One month of winter is over, two more and spring arrives.  Meteorological spring begins March 1st which sounds a whole lot better!  We have been busy prepping the course for the golf season.  Most of the creek and pond bank clearing is complete.  Tree pruning with accompanying chipping went well.  Trees on holes 3, 8, 11-15, and 17 were pruned extensively.  Next up will be more tree removals scheduled to begin on Monday, January 30th.  This is weather dependent as work has been rescheduled once already.  It has been a relatively mild winter so far and the course is fairly soft.  Last week greens were rolled and mowed which is pretty unusual for January.  The course looked like early March last week!

Mild weather has the course looking like early spring.

A frosty start before opening.

Some green-up on the putting green with winterberry hollies showing off in the background.

A nice prune on the willow oak on hole eight.

Raising the canopy of the oak grove behind seventeen green.  

An improved oak on hole seventeen.

Everyone's "favorite" willow oak on hole twelve.

Our guys chipping around outdoor tennis courts.  We have a nice size crew this winter doing plenty of improvements around the club's grounds which should be noticeable as you venture out this spring.

The new forward tee on hole fifteen after rolling and beginning to look more defined.

 

 Happy New Year!  What a turnaround in temperatures we are experiencing.  Just a week ago we were frozen solid, now we are raking bunkers, rolling greens and maybe mowing.  Crazy!  The nice shift in the weather is allowing McDonald and Sons to wrap up their work.  Expect sod installation later this week and that's it.  Fortunately, rebuilding the 16th tee complex was pushed till next fall.  Starting this construction in that wet, shaded area would have been a mistake.  Sometimes the best decision is doing nothing.

The biggest news is the failure of the main spillway on the lake at the fifth hole.  The good news is there does not appear to be a leak in the lake floor.  We are gathering information and ideas in ways to repair this as efficiently as possible.  It looks to be a logistical nightmare getting concrete to the site, but we will figure it out.  Never a dull moment on the course.

Saving the worst for first.

Another view.  Pictures don't capture the damage very well.

Tarps were placed right before the cold arrived.

The new forward tee on fifteen.  Notice how it flows directly into the fairway.

Winterizing the irrigation system.

Cutting back growth and opening up the view of the creek on the fifth hole.

Another view.

Dormant seeding bentgrass into weak fairways.

Happy New Year!

 

 Winter weather is here.  Right now, it is all hands-on deck as we try to wrap up a number of projects.  Three tee is nearing completion.  We hope to have the cart path completed before the rain Thursday.  More sod will be laid on Wednesday, but not enough to complete the rough surrounds.  

Unfortunately, too much rain and cold has forced our hand and we have postponed the 16th tee renovation till next fall.  This tee sits in a cold, shady spot and construction isn't possible at this time.  Starting later in this growing environment would push opening this tee well into the golf season, so punting on the work seemed the appropriate action.  The forward tee on 15 will be done this winter.

Asphalt work at three tee.  The maintenance path in a new location and more out of view.

Loading topsoil to be spread before sod.

Paving the entrance to the lower blue/gold tee.

Adding new irrigation between one green and eighteen tees.

Additional irrigation was added to the right side of seventeen where trees use to be.  New irrigation was also installed between the bathroom and the 16th hole.

Meanwhile your grounds crew added new sod to the 2nd and 9th holes.  This is absolutely the best time to sod!

Gill's buddy but a nuisance to our bunkers.

A magnificent sawtooth oak and our signature tree?

 

 Construction is rolling along.  Today marks day eleven since breaking ground on the third hole.  Most of the dirt has been moved and some sod will be planted tomorrow.  Irrigation installation begins today.  What a tee shot it will be over the water!  The upper red/white tee and alternate blue tee have been significantly upgraded as well with their alignment to the fairway and improved drainage and some added length.  What an improvement and the anticipation to play off these new tees is off the chart!  

Our crew is motoring along as well.  New sod has been installed around the chipping green bunkers, and rough areas on the 9th and 11th holes.  One more load is scheduled next week.  Deep tine aeration of fairways should be completed this week.  Fairway compost will be spread after this beginning this week.  Leaf work is nearing completion with creek bank clearing beginning.  

Saturday morning view of three tee from seven.

The view from four.

The tee shot view.

Saving the best sod before demo and moving to weak areas around the course.

Our crew preparing a large area of rough for new sod.

Using bent sod to widen the right side of two fairway.

Luis using our new Wiederman dep tine aerator.  Slow and steady, a step to better fairways.

Another magnificent start to the workday.

 Suddenly it's November and the golf season is complete.  It has been a great year for the course, though we are not quite finished.  This month marks the beginning of phase 2 of the course improvement plan. Tree removal on holes 3 and 16 should be completed by the end of this week and McDonald and Sons begin construction next week.  Expect work to begin on hole 3.  November is also project time for our crew before winter arrives.  New rough sod will be added on several holes beginning on the ninth.  Deep tine aeration followed by composting and dormant seeding will occur in the fairways.    

I hope you were fortunate to play in Lentz's Revenge.  This was my last one and it was awesome.  Many thanks to my staff for all their hard work, especially Richard Purple who is primarily responsible for the setup.

Lentz's Revenge was a hoot!

Tree removal is complete on the third hole.

The view from the new tee location.

Root zone medium arriving for tee construction.

What a weekend of leaves we experienced.  This week looks to be the beginning of the end.

The crew blowing sand and leaves on the fifth hole Saturday morning.  Whatever it takes.

Prepping for new sod behind the ninth green.

Tulip planting time has arrived.  Don't forget to plant yours.

Thumbs up from our diver who cleaned debris away from the irrigation intake.

The material will be removed once it has dried.

A Gingko in all its fall glory.

A perfect hickory.

Quite the obstruction in the middle of a golf tournament.

Dick and Jose to the rescue.

Safely in a trash can and on to a safe spot.

Back to the lake.

Early morning pics.

Sunrise special!

One more with a little frost on the pumpkin!