Royal Mayfair Turf Notes: Update On Course Opening Preparations

Even though the weather has improved dramatically we are not yet ready to open. That day is still set as Thursday, May 9th which is in line with most of the other private clubs in the city. The weather earlier in the week set us back a few days but we are now making up for lost time. The Turf Care staff will be working every day including all weekend to get the course ready for the membership. It may sound hard to believe but there is still snow surrounding several green sites. I'm hoping most of it melts by Monday so we can get to these areas and prepare them for opening.

We plan on starting up the irrigation system tomorrow (Saturday) even though some sprinklers and valve boxes are covered in snow. If we have an issue (meaning a water line break or the need to isolate a line) we will clear the snow away. With the windy, warm weather some areas of the course will need water very soon if not already. If we can move staff away from tank watering and onto other tasks all the better.

You may have noticed the gravel in the parking lot has been swept up. Part 2 of the process is to wash and sweep the lot with a street cleaner very early Monday or Tuesday morning. That will help with the dusty conditions. On Tuesday Answer Asphalt will be base prepping the unfinished section next to the first tee and paving it on Wednesday. Initially we had planned to use paving stone but for a variety of reasons that I won't go into here we decided to stay consistent and not introduce another landscape material to an already "busy looking" warm up green/patio area.

This spring we are verticutting all the rough including tee and green sidebanks to stimulate growth and cleanup the remnants of all the snow mold matting and dust on top of the turf. We'll be open before this process is complete and there will be plenty of loose, old grass that is missed by the sweepers but as we start mowing it will eventually go away. We will not be aggressively managing the fine turf areas until we have a consistent, reliable source of water. Mowing heights will be lowered in accordance with conditions but we do strive to achieve quality playing surfaces as soon as possible.

#4 Green Late Thursday Afternoon