It has been a while since we have experienced a nice rain and the course is all the better for it.  We almost completed replacing the fescue sod around the practice green and the rain couldn't have come at a better time.  We will continue to work on weak rough areas prior to the holidays.

 

Before the new sod is laid the old turf is removed using a sod cutter.  We then aerify and rake the soil.  A starter fertilizer is then applied before the sod is laid-green side up of course!

Keeping foot traffic off is a must until the sod has rooted in.  Quincy reminds me of my kids!

A killing frost ended our summer annuals for the year.  Tulips will be installed next week.

 The first hard freeze causes the greens to appear mottled and illustrates the different genetic composition of our greens.

 The greens were groomed to reduce grain and true up ball roll. This practice is done at perpendiculars for the best effect.

Grooming will reduce grain and help reduce spike mark damage but will not prevent aggressive footwork.  Please tamp down any damage if this occurs.

The driving range tee has been overseeded with perennial rye and looks good from a distance.  This should thicken up and allow us to play on the grass earlier in the spring.  We are mats only for the rest of the year. 

Another amazing sunrise.

Another great week of weather has the course playing firm and fast.  Following club championship we will pick back up with more sod work.  The rough grass around the practice green will be replaced with  fescue similar to what is on the course.  Hopefully this will help you save a few shots when playing the course. We will leave two areas to enter and exit the putting green and one of the bunkers to practice in.  
These areas will be replaced once the new sod is ready for foot traffic. The surrounding rough will not be available for play until next spring.

We have made great strides in our battle to reduce annual bluegrass in our fairways.  The yellowing in the fairway is the annual bluegrass under suppression with bentgrass filling in.  Continuing to be aggressive with these regulators is a must.

Bentgrass filling in a divot.  Growth regulators increase lateral growth of bentgrass and inhibit annual bluegrass.

Light weight mowing and full sun are necessary for bentgrass success.

We had some tree work done this week.  Here a sick pine is removed in fifteen minutes.

Going…

Gone!

We have four check plots where we are trying to selectively remove annual bluegrass with the herbicide Poa Constrictor.

Topdressing approaches on Tuesday to build a firmer base for our turf.

This bunker face is at least eighteen inches higher than it was originally.  We will repair this in November.

From a drought to too much rain in one quick week.  Such is the nature of this business.  The course received 6.2 inches since Wednesday and now we are begging for the course to dry up.  We are working hard to get the greens in prime Springfield condition as we prepare for our club championship and are seeing improvement in the greens daily.

It is a beautiful site to have the sun shining and the lake full of water.  We did not have to purchase any water during the drought.

Our greens are very chlorotic from all the rain and are benefiting from the sunshine.

Besides the yellowing of the turf we experienced some etiolation or mad tillering in our fairways.  Etiolation is the rapid growth of weak leggy stems from lack of sunlight.  Regular mowing and sunlight cures this.

 The ninety degree rule is impractical and doesn't work.  Please enter the fairway once you past the green post and stay IN the fairway until you reach the white posts near the green.  Once in-once out!  That has a nice sound to it and was 'borrowed' from a neighbor club.

 Foxes continue to be a nuisance.  Here a repair was done in the seventh green for the second time.

A sinkhole developed on the sixth hole from all the rain and exposed a contractor mistake from twenty years ago.  The blue pipe is the irrigation mainline that was trenched in.  The trenched damaged the concrete drainage pipe underneath and it eventually failed.  A real head scratcher.

The fairways are making great progress.