Frost Delays and Turfgrass Health

Fall Projects part 1

Repairing haul road right of #10 ladies tee 

Fixing low areas around ladies tee on #10

New chipping approach at driving range

Despite a few logistical challenges, this past week has been quite productive as the Green Department started chipping away at some Fall projects on the course.  You may have noticed some work being done at the practice facility earlier this week.  The decision was made to convert the area between the chipping green and the practice tee from rough to bentgrass, as it allows a realistic “approach” shot from which to practice your chipping.  Bentgrass was transferred from the unused forward tee on #1, as well as from the front of #17 fairway.  The rough sod that was removed from the chipping area was moved to #17.  In the future, we will re-grade the slope in front of #1 tee, and re-grass it as rough.  Likewise, we will re-shape the front of #17 fairway, making the necessary adjustments to the rough/fairway line.  The bentgrass that has been installed in the chipping area will remain closed for the remainder of the season to fully establish.  Frequent rolling, topdressing, fertilization, and watering will help to speed up the process.  Also at the practice facility, topsoil and rough sod were added to the short slope between the cart path and hitting area.  The final grade ties in nicely with the practice tee and chipping area.  All of the newly sodded areas will be roped off until they can safely withstand foot traffic.  Finally, the practice tee top was interseeded in two directions to help the turf recover from use during this season, and to provide a dense stand of turf leading into the 2015 season.  We hope that you enjoy your NEW practice facility!

After the practice facility project was wrapped up, a small crew began some renovation projects to areas in the rough near the forward tee box on #10.  The immediate area surrounding this tee has several low spots that hold water during and after rain storms.  We have begun raising these areas by adding topsoil, re-grading, and spreading new grass seed.  Also in this area, we have removed the dirt “shortcut path” between #10 cart path and the lower gravel parking lot that became established over this past year during the clubhouse construction project.  Due to frequent use by utility vehicles, this path had become extremely compacted, and unable to provide the growing conditions necessary for grass to survive.  A rototiller was used to loosen the soil, and then the area was re-graded and seed was worked into the soil.  Finally, a layer of straw was placed on top to provide insulation for the seed, which will help to speed up the germination process.  In the coming weeks we will adjust the overflow from the gravel parking lot.

We still have several projects to undertake in October and November, as well as completing some projects that are already underway.  Hopefully the weather cooperates so that we can complete them in a timely manner. Fall is arguably the best time of the year on the golf course, and we hope that you are enjoying it as much as we are!  See you on the course!

Prepared by, Curtis Keller

A Cut Above the Rest

When the rough is healthy, thick and lush, I receive many questions from the membership about maintaining an "intermediate cut".   An intermediate cut is the transition cut from fairway height grass to rough height grass and is often referred to as a championship cut, first cut, step cut, or intermediate cut.  Typically these questions arise in the spring and fall months of the year when peak growth occurs, however this year has definitely been the exception.  Fueled by plenty of moisture, the rough has continued its growth throughout the majority of the golf season.  Below normal air temperature and soil temperatures, plus high rainfall totals have created optimal growing conditions for these particular grasses.  In past summers the grasses in the rough have gone dormant during the months of July and August due to heat and drought stress, making the need for rough mowing minimal.  This year we have had to continue our spring and fall rough mowing schedule bringing fuel and labor expenses higher than normal for maintaining the rough.

Why can't we just "shave it down"?  Our rough is a combination of older varieties of Kentucky Bluegrass, Rye grass and Fescues which are simply not suited for heights of cut below 2 inches and would quickly decline during the onset of environmental stresses.  The grasses that comprises the majority of the rough can only tolerate heights around 2" to 3".  There are many things to consider before "shaving it down".

If an intermediate cut at 1.25" or 1.50" inches is desired, then removing and re-sodding a seven foot wide pass around all of the fairways and greens with low mow Kentucky bluegrass would be strongly recommended (similar to the grass on the driving range tee top and target greens).  We would also need to purchase a designated intermediate reel type mower, which could be set at 1.25" mowing height.  Labor, chemicals and fertilizer would have to be properly budgeted and implemented into our maintenance standards .  It will be important to keep in mind that re-sodding should not be performed until additional irrigation has been installed to support the conversion with evenly distributed water requirements.   One of our biggest challenges we face on the golf course is maintaining an even moisture level.  A large chunk of labor is currently being utilized to hand-water edges of fairways (where the intermediate cut would be located) due to lack of irrigation coverage and tree roots which suck the moisture and nutrients out of the fairway edges.  At this time installing an intermediate cut would only exacerbate the challenges we face around the edges of the fairways and would be extremely difficult to successfully manage.

Late Summer Water Management

What?!  They’re watering again?!  Didn’t we just get 3-inches of rain last week?!  As a matter of fact, yes, and yes.  The extreme weather that we have been experiencing lately has been challenging, to say the least.  The high temperatures and heavy rainfall have taken a toll on the turf, increasing disease pressure and putting our water management skills to the test.  Late summer is without a doubt the most stressful time of year for bentgrass.  By this time of year, many of the plants’ roots have been driven upward toward the surface, away from the dry and heavy soils, in order to access the available water and nutrients.  This natural environmental reaction, combined with the constant barrage of golf and cart traffic, really stretches the limit of the turf’s health.

While several areas on the golf course do not currently need any more water, there are some areas that actually do.  By utilizing tools such as soil probes, moisture meters, and hoses, we can accurately and efficiently apply water directly to areas that are most in need, and avoid watering areas that already have sufficient moisture.  A common problem for bentgrass in the summer months is a condition known as localized dry spot, or LDS.  In areas affected by LDS, the soil becomes hydrophobic, meaning it actually repels water, so that water cannot penetrate into the root-zone.  Organic-coated sand particles, excessive salt build-up, heavy thatch layers, competition from tree roots, and occasionally fungus can all contribute to soil becoming hydrophobic.  Methods for controlling LDS include probing or aerating the area, hand-watering with hoses, and occasionally utilizing chemical control with a wetting-agent.  Watering with the overhead sprinklers will not sufficiently penetrate the affected areas, and often, neither do heavy rains.  We instruct our crew members to use a soil probe to locate and identify dry spots in tees and fairways.  Often, a supervisor will locate and mark these spots with a pin flag to indicate where our crew members need to apply water.  This allows the crew member to move through the areas as quickly as possible, so that golf play is not significantly disrupted.   We use a similar approach on greens.  By taking soil moisture readings, we can accurately apply specific amounts of water to specific areas on the green.

Proper water management is one of the most important aspects of turf management, and your Illini CC Golf Course Maintenance Department takes that responsibility very seriously.  We know that a balance must be achieved between optimal moisture levels for the health of the turf, and optimal playing conditions for the golfer.  The biggest challenge we face at Illini Country Club is maintaining that balance while dealing with inconsistent soil profiles, changing weather conditions, shade patterns and inadequate irrigation coverage.  On a daily basis, we take into consideration several factors including weather forecasts, disease pressure, and course conditions/player expectations to help us determine our watering programs.  So the next time you see irrigation heads running, or crew members watering with hoses, you can be sure that we are not haphazardly watering the golf course.  

Prepared by, Curtis Keller

Drill and Fill

Drill and Fill Machines

After Cleanup Process

Drill and Fill Sand Channel

With the wave of extreme heat and humidity that we have experienced during this past week, it’s hard to believe that Fall Aerification is just around the corner.  On Tuesday and Wednesday, September 2^nd and 3^rd, we will be aerating greens with the “Drill & Fill” machine.  As you may remember from last September, the process of the “Drill & Fill” is exactly as it sounds....a machine is driven onto the greens that first drills a ¾” hole approximately 8 inches deep into the green’s soil profile, and then fills that hole with clean, fine sand.  This process achieves all of the benefits of traditional aeration (relieve soil compaction, enhance water, nutrient, and oxygen flow to the plants’ roots, thatch reduction, promote surface drainage, etc.), but with the added bonus of applying these benefits throughout the entire root zone, versus to only the upper four inches, as achieved through traditional aeration.  This will in turn provide larger, deeper channels for enhanced surface drainage and deeper root development, thus leading to healthier turf and a faster, firmer playing surface.

Our goal is to have at least nine holes completed and ready for play by Wednesday morning.  Please remember, however, that the entire healing process usually takes approximately fourteen to twenty-one days depending upon the weather.  We will be applying fertilizer and maintaining higher moisture levels to expedite surface recovery.  Members will experience softer, slower, bumpier greens containing many sand-filled holes during this time.  Once the surfaces have sufficiently healed, we will return to our normal watering practices and the greens will dramatically improve in firmness and drainage.  We understand cultivation temporarily disrupts the ball roll and is an inconvenience for the golfers but keep in mind that the long-term benefits far outweigh the temporary disruptions. 

Although the greens will be our primary focus on September 2^nd and 3^rd, we will continue to perform our Fall maintenance practices such as tee and fairway aeration, fertilizer applications, and other on-course projects throughout the month of September.  Again, we understand the inconvenience this causes for golfers, and we will do our best to perform our duties with as minimal disruption as possible, while always maintaining our courtesy to the membership.  The Golf Course Maintenance Department greatly appreciates your cooperation and patience as we complete these important projects.

Prepared by, Curtis Keller

Incredible Weather

What a difference a year makes! Since my arrival at Illini Country Club in 2010, it has seemed as though the city of Springfield has broken every record imaginable.  During the last four years we have experienced broken records in many different categories; from high temperatures, humidity, longest drought, high and low rainfall totals, to coldest winters and highest snowfalls. Most of these broken record categories makes it very challenging for a turfgrass manager.  But that was then and this is now! 2014 has been pretty good to us so far and we have even seen some record low temperature days, somewhat normal rainfall totals and July ending as the 3rd coolest July on record.  Disease pressure has been minimal except Dollar Spot (which is a fungus that thrives during wet warm days with cooler nights).  We have endured only a few stretches of weather where water management and hand watering was critical.  Along with the wet, cool weather comes optimal growing conditions for grass.  Our biggest challenge this year has been keeping up with the mowing, especially in the rough.  In past summers, the rough growth has dramatically slowed down, and even gone dormant during the months of July and August, making rough mowing a one man job.  This year we have continued mowing rough on our spring and fall schedule with three employees mowing rough a minimum of two times a week.  Some weeks the rough has been so thick and clumpy it has required one or two employees following the rough mowers with blowers to scatter the clippings.  I know the rough has been long and thick for most of the year and recent rains have made mowing difficult.  We will do our best to maintain the rough to our maintenance standards.  Hope you have enjoyed the nice weather and I hope to see you on the golf course.

    Dollar Spot in Rough

Golf Course Etiquette

The basis for golf course etiquette is for consistent and championship playing conditions as well as agronomic reasons.  Balls that land in unrepaired divots place a golfer at a disadvantage, just as does having to putt over an unrepaired ball mark or a scuff mark from a golf shoe cleat.  By leaving turf damaged (unrepaired), it becomes susceptible to disease and/or infestation of weeds, resulting in a lower quality of playing surface.  This necessitates the need for additional attention by golf course superintendents and their staffs, thereby taking them away from more pressing duties.  As a general rule, a ball mark repaired within 10 minutes will heal with a smooth surface within two to three days.  An unrepaired ball mark may take as long as three weeks to heal, but the result will be an uneven playing surface.  Please be courteous to other members and their guests by follow the suggestions listed below. 

BALL MARK REPAIR:

Proper ball mark repair

Step 1.  Use a ball mark repair tool.  If you do not have one the pro shop will provide one for you.

Step 2.  Insert the repair tool at the edges of the mark and gently push the grass forward and towards the center of the ball mark, do not try to repair from the middle of the depression.

Step 3.  Bring the edges together but don't lift the center. Try not to tear the grass or the roots of the grass.

Step 4.  Smooth the surface with the bottom of your putter.  Repeat steps until the surface is one you would putt over.

Step 5.  If time allows fix any unrepaired ball mark on the putting surface.

GOLF SHOES:

Scuff marks on ICC greens following opening day of Men’s League

The green is the most sensitive area on the golf course, and as such, golfers should do everything possible to help maintain the integrity of the putting surface.  Along with fixing ball marks, care should be taken to prevent scuff marks caused by golf spikes.  While great “strides” have been made by banning metal spikes, even the latest soft-spike technology can cause damage if one is not careful.  Some soft-spikes are so aggressive they have been banned from golf courses.  Always walk softly, and never run on the green.  Make sure that you lift your feet fully to prevent long, dragging spike marks.  Scuff marks directly affect the playability of the green by creating an obstacle for the ball, and unfortunately, rule 16-1 prevents a player from repairing a scuff mark that falls on the line of putt.  A bad scuff mark could take days or even weeks to heal.  Please do your part by lifting your feet, being careful not to twist your feet when retrieving the ball from the cup, and by not moon walking after sinking that 20-footer.  If you feel your soft-spikes might be causing damage to the putting surface please consult the pro shop.   

REPLACING DIVOTS:

As a general rule, replace any divot on the course.  Where the divot is in the fairway or tee, and it is obvious that the remaining turf will not grow, then use the sand provided in a container on the golf cart or the containers provided for walking golf play at the first tee.  Only use the sand on the FAIRWAYS AND TEES.  Take the time to level off the sand. Not enough sand can effect the lie of a ball, and too much sand can quickly damage mower blades.

In replacing a divot, the policy is to replace the divot so that grass can send down new roots.  Replace the turf in the same direction it came out, and tap down firmly so the mower won’t pull it back out.  Take the time to replace it properly.  Quickly stepping on the replaced divot and hoping for the best is not good enough.  If you are walking there are walking sand bottles available at the pro shop.

RAKING BUNKERS:

Bunkers pose enough trouble themselves.  Imagine playing from them when they are left un-raked (maybe you don’t have to imagine).  To avoid leaving a poor playing surface, follow these tips:

• Enter and exit the bunker at the lowest point closest to your ball.  This will ensure you do not displace too much sand, especially on slopes.
• Alternate between pulling the sand toward you and pushing it away from you to make the surface even.  This will make the bunker surface even without sand displacement.
• All holes and footprints should be smoothed over upon exiting the bunker.
• Be sure there are no indentations in the previously disturbed sand.
• After raking is completed, the bunker rake should be placed outside the bunker lying flat.
• If your ball does plug…play it… then push the sand back up over the footprint, smooth it and pack the sand with the back of the rake head so the next player will not plug in a soft, unpacked lie.

CART USAGE:

The general rule of thumb is to not continually follow worn paths.  Try to spread out your cart traffic even if it means going a little out of your way.  NEVER drive within about 50 yards of greens (unless you’re on a designated cart path).  These areas are especially susceptible to damage by the wheels of golf carts.  NEVER drive onto or close to tee boxes, either, unless on the cart path, keeping all four wheels of the cart on the path where provided.  Observe all cart signs while on the course.  During wet or extreme heat conditions we may ask golfers to keep carts in the rough and on cart paths or exercise the 90 degree rule, which means entering and exiting the fairway at a 90 degree angle limited the travel time on the bentgrass.  Signs will be posted at the first and tenth tee explaining golf cart restrictions. 

DRIVING RANGE PRACTICE:

The new practice facility will be open soon. With that in mind, we’d like to share a few tips and reminders on how to properly utilize the space so that it stays looking its best.  First, there will be certain times during the year when the turf will be under stress due to extreme weather conditions and practice tee use.  These times will likely warrant the use of the artificial turf teeing ground.  Please utilize the artificial teeing ground as instructed so that the turf can recover as quickly as possible.

When the grass tee is open for use, please be strategically conservative with your divot placement.  At Illini CC, we like to implement the “line” method, and not the “group” method.  Check out this video of Golf Pro John Gilchrist, and Superintendent Kyle Sherwood explaining the technique.  Recent studies have determined that after a typical practice routine of hitting a small bucket of balls (30 shots) within a “group” of divots, an average of 4.1 square feet of turf is removed.  Extrapolated over a season, that equates to nearly 205,000 sq. ft., or 4.6 acres!  Conversely, when each shot is placed directly behind the previous divot in a “line”, the same 30 shots remove only 2.1 square feet of turf.  That’s a 50% reduction in the amount of turf removed during a practice session!

Lastly, the chipping green will soon be reopened along with the rest of the practice facility.  Reminder, the chipping green is for use of chip shots and bunker shots only, NO PITCH shots from the driving range tee top.  A great deal of time, money, and hard work have been put into the driving range renovation project.  Following these simple suggestions will help to maintain the quality and aesthetics of YOUR new practice facility.