What a bad storm we experienced this week.  The golf course didn't lose any trees but it sure did lose plenty of mulch.  I don't believe I can remember such a "spring" storm in February.  Anyway we spent two days cleaning up and are ready to open the entire course the first week of March.  We are about three weeks ahead of last season and the long range weather looks good for golf.  Maybe Mr. Groundhog was right about an early spring!

Every bunker was in this condition or worse on Thursday morning.  Rainfall rates around 2 inches per hour were experienced.

Storm damage #5.

Mud and mulch at the 6th green.

More mess by the 3rd green.

Plenty of silt was deposited in all of our ponds.  

More cleanup Saturday morning.

We made temporary greens that were nice to look at but never used this winter!  Turf covers come off on Sunday and mowers and rollers will be on the course next week.

There is still plenty of firewood available for the taking.

We were able to open the back nine for play on Saturday.  We are evaluating the front nine and hope to begin removing the tarps next week.  Currently many of the fairways are much too soft to permit play.  With rain in the forecast for much of this week it is unlikely the front nine will open this weekend.  We are anxious as you are to get on the course but must wait until conditions permit.

After looking closer at the damaged turf in our rough I feel confident it will bounce back.  Several turf plugs were taken inside and are already producing new shoots.  This is most likely gray snow mold and something rarely seen in our growing area.  Regular brushing will help the turf recover and will begin as soon as the course dries out.   Pink snow mold is more common and has been prevalent in our fairways the past two years.  Preventive fungicides appear to have done the job as the fairways are clean.

The first tint of spring green was observed on Saturday with the warm temperatures.

Repairing damage from snow plows at our entrance.

Fifteen fairway looking beautiful Saturday morning.  The early bird gets the view!  We are ready to get the mowers on the course just as soon as it dries up and the change will be dramatic.

Removing some ornamental grasses on the seventh hole and relocating to the spillway on the fifth hole.

Red tail hawks pairing up and hopefully nesting on the course.

This is less than two months away!

The snow is about gone and we are evaluating the course daily for when to open.  Nice weather is forecast for this weekend and we will do our best to open if possible.  Currently the course is plain mush!  Colder temperatures are forecast until Saturday so we will see.

Once the snow melted some weak turf was observed in some of the rough.  We anticipate aggressively aerating and seeding these areas once the course dries up.

Another view.  We suspect the mild weather and excessive rain in December predisposed the turf to decline.  Most of the turf is annual bluegrass.

Melting snow is rapidly leaving the course.  Too bad we can't store this water for summer.

I recently attended the Golf Industry Show in San Diego where everything imaginable in golf course maintenance was on display.  It took eight hours to walk the trade show floor.

Check out this rig.  Toro recently redesigned their utility vehicle but didn't raise the price!

Yours truly posing with a great horned owl at the Audubon booth.  Audubon will be visiting our course in June hopefully for final certification.  

What blizzard?  Its been just over a week and two feet of snow is gone! It is unusual to see such melt in the middle of winter but we'll take it.  What a job my staff did plowing the parking lot allowing the club to open on Monday.  Kudos to those guys!

Friday afternoon with the snow just starting to accumulate.  Enjoy the run Quincy, the next time won't be so easy.

Saturday afternoon with Snowzilla at its peak.

Our first snow event using only the Kubota plow and it performed great.

An almost beach like look by the driving range.

Clearing snow from gutters at the shop.

We choose to believe our signs actually worked.  The fifth green with hardly a foot print on it.

The snow melted almost as fast as it came down.  The new thirteenth tee looks awesome only ten days after it was covered by two feet of powder.

We worked on the course right up to the storm.  Here's some of our handy work now that we are back in the shop.

The snow is gone and we are splitting wood till the course dries up.  Come and get it!

This was taken only four days after the snowstorm!  There's twenty inches of snow just beyond Quincy. 

We have done our best preparing the course for the Great Blizzard of 2016.  Our staff is ready and will be plowing the grounds throughout the weekend.  Chef has provided them with plenty of good eats and they will take catnaps when possible.  It is awesome to have such a dedicated bunch and they are a pleasure to work with.  We intend to have the club open as soon as possible.

An ominous sunrise this morning.  Red in the morning….

The plow and men are ready.

Reflective markers placed throughout to keep the plow on the road.

Fencing to protect our weakest green from kids sledding.

What a weird start to winter.  Growth in late December after we had applied our winter fungicides.  After some consideration we thought best to not mow.  The mowers will be ready when the weather breaks.

I'm calling this the plague.  This is roughstalk bluegrass invading our bent fairways in a few areas.  This will need to be sodded out in the fall.

Before the storm we almost completed cutting back last years growth in seven and eight ditch.  Four lake is done!

This drain has continued to flow since the day it was installed on the eighth hole.

We tried to complete some tree work before the storm but alas some equipment breakdowns occurred and had to be rescheduled.

A large dead oak was removed before the breakdown on the second hole next to this now specimen tulip poplar.  More firewood!

Not one guess to my turf twister.  Anyway this line of damaged turf was caused by the hose from the air compressor when we winterized the irrigation system.  The hose gets hot as the air leaves the compressor.

There's the culprit!

The course has been buttoned up for winter even though we are experiencing some decent weather for golf.  All of the construction is complete and much of the sod has pegged down.  Roots will continue to grow as long as we don't have an extended period of freeze.  Currently we are cutting back last seasons growth around all the water features throughout the course as well as spreading wood chips.

The 14th fairway was shortened a bit to make room for the new forward tee.  

Repairing a drainage ditch on the 15th hole.

Extending a bunker drain on the 12th hole to dry up a perennially wet area.

The journey begins.  Hopefully winter will be kind to us and let us complete this task before the golf season unlike last year.

We have begun tree pruning.  This is a maple with sap running after the cut and then freezing at night.  The ice tasted like maple sugar!

Part of the Audubon Sanctuary Program involves creating habitat for different creatures.  Here we are using pruned branches to provide cover in a wooded area.

Another brush pile.

With the extended mild temperatures and moisture additional fungicide applications were required.  Once the fungicide dried the green was covered and closed till spring.

A circulation fan will be added to the 13th green this season.  Power will come from the turf care center.

The practice bunker is complete without the high face.  Our staff does good work!

Turf twister.  This yellow line appeared before the new year near the first green.  Be the first to guess correctly the cause and win a dozen golf balls.  This offer expires by the next blog!