Bunker Rehab Continued...

With old man winter knocking on the door, the crew at Rivercrest kept busy by sprucing up the some of the bunkers. This process has been going on for the last couple of years, and we have received great feedback on the results.  There are a few reasons the bunkers have been declining which include over watering, build up of sand, compaction, and insects. This year bunkers on #4, #5, #8,and  #16 were addressed.   

The big bunker on the right hand side of #4 fairway was stripped of the Fescue that had become very compacted and patchy. 

Once the sod was stripped, soil was added to level off certain areas to ensure a smooth surface for the sod to be laid.  This will not only be more appealing to the eye but will ensure better playability.  

 

 

Three bunkers on the left side of #8 were stripped in preparation for sodding.  The fine Fescue around these bunkers had also become very patchy and weed infested

Once these areas were stripped turf type tall fescue sod was  put down. 

These areas will all be maintained at about 2” to 3” in height and will make for better playability and also much more appealing to the eye.  The proper management of these new areas should keep these areas in good shape for years to come.

 

 

A Little Facelift

One area of the course that was in need of a facelift was the 3 bunkers on the right hand side of #9. Fine Fescue grasses do well with minimal inputs and due to the location of the sprinklers this area was constantly being over-watered. This produced excessive growth and the grass to lay over on itself causing matting issues.  The plan was to re-grass the area to Kentucky Bluegrass so that it can be maintained and the irrigation coverage utilized. The area will be maintained at 2-3" from this point on.

Before.  The native grasses were clumpy and infested with weeds.

First we cut the grass as short as possible and prepared the area for sod cutting. As you can see, the sod cutter did not fare so well.

Martin weed whacking to make sod cutting easier

Josh and Corey attempting to sod cut

We decided to bring out the big toys to help with sod removal.

Once the sod was stripped, 4,500 square feet of sod was laid.  Over the course of a week, the right hand side of 9 has received a facelift. 

Finished Product!

 



 A couple weeks ago I had the fortunate experience to volunteer for The Players Championship at TPC Sawgrass in Ponte Vedra, Florida.  This was my first time going to a PGA event so I wasn’t really sure what to expect.  I was excited to see how a golf course was managed at this level as well as taking in the pure beauty of the course.

  This was a great opportunity because it not only gave me the chance to see what goes into preparing the course for the biggest purse in golf, but also gave me a chance to network with other turf professionals from around the world.  I spent most of my mornings fixing ball marks, moving turning boards, and blowing off greens with a superintendent from Malaysia that had just got done hosting the CIMB classic. This was a unique experience that I wouldn't have gotten to experience anywhere else.


  

There were about 80 volunteers from all over the world paired with TPC’s staff of about 70.  It was interesting to see over 100 people working together day and night in order to make the course the best it could be.  It was also eye opening to see how much communication and team work is needed to pull of such a large event.  While I was bummed that I didn’t get the chance to mow 17 like Corey and Chris had in the past, it was a pleasure to be a part of this tournament. The way it ended on Sunday night made it even more entertaining. All of the volunteers including myself were  happy that they were able to finish on Sunday which  meant that we would get to relax a bit by hitting some balls on 17 Monday morning. I had a great time in Sawgrass and am looking forward to using what I learned on a daily basis at Rivercrest.

Aww, cute little furry animals

Adorable

Yeah Right! When the snow finally melted we were greeted with these unusual trails everywhere. After a little research, it was concluded that the friendly little Vole created this mess. The vole is a mouse like rodent that will burrow under the snow eating the soft vegetation. Most of the trails lead to a drain area where melting snow provides fresh water for them. I never realized we had so many on the property as damage was seen on virtually every hole. Most areas were fixed with raking up the debris and reseeding but a few were damaged to the point that sod was needed.

Not so much.

Walls come tumbling down

The long cold winter did more than keep members off the course and praying for spring. The heavy snow coupled with rapid warm ups then deep freezes caused excessive expansion of the soil behind the dry stack walls. Four large sections of walls in and around 15 tee and 17 green collapsed into the ponds. This was especially difficult as someone had to get into the VERY cold water to pick up and rebuild these sections. My assistants Corey and Josh(expert wall builders) volunteered to get wet. Thank goodness for insulated waders!

He actually looks like he's enjoying this!

Someone's going to sleep well tonight

The soil behind the wall was removed and back-filled with stone to help reduce future problems.

Nice work

15 Creek Update

Mariano cutting in sod pieces as Rene brings  more soil to finish contouring the edges.

Carlos flexing his muscles. Next time carry three pieces!

Just a few of the rocks we pulled from the creek. This will help slow the rushing water and save the banks downstream

Finished head-wall with new sodding above.

Finally, some greener pictures!

Greens Aerification Update

Monday (3/24) we were able to get holes 1-4 aerified.  With the night time temperatures dropping well below freezing, the greens were frozen and we were not able to get started until 1:00pm.

The aerification process on the greens is called the Graden.  This machine creates slits in the green and then fills the slit with sand.

As you can see, the machine pulls out a lot of organic material which will be recycled and used as divot mix on the range tee throughout the year.

After the piles are picked up the green is brushed and blown off.  This process should not affect playability as much as typical core aerification.

Up close picture of the sand-filled slits.

The night time temperatures on Monday night dropped to 18 degrees.  As I write this, we are patiently waiting for the greens to thaw so we can get out there again.  Lets hope the snow holds off!