This week saw us topdress and verticut our greens. This is a necessary cultural practice, vital for the long term viability of the playing surface. While the surface is disrupted for a few days immediately following the procedure, evening watering to push the sand through the surface and mowing and rolling have the greens back in great shape 3 days later. At WR, we catch our clipping in baskets due to the aggressive nature of our process and the desire to remove a large amount of organic material. This procedure will be once a month throughout the year with varying degrees of aggressiveness. This short video outlines a few of the benefits.
http://www.gcsaa.tv/view.php?id=264
Thursday, November 18, 2010
Thursday, November 4, 2010
2010 WR post overseed
Here are a few photos 4 weeks after our 2010 overseed. With some great weather including alternating weeks of cool and heat, together with 2 great all day soaker rain events giving us 3/4" of rain, coupled with some perfectly timed fertilizer,wetting agent and growth regulation applications, I am very happy (but never satisfied) with the result.How did we do?
Please note that the fairways were NOT overseeded in 2010. The awesome playing surface is actually our hybrid 419 bermudagrass thriving in late October. How cool is that!
Recently I was in Lawrence, KS as part of GCSAA's (our national superintendent's association) Environmental Committee. While there I viewed some walking greens mowers and bunker rakes in GCSAA's museum. It's remarkable how little the reels on the mowers have changed in 150 years. The bunker rake would certainly return the bunkers to a hazard. 1 extra mulligan/gimme to anyone who can identify the distinguished gentleman on the left of the final photo. He is considered by many to be the "father of greenkeeping" who early on saw the benefits of topdressing by noting how well the turf grew under the sand he inadvertantly spilled. He also was the first to use a metal cup to protect the integrity of the hole and he wasn't a bad stick either winning 4 majors.
Next week we will return to WR as our in house video production staff (actually it's me and Patrick)highlight some cart tips to help us keep our roughs looking awesome. Have a great golfing week.
Please note that the fairways were NOT overseeded in 2010. The awesome playing surface is actually our hybrid 419 bermudagrass thriving in late October. How cool is that!
Recently I was in Lawrence, KS as part of GCSAA's (our national superintendent's association) Environmental Committee. While there I viewed some walking greens mowers and bunker rakes in GCSAA's museum. It's remarkable how little the reels on the mowers have changed in 150 years. The bunker rake would certainly return the bunkers to a hazard. 1 extra mulligan/gimme to anyone who can identify the distinguished gentleman on the left of the final photo. He is considered by many to be the "father of greenkeeping" who early on saw the benefits of topdressing by noting how well the turf grew under the sand he inadvertantly spilled. He also was the first to use a metal cup to protect the integrity of the hole and he wasn't a bad stick either winning 4 majors.
Next week we will return to WR as our in house video production staff (actually it's me and Patrick)highlight some cart tips to help us keep our roughs looking awesome. Have a great golfing week.
Wednesday, November 3, 2010
Golf's drive to sustainability
Recently I had the honor to meet face to face at GCSAA's national headquarters in Lawrence, Kansas with other industry partners as part of GCSAA's (our national Superintendent's association) Environmental Committee. We have had several electronic meetings throughout 2010 in an effort to draft BMP's (best management practices) not only for the golf course, but for the entire facility and this 2 day meeting was to further discuuss our progress. I got to meet personally some industry leaders and the interaction and information overload was well worth it. Legislation is coming and our efforts are aimed at being ahead of the curve and to position programs and protocols out there for all parties to utilize. Two of the GCSAA staffers who have been instrumental in the development of the Drive to Sustainability program are featured below.
Next week you will be back to my in house production team as we highlight some basic cart etiquette as we look to preserve the awesome playing conditions at WR.
Next week you will be back to my in house production team as we highlight some basic cart etiquette as we look to preserve the awesome playing conditions at WR.
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