The Week Ahead And Fairway Divots

The maintenance program of consistent, light topdressing on greens, tees and approaches has begun as you may have noticed. It is all part of our plan to establish firmer playing surfaces, reduce excessive thatch and mat in the profile and improving the overall health of the most important areas of the golf course. Other cultural practices are also underway for improved turf health but they are more subtle procedures (yet no less important).


Maintenance bullets for the coming week:

• Light topdressing of the greens early Tuesday morning (Monday will not work this time). Have my assurance that they will roll smooth and consistent for Ladies Day and that topdressing on Tuesdays will not become a trend.
• Double cutting of greens to begin June 1st (Monday to Friday as the norm).
• Aeration and overseeding of any haul road area that was not sodded (right side of #3 for example).
• Continued broadleaf weed spraying including a general application on all fairways to begin knottweed control (that bright green, tiny leaf plant invading any weak area of our fairways - usually a location where Poa annua is prevalent.
• Greens repair on #15 and #16. Spiking/sand/seed on smaller areas and some collars as required.
• Solid tine aeration of the chipping green as we move that surface to something more similar to the rest of the course.
• Establishment of a collar at the warmup green. We will be removing some of the bluegrass and adding a strip of bentgrass to give the same look as the practice green but obviously not as wide.
• Keep reminding my staff to quit scalping that new collar when mowing the practice green. Sheesh!! 

Fairway Divots

I have explained my thoughts on fairway divot repair in the upcoming June Newsletter. Basically I would prefer that any divot be replaced and then a light layer of sand/seed from the bottle be applied on top. It is the best of both worlds. It isn't just an unsightly divot left to fend for itself and its certainly not a mini bunker (a hole with some sand in it). Try it and you'll see what I'm getting at. I have considered all the variables and all the arguments for and against and this is what I believe is best for the Royal Mayfair and our growing conditions. Of course, if the divot breaks apart or ends up out of reach, by all means use your sand/seed bottle. That is much better than doing nothing at all. Loose divots that are not replaced "litter" the fairways and get chopped up and streak the turf during the next day's fairway mowing as well. Not good.


Comments or concerns? Let me know as I can't address your issues unless I know about them although I can hear it now, "Be careful what you wish for." Don't worry. Most superintendents have a thick skin including myself. Usually.

All for now,
Wade

Important Golf Course Notes

I have many topics to discuss but at the risk of losing your attention I will only touch on those issues that seem obvious to me and therefore probably the membership as well. Before we get to the course itself we should bring up the mosquito problem. Apparently they showed up in force after being blown in from outside the city's control boundaries. I do not want to spray any sort of insecticide that is non selective and would kill all other insects besides the mosquitoes. Remember there are beneficial bugs out there as well. We don't have the specialized application equipment anyway. The situation will improve assuming the weather stays warm and dry. Mosquito repellant kills turf so apply it on a non turf surface. Thanks for your help in reducing the green footprints surrounded by yellow grass we tend to see when the bloodsuckers are out.


At the risk of sounding like a broken record its LREP bullet time again:

• Haul roads were sodded today. I've definitely seen better quality sod in my time but the late start has affected the sod farms as well. Big Lake Sod Farm used a new harvesting technique and it was not without problems. I managed to negotiate a bit of a discount on the invoice. Water, fertilizer, sunlight and topdressing on our part and the sod will improve quickly. 

• Some of the sod we laid in the flagged areas has not survived. So many areas to attend to, dry windy conditions and weak sod didn't help. You might say I'm making excuses and you're right but the facts are the facts. The amount of sod we have spread out there is daunting. We will be going over the front nine again and should have the work completed by the end of next week.

• We have begun mowing the sod laid last fall. I cut it myself and noticed some ruts and depressions caused by settling and the installation of the sand this spring. We will aerate, roll and topdress as necessary after we get all the other sod established. Remember to bump your ball if necessary on all the sodded areas thus reducing the desire to curse my name or the project results. This grow in will take time so please be patient.  

Course notes and other observations:

• The tree on #17 has been removed. We will be planting in that area later this season.
• Dandelions are out and we will be spraying to control them early each morning over the next 2 weeks. Notice will be posted at the 1st and 10th tees. Unfortunately the herbicide (KILLEX 500) has a certain odor that cannot be avoided. Roundup will also be used in an attempt to control unwanted grasses in wood chip beds, rock gardens, etc.
• We will be spraying a fungicide next week to get a head start in an attempt to reduce the fairy ring problem that I have been told is an unsightly issue on our greens. I have researched some promising results out of the States. Unfortunately the best chemical control product is not licensed for sale in Canada.
• The tees and approaches will be verticut and topdressed next Tuesday and Wednesday. The procedure should not be much of an inconvenience, if any, to your round.
• The  rakes we ordered finally arrived and will be added to those bunkers that are short in numbers.
•  A club scrubber will be added to the 11th tee to match the other par 3's. If there was one there last year last year the mounting hardware is missing. It has been ordered. 

A couple of final notes for now:

•  Over the next week I will be adjusting the greens perimeters to bring down the aprons (or collar) off of slopes or away from the edge of some bunkers. I told Ted Locke my intentions and he is in agreement. That is step one to improving our collars that in my opinion do not look good at all.  Step 2 are some cultural practices to aid in water and air movement. The approaches need the same attention as well.
• Some greens sodding is required on #4, #15 and #16. We can't go there until we get the LREP repairs finished but it is next on the priority list.

In closing if you would like further explanation of anything mentioned above feel free to call me @780-203-4211. More to come in (including some divot discussion) in the next blog post.

Wade

The Week Ahead And My Pounding Headache

The following bullets will highlight major maintenance activities on the course for the coming week:

• Verticut and lightly topdress greens early Monday morning (thatch control, ball roll improvement, firmer surface)
• Haul road sodding scheduled for Thursday morning and should take 2 days to complete
• If the wind ever subsides fairways will be sprayed with a liquid fertilizer
• Greens and tees sprayed with a new wetting agent that will hopefully help with the numerous chronic dry areas (a symptom of excessive mat and thatch on both greens and tees)
• Get control of the rough (involves staff training)
• Continued repair of LREP work on the front nine including sprinkler adjustment
• Fill the lakes

About my pounding headache. I don't know if its from the mile long list of tasks that need to be completed, the amount of Diet Coke I'm drinking, the howling wind or a sinus infection but its starting to irritate me. On a positive note the city waterline was thawed by IVIS on Friday. It took 8 hours and approximately 800 feet of line to reach the 75 foot long block of ice and thaw it out. To make a long story short it was completed just in time  to fill our very low irrigation reservoir. As mentioned above we can now begin to fill the ponds as soon as we get some water volume back. 

I'm sure you are noticing a few deficiencies on the course. I know I have but with a new staff and Eric and myself stretched out,  some things will be missed and tasks will have to be prioritized in order of importance. The LREP work and staff training are primary reasons for a lack of detail in some areas on the course. Let me list a few things I've noticed and some you have brought to our attention. Some major, some minor, all important:

• Bunker rakes needing reorganizing or a lack thereof (we are waiting for an order of 50 that was supposed to be here Friday)
• No Kleenex in the course washrooms
• Tee markers too close together (I want 6 paces), too close to the back or front edge (I don't want to feel like I'm going to fall off the edge) or pointed in a less than desired direction. 
• Rough beginning to sway in the wind
• Bunker raking improving but not where we want it
• Major greens surface repair on #'s 4, 14 and 16
• Major tee surface repair on #4 tee gold
• Further course cleanup not helped by 4 continuous days of 50 km/hr winds

I could go on but I just want you to be reassured that as the season progresses and the grounds crew keeps making great strides forward (I'm part of the equation as well) conditions will keep improving. I realize we can't keep everyone happy but it doesn't hurt to try. If you have any questions or concerns regarding the golf course please contact me at 780-203-4211 or send me an email (wpeckham@mayfair.ca)

Wade Peckham 

On The Course In The Week Ahead

The following points will help clarify some of the work that will be ongoing and to give you advance notice of some important cultural practices that can now begin:

1. You may see the spray unit on the fairways over the next few days. We are applying a spring season liquid fertilizer. Completely safe to use and it will give the turf a quick source of nutrients.
2. The greens will be verticut and lightly topdressed early Monday morning (May 16th weather permitting). The cut will then be lowered as we begin to move toward an incremental decrease in mowing height. Remember that frequent light topdressing is a critical component to greens health and a smooth firm putting surface.
3. The haul road repairs will begin Wednesday May 11th. The major damage will be worked with a unique attachment (a specialized rototiller) and then big roll sodded next week. The other paths will be aerated/sliced and overseeded as they soften up from some much needed irrigation.
4. The myriad of small sod jobs will begin shortly. Priority will be given to glaring eyesores and the "trench" line of dead or dying sod surrounding the 3rd green.
5. When we have our source of irrigation water restored we will begin to fill the lakes. I cannot give you a definite day but only let you know that when you see the levels rise we have our water back.  A company (IVIS) that does work for both the city and several oil companies has committed to helping us steam the line once they have sterilized the 1000 feet of cable required for the task (hopefully by Thursday).

Look for a new video explaining my preference for fairway divot repair. Unfortunately I cannot afford an actor to replace me but don't let that turn you off of utilizing a great information source.

All for now,

Wade Peckham

What I Noticed While Playing In The Men's Opening And Other Thoughts

Its important for a superintendent to play their course on a somewhat regular basis. For myself that might mean once every 2 weeks depending on a whole list of excuses. The round I played this past Saturday really drove this home for me. We have been so busy the past week getting ready for opening day and herding the new staff around the golf course that the only way I could do an honest evaluation of the grounds was to play. I had a great time playing with Robb James, Wade Hudyma and Kevin Mckee. What follows are both the good and the bad as far as I'm concerned anyway:

• the back nine is in far better condition than the front nine aside from the new sand
• the new bunker sand looks good and is very playable
• the turf conditions around the 3rd and 4th greens gave me heartburn
• the lakes would look good filled to the highest level possible (cannot do that until the irrigation system is on and we have the city line thawed)
• my staff have a ways to go in terms of training and completing their tasks in the manner we have instructed them ( as an example all you had to do was check out the bunker raking or try to wash your golf ball in a couple of empty ballwashers)
• the damaged Poa on the greens (specifically #'s 2, 3, 6, and 8) should recover fairly quickly as May progresses
• there are many small LREP sod jobs on the front nine requiring repair (poor results from low quality turf and over winter settling) 
• a few fairways need to be moved back closer to the red tees
• Paving, curbing and rerouting some of the cartpaths (on the advice of Ted Locke) would move the golf course to a whole new level (in my opinion)
• the Royal Mayfair is a beautiful golf course with so much more potential that I get impatient thinking about it

This Week On The Course:

1. Irrigation system startup on Monday
2. Fertilizing greens, tees, fairways, etc.
3. Haul road repairs should begin later in the week
4. Fine tuning the new bunkers
5. Demo of a Toro Sand Pro to compare with out existing power sand rakes
6. Course washrooms and fountains open by Tuesday (barring unforeseen problems)
7. Marking front nine fairways
8. Training, training, training

See you out on the course,

Wade

Opening Day: Important News To Remember

A quick list of updates and information for you to consider:

• regular mowing will not begin until we have consistent irrigation and better growing conditions thus reducing stress on the turf; for the time being however we will strive to deliver good early season conditions
• yes the haul roads look terrible but they will be repaired; again as the water situations improves
• there will be 2 bunkers without sand: one at #2 green and one at #4 green
• please use the ball retrievers to extract your ball from those 2 bunkers  as you may damage the clay base by walking on them; they are still too wet to install sand
• please abide by the Ground Under Repair signs that will be placed around several of the new bunkers; they should be in play by the weekend
• most bunkers on the back 9 have been edged but they still require additional work that will be ongoing into next week; the sand conditions are less than ideal as I'm sure you are all very aware of
• the white lines surrounding the fairways are for contouring changes and to help the mowing staff; feedback is welcome and further adjustments are inevitable
•  course washrooms are closed until next week
• tank watering will be ongoing during the day (unless it rains); hopefully we have the water system on early next week
• enjoy the 2011 golf season!!!!!

Wade

Mowing Changes And A Course Update

As promised but long delayed, some discussion regarding mowing changes for 2011. Paramount in the minds of many is the implementation of double cutting greens. The greens have evolved over time to become a blend (aprrox. 60/40) of creeping bentgrass and annual bluegrass, better known as Poa annua. The bentgrass is one variety but the Poa appears to be 3 different cultivars or types for lack of a better term. They all have different growths characteristics and different responses to our varied weather patterns. Pure stands of creeping bentgrass tend to grow at the same rate. Mixed turf greens do not. As a result by mid afternoon, no matter how short greens are cut in the morning, they will get bumpy. They may still be quick but a consistent predictable ball roll cannot be achieved even with rolling. For those members who cannot play in the earlier hours of the day they will miss out. Double cutting can keep the greens cosistent for a greater portion of the day. It is not a perfect solution however. Certain golf events, extreme weather and the need to monitor turf conditions can affect the scheduling of double cutting. We will strive to mow the greens twice per day beginning in late May, Monday to Friday. We will monitor weekends but I would like to give the turf a "breather" if you will. Of course if a weekend golf event warrants an extra cut we will proceed with a second mowing.

The second cut will begin at 11:30 a.m. with 2 riding mowers going from 18 green backwards (in numerical order) to the 1st green. The putting green and warmup green will be cut last. The operators will approach a green, allow golfers to finish putting and then proceed to mow. It should take approximately 5 to 7 minutes then they will be on their way. It is during this time when problems arise. They have to make the decision when to begin cutting if golfers are hitting their approach shots to the green. There has to be some flexibility here between you and the staff. The sooner they can start mowing the quicker the course is cut for everyone. My feeling is:  I would rather wait a few minutes and then get to putt on a better surface than the previous hole. But we all have different expectations. I will repost this discussion as we get closer to the end of May.

When you get onto the course this week you will notice many of the fairways outlined in white paint. I will be changing some contours and adjusting the fairway widths throughout. Dont panic! I will be widening fairways in most cases. Of course with a wider fairway will come a slightly narrower first cut of rough. I want to use a different machine to mow the first cut. It is smaller and narrower than the old fairway mower that was used in the past. As I get some feedback we will also be bringing the beginning of the fairways closer to the forward tees where necessary. This will take time though as I get more familiar with the layout.

One more change I would like to discuss  is mowing a walking path down the length of the tees out to the fairway start. It won't affect playability but it might keep your feet a little drier if you are one to walk the course. This isn't a priority right now but something we can implement later.

As for course conditions the warmer weather has really helped in the last few days. The entire staff is finally on board as of Monday, May 2nd so we can really get to work. By my count there are 21 new people wandering around out there (just kidding) getting their feet wet. When we open Thursday I cannot promise a completely clean golf course. There is just not enough hours in the day. We will have all the greens, tees and fairways cut. Bunkers will be raked and cleanup will be ongoing. CTC, with our help, will be installing new sand in the 8 bunkers I have mentioned previously. We do have a problem beside the 4th green. That bunker is still full of snow and the new clay base is sure to be very wet. Hopefully we can speed up the process by shovelling out most of the remaining snow. The haul road work will begin as soon as the irrigation system is up and running (next week) correctly. We have enough sod to tank water until then.

As for the greens I am mostly pleased with how they have survived the winter. Some greens have areas of disease that occurred after the snow was removed and before we could get a spring application of fungicide on them. It was only certains cultivars of Poa that were affected but with water, heat and some help on our part it won't be long before these spots fill in. My feeling is that thatchy greens tend to have a high population of disease pathogens. Thatchy greens require a consistent, committed topdressing program to help alleviate this problem. Hint, hint.

Enough turf talk for now. I hope many of you have seen our first grounds video and I look forward to many more. I believe they will be a great resource for communicating our cultural practices to the membership. I will say that it is harder than it looks to do. I won't win any acting awards and cue cards are definitely a must for the next video. A big thank you to Matt from the pro shop for his help. 

See you soon,
Wade