someone ended up shooting it ... by the way, he is quite dead.

Nice Head Shot -- Wiley Said It Did Not Hurt However

It was some good shooting.  The decoy was hit bot in the head and in its center mass.  This decoy will be move daily at least in rotation around the lake on 5, 6, and 8.

Weekend is Coming

With the warmer weather this week for the first time all season we will be using the fairway drag mats to disperse the clippings left behind by the fairway units.  Additionally, we are seeing a great deal of recovery in the phythium weaken areas and in the golf course in general.

This weekend we are back staff to weekend normal shifts which mean that we will be preforming all required maintenance tasks.  I know the holidays the detail is less than we would like but now with the holidays over the detail can be addressed again.

Green Speed ... What is the Deal?

The past two weeks have seen almost an everyday frost delay and the slight off-coloring of the golf course.  During that time the green's roll and speed were in the words of several lower handicapper golfers ... perfect.  Well, what happened?

Over the weekend with Green Committee and Board approval we maximized our limited labor during the holidays by only bringing in a set up person and supervisor the prep the course for play -- note: no issues were noted on the weekend and most of the few that played did not even notice.  However, starting Sunday afternoon we have had three days of near or record high temperatures which led to a flush of growth.  The golf course is a natural system effected by natural events.

Monday, with the whole crew except one on vacation, we were back at taking care of the golf course.  The first day back, the cut of the greens that were allowed to grow since Friday's cut did not get the purest of cuts ... but by Tuesday they were back smooth.  The good news is that Monday was a slow day and allowed us to get caught back up after saving the Club a great deal of money.  On Tuesday, we notice that the flush of growth needed to be addressed thus we lowered the HOC (height of cut) and as with Monday addressed imperfections in the greens from un-repaired ballmarks to a couple bad plugs ... which by the way we still are addressing.

Wednesday, once again we lowered the HOC for today and restarted the rolling program since the frost seems to left for the season.  Turf such as the less than 0.100 inch that is found on the greens stresses during the frost periods and has to be addressed in a sensitive manner especially with the poor percolation push up greens we have at Avondale.  Trust me ... it is quite easy to kill these greens in the name of speed.

Well, the good news is that what occurred is natural and normal, and is back under control.  From here on out, weather permitting we will be bringing back our weekly topdressing and rolling.  If you have any questions concerning the greens -- call me, I promise I know exactly what is going on and the pro shop (although great golfers) doesn't.  That is why we attended two different colleges ... theirs I am unsure of but mine focused on soil chemistry (that is what I got my Master's in) and turfgrass science (got one of my three Bachelors degrees in).

The Importance of Scattering

Why is it important to scatter?  And what exactly does scattering mean?  These are two great questions whose answer is extremely critical to the health and durability of our seasonal turf -- ryegrass. 

Traffic Wear on Right Side, No Damage on Left Due to Ropes

First, what does scattering mean?  Well, scattering means that instead of always taking the easiest path or the one that get you you there a couple of milliseconds sooner ... choose a path that others have not already driven that day or the day before.  Additional to looking where your golf ball landed taking a moment or two to select an "unworn" path will not only save the turfgrass for the season but will give you better lies, better playability, a more aesthetically pleasing golf course to show off to your friends and guests, and lastly (but not limited too) money savings in the way of repair costs which are slow and ineffective (for the most part) with seasonal turf.  SO SCATTER!

More Traffic Damage ... This Also Occurs In Front of Tees to Lesser Extent

Why is it important to scatter?  One look at a country road explains this better than I ever could.  On a limited use, driving the same tracks country road the compaction quickly limits then kills the turf where the tires make contact with the ground.  This can happen with only a couple of cars per day.  Now, imagine the same thing happening on a golf course with 200 carts per day ... yuck, roads and dead grass everywhere.  SO SCATTER!

Growth & Stakes

With the warmer weather we are experiencing a flush of growth with the turf.  The next two days a supposed to be near record highs ... this is so amazing since the last three weeks have been filled with frost in the mornings.  Never let it be said that Mother Nature doesn't have a perverse sense of humor.  Today we will be addressing the leaves that fell during the cold weather and additionally blowing the clippings that have started due to the warm weather ... sounds kind of like an oxymoron.

The exit and entrance stakes have been installed, and the ropes have been lessened.  To prevent undue traffic wear it is critical that you scatter ... or the turf will be damaged.

And to those who watched my Gators kick some tush yesterday ... I hoped you enjoyed it.  I was working and missed the game but the highlights were quite fun to watch.

Today's Events

This morning we will be spraying the greens with fertilizer to aid in their overcoming the recent cooler weather.  This process will be completed before play and should not effect anything.  However, later we will be addressing the bunker faces and their weed eating ... this will be during play but the team has been instructed to stay out of the way the best they can while still getting the job done.  This becomes more difficult as the play increases and can double or triple the time required to finish a task.

Please remember the team wants the very best for you and wants to do their best to work hard.  Unlike most industries my employees have to work hard without effecting the play ... a difficult task being quite but working your hardest.

Blue tops stakes are going out today.  Please scatter and use them.

Entrance & Exit Stakes

Just a heads up ... starting tomorrow we will be putting out and using the blue topped entrance and exit stakes.  The scatter boards will be removed this week and the ropes and stakes will be reduced.  Please remember to scatter to save the turf.

My Return from Vacation

My Parents old Farm House on the Coast of Maine

As many of you just after Christmas I went home to see my family and spend some pleasant hours catching up over the year, discussing family issues, and relaxing over good food.  My parents are in Maine so that is where we went ... it is a bit warmer here.

With the season about ready to go into full swing my team is ready to give their very best to ensure you and your guests have a pleasant and enjoyable time while golfing here at Avondale.