My Thoughts On Cartpaths

I couldn't come up with a catchy heading for what appears to be a touchy subject at the Royal Mayfair so my apologies for the bland title. The subject matter on the other hand promises to be anything but boring. Keep in mind the following are just thoughts based on my experience at other clubs, conversations with architects, fellow superintendents and golfers.

Since arriving at the club and getting hints of a proposal to change the cartpaths I have made a point to look at the background of any picture that has to do with a golf course or a specific golf hole. These pictures are from courses all over the world. Public and private. Low end to high end. Old and new. While we all look at green grass (or not) I'm also looking at cartpaths. Are they concrete, asphalt, gravel or some other hardscape material (paving stone for example)? The overwhelming choice seems to be asphalt or concrete. Why? Lets break it down. But first I will state that the best cartpath you have is one you don't notice. Either it is strategically placed or so well constructed it is merely an afterthought to the playability of the hole.

Paved/asphalt paths allow the continued use of power carts during inclement weather. Around here that usually means rain but it can also aid a course during drought. Paved paths tend to keep carts cleaner throughout the round. Paved paths allow the installation of concrete curbing to keep carts off turf next to tee complexes and green sites. These zones are 2 areas at the Royal Mayfair that show considerable wear and tear if there isn't a row of railroad ties nearby. Paved paths mean less labour allocated to upkeep. Gravel paths are very labour intensive to keep smooth and they tend to get dusty at times. That labour can then be shifted to another area of the course that is more important to your round of golf.

Are paved paths without problems? No. Tree roots can cause heaving over time. Keep in mind though that those same roots will heave a paving stone path as well. Also, pavement doesn't look as nice as a concrete or paving stone surface but it is just a "path". Asphalt used to be a problem when we all had steel spikes in our golf shoes but that's a non issue now. Do you get the occasional bad bounce off a hard surface path when you hit a poor shot? Yes but remember that bad bounce was the result of a "bad" shot.
Here at the Royal Mayfair it has to be asked just how much of the cartpath system, as it exists, would result in a bad bounce from a good or slightly poor shot? 10%? Food for thought.

Lets assume the club decides to hard surface most of the cartpaths. Preparation of the base is basically the same process/cost for asphalt, concrete or paving stone. That variable can then be put aside when deciding what option to proceed with. The laying down of an asphalt surface is much quicker than a paving stone option especially on a very long path or one with corners and gradual turns and in my experience there aren't too many straight paths on a golf course! Concrete curbing (the exposed aggregate style is very common) can be laid down on both asphalt and paving stone but I have not seen it on stone work. Apparently it has been done at Pinebrook Golf and CC in Calgary. My last point concerns cost. I don't have exact figures on hand but knowing what a similar path at Highlands GC cost to pave compared to the paving stone path on #6 the paving option is considerably less expensive. The  exposed aggregate concrete curbing used at Highlands (and most other courses) was taller in height and much more pleasing to the eye as well.  Remember, just my opinion but.......

I think that is enough said for now other than I believe asphalt paths are probably the most economical and proven option to dramatically improving the aesthetics of our paths and adjoining turf areas at the Royal Mayfair. There will always be polar opposites regarding this issue but I would like to get a feel for what the majority of the membership feels about all of the above. Until next time, Merry Christmas.

Cross Country Skiing Do's And Dont's

The following is a very short list of do's and dont's. Do enjoy your time on the course. Don't ski across greens and tees. Please. Yes the putting green counts as a green. Maybe it wasn't a member who skii'd across it earlier this week. Now you are asking, "Why not?"or, "How come we can ski across fairways and the rough and not the greens or tees?" Good question.

Here's the answer based on my experience. Basically ice eventually kills all turf if it covers it long enough. If that is good enough for you great. If not read on. Compressed snow has its insulating value severely reduced. If further accumulations of snow do not cover ski tracks, for example, ice can form whenever warm weather arrives. Add this variable to the type of turf under the snow or ice and this is when real problems can arise. The two types of turfgrass on our greens and tees each have their own tolerance to how long they can survive under an ice layer. I won't go into how long as research has shown it can vary greatly depending on mutiple factors. Suffice to say bentgrass can survive much longer than Poa annua (annual bluegrass). The problem here is that both species are present on our greens and tees. The greens and tees are also cut very short so it is much easier for ice to form around the crown of each plant. The crown is very important being the focal point of all turfgrass growth. Kill the crown, kill the plant no questions asked. The turf on the fairways (more reslient to our winter issues) can withstand much longer periods of ice cover and even thicker ice. To a point. Ski tracks usually are not a problem as the turf is cut higher on the fairways and it takes a lot more ice to encase the plant.  However, mid winter thaws can create pools of ice on the fairways that will leave dead grass in the spring.

I'd ask you to just trust me on the above but we hardly know each other. You can research this on your own or talk to others about it. Remember that skating rink your mom or dad made for you in the backyard when you were younger? If they got lucky and flooded it when all conditions were in favour of the lawn it might be okay in the spring. More often than not the lawn didn't look so good in May. So instead of hoping things will turn out for the good this spring lets mitigate the chance of ice forming on our putting and teeing surfaces by doing our best to stay off them. Your help is greatly appreciated as Mother Nature likes to give us all the ice we can handle sometimes.

In closing, we have the track making equipment in place. All we need now is more snow (and some practice) and you should then have some pretty good trails to glide along this winter.