#13 Lake Bank

A lot of players have complimented us on the trimming of #13 lake but many have asked why we left some plant material in certain areas.  Trust me, this was not by design.  The areas of tall grass still left on the lake banks are due to large populations of yellow jackets residing in the ground.  The crew members performing the work were stung several times in the process of trying to remove the material.  We have treated the areas several times but the bee presence is still very high.  Once the bees are exterminated then we will finished the work that was started.

The Importance of Temperature

While we have made great strides with the Mini Verde greens throughout the unusual cool temps and heavy rain, nothing compares to what a 90 degree day with full sun can do. 

The greens have responded amazingly well through the past week of high 80's-low 90's temperatures. Based off of this summers weather pattern, I couldn't have asked for a better scenario going into the reopening.  Higher air temps do so much for turf grass types like Bermuda. Higher air temperatures are directly related to higher soil temperatures and this is why the grass thrives.  When the canopy of the plant and the subsurface reach higher temps, this creates a perfect platform for all areas of plant growth.  Roots begin to search deeper for water and the stolon of the plant starts to aggressively grow laterally.

Temperature and sunlight are critical in growing and maintaining a healthy and vibrant sports turf.  As the temperatures increased over the past week, this allowed the plant to photosynthesize more, thus creating a need for more food to grow.  We have been fertilizing the greens with a formulated plan that gave the grass an opportunity to explode once the higher temps set in.

As you can see from the pics below, taken this morning, we have made tremendous strides over the past week.  I think I speak for all the GCM staff when I say, we are very excited to be on the verge of opening the course greens for member play.

Wesley Michielsen

 

#6 Green

 

#7 Green

 

#8 Green

Groundhog Day

Flood from last night.  Not as severe as May but still just as daunting of a clean up.

The picture above is what the golf course has looked like five times since the first of July.  Amazing

Flood from 5-19-13 a week and a half before Club Championship

August 19th flood

From Saturday to Monday morning we have received another 3.5" of rain here at the course.  The golf course has received this type of substantial flooding, twice this year since May and overall the golf course has received flood bearing moisture on five occasions.  This coupled with the regular rain every four to five days has kept of from accomplishing most anything that we have wanted to.  

The repair work involved in this type of situation is daunting.  It will take us the remainder of the week to not only clean the slit off the greens, pick up the storm debris, but to also get the bunkers back together and get the course back in general playing conditions.   Unbelievable...

Weather, Weeds, and Tree Work

As you all know, our staff has struggled greatly with the weather pattern we have been dealt.  Since the first of March, the golf course has flooded a total of three times, the bunkers have washed during every heavy rain event, and mowing has become virtually impossible at times.  All of this, coupled with a greens renovation, has been the utmost challenge we have faced as a crew.

Areas of the course have suffered due to the massive amounts of rain we have received, over 30 inches since March with 20 of those inches falling in the month of July.  Outer areas have become virtually untouched because of the constant scramble we are faced with to get the course back in playable condition.  Weeds have, of course, exploded over the past three weeks and we are working diligently to get them under control.  I personally have sprayed 20 acres of fairways and rough with another 20 being sprayed today. During the month of July, the areas we sprayed just washed away as rain event after rain event continued to plague us.  Our preemegent we applied in February has all but broken down and disappeared.

Our outer have become an extreme challenge for us to maintain, also.  Areas that were scheduled to be cut back and sprayed have fallen wayside to flood repair, course maintenance, and bunker repair.  If the bunkers wash it takes four men, two days, to repair them.  That equates to over 64 man hours just to repair the bunkers every 4 days.  Imagine the amount of weed eating and detail work that could be accomplished if we weren't in the bunkers every week.

The tree work that was planned to help get sunlight to the greens was scheduled as a three week project.  Instead of quickly being able to move through the course the task took an unbelievable three months.  Every area the worked in was completely destroyed to some extent.  12, 8, 10 and other areas suffered major damage from trying to get the logs out.  This repair work to these areas has severely hampered us from the other projects we had planned during the renovation i.e.: sodding of traffic areas and cleaning of outer areas. 

Below are some pictures from Wednesdays rain event.  I can't tell you how disheartening it is to see this constantly. Our staff is working diligently to get the golf course back in shape so we can have the type of grand re-opening that members, guests, and our staff anticipated when this much needed and welcome project was announced. 

If you ever have a question or comment about the course, please feel free to contact me at any point in time. 

Wesley Michielsen

Wesley.michielsen@ourclub.com
404-886-3627 cell
770-888-4928 office

Damage from tree company on number 8 attempting to remove trees

#18 bridge on Wednesday

#6 green during the rain event Wednesday

#1 creek out of its banks Wednesday

New Greens Aerification

10 days of sunny weather, with only .5" of rain, gave us the opportunity to aerify the new greens.  This aerification will not only help stimulate new growth but will also give us the opportunity to smooth the greens out with aggressive rolling.  The holes are left open in order to give the subsurface the ability to compress and become firmer while also improving our mowing capabilities.