Course Closed!

Today (Monday 6/3) the golf course was closed, but for a good reason.  We, the Grounds Department, have been given a day to ourselves to perform many necessary tasks that are much more easily accomplished when we do not have to worry about play on the golf course.  We receive very few of these throughout the golfing season, so we need to take advantage of them. Below is a list of tasks that were accomplished today:

Venting of the greens 1/4" hole, 6" deep

• Usual Monday mowing schedule completed
• Greens
• Topdressed with sand
• Vented
• Sand drug in
• Rolled to smooth surface
• Sprayed a soil directed fertilizer and wetting agent application
• Watered greens to move spray application into the rootzone and wash in sand
• Approaches
• Topdressed with sand
• Sand drug in
• All fairway divots filled on the Front 9 and holes #10 and #18
• All divots on Practice Tee filled
• All sprinkler heads edged on holes #1-4 and half of #5 (approximately 300 heads)
• Practice Tee fertilized
• Practice Tee, Target Greens, Practice Fairway and Short Game Fairway sprayed with fungicide and foliar fertilizer
• All rough around the greens sprayed to prevent grub damage
• All rough around fairways and fairway bunkers sprayed to prevent grub damage
• Trim around trees and signs along CR21
• 1 blog post written

Normally this schedule would have taken days to complete if we were to attempt it during play due to the need for my staff to stop what they are doing and get out of the way to allow play to come through.  I cannot emphasize enough how important and beneficial days like this are during the season. As I look at the golf calendar, our next closed day does not arrive until July 22nd. We will anxiously be awaiting this day as we hope to accomplish as much, if not more than today. Many thanks to my staff for a great day of work!

Venting of the Greens



Immediately after venting and example of tine size


On Monday, 7/18, all of the greens on the golf course were vented.  Venting is a form of aerification, where numerous tiny channels (1/4" wide x 5" deep) are created within the soil profile (rootzone) of the putting surface. There are several benefits to performing this practice.  The channels help to ease the process of gas exchange within the soil allowing potentially harmfull Carbon Dioxide to be exchanged for Oxygen.  During periods of warm, humid and wet weather like we have had and are currently having, it is crucial for us to be able to let the turf "breathe" and allow excess water to drain more quickly. The end result is a healthier stand of turf that can better tolerate the harsh summer conditions.

Immediately after rolling

With the weather we have had so far this week and looking ahead to the weather that is being forcasted for the next five days or so, this practice will prove to be extremely beneficial.

More on the weather and how it affects the turf will be discussed in a blog post later this week.

Course Update: Time for Recovery

I hope that everyone was able to make it out to the club this week to enjoy watching some fantastic golf.  I couldn’t be happier with the condition of the golf course and I feel that it put up a pretty good fight for the best golfers in the state.  My staff has worked extremely hard, not just during the tournament, but, in the last day or so to get the rough mown, divots filled and debris picked up all before you get back on the course today (7/15).  I would like to thank each one of them for their long days and dedication to Elcona as well as their desire in wanting to showcase the club during a very important week. With that being said, the course is now ready for a break before we head into Invitational week. 

The winner, Brian Maurer, being interviewed

Looking ahead to the forecast for the weekend and into next week, it appears that we are headed for an extremely warm and humid stretch of weather. Last year, about this same time, we had a similar weather pattern that contributed to an outbreak of Anthracnose on the greens.  Because there is already some slight damage from Anthracnose on a few of the greens, we are going to be extremely cautious as we head into warmer and more humid weather.  Unlike last year, we are currently planning to mow at the same height, but our rolling frequency will be reduced.  We have also skipped an application of our growth regulator in order to promote some additional growth and speed the recovery process after a long week.

At this point, there is no reason to panic.  We are merely taking a proactive approach toward protecting the greens so that we can be ready to showcase the club for the 50th anniversary of the Walter O. Wells Invitational.

On Monday (7/18) the golf course will be closed so that a planned venting and topdressing of the greens can be done.  This has been done once already this year and has paid huge dividends with respect to the overall health and playability of the greens. 

More on venting in a future blog post.  Stay tuned!