Bunker restoration

The complete overhaul of our bunkers was completed in 2018 and not much work outside of raking and trimming around the edges has had to be put into them until this year. The crew focused a lot of effort into the bunkers this summer. Over time grass and weeds will encroach into the bunkers. The Bermuda grass in the rough will quickly send runners into the bunker and root itself in the sand. Over enough time these runners will form a full stand of grass in what used to be the bunkers edge. We spent the better part of this summer digging the grass all the way back to the bunker liner and reestablishing the original edge to all the bunkers on the property.

No. 1 bunker after                No. 1 bunker before

We have also been adding sand to areas of our bunkers that have gotten low do to play and/or wind. This fall we are looking to add sand to all bunkers, getting them back to the level they were when the bunker project was completed in 2018. 

No. 17 bunker after                  No. 17 bunker before

Hopefully all this work is admired from a distance as no golfer actually wants to be in the bunkers. After all, the bunkers are a hazard. In the unfortunate circumstance that you do have to go into a bunker please help us out, as well as the golfer behind you, by raking out your tracks.

No. 15 bunker before                      No.15 bunker during

No. 15 bunker after

 

The Art of Watering Greens

Water requirements for turf remain the same throughout the growing season but our irrigation/moisture maintenance practices change throughout any given time of year. Our bent grass fairways and greens require around 1.5" to 2" of water a week in the form of rainfall or irrigation. During the cooler spring and fall seasons our goal is to water deep and infrequently. We will let the surface dry out for a few days and allow the roots to dive deeper in the soil in search of moisture before a rain event or irrigation cycle.  During the summer, however, the cool season grass is more susceptible to heat stress and leaf wilt. We still try to water infrequently, but letting the soil profile completely dry out will lead to turf loss. During these hot stretches of 90+ degree days moisture levels in the greens are closely monitored. Between irrigation cycles, which is typically every 4 days, we will hand water areas of greens that are drying out faster than the rest. We can water these spots heavily in the A.M. and in certain conditions will be out in the afternoon to hand water again. During high temperature/high humidity afternoons too much, or standing water, can actually roast the crown of the plant and kill it off. A light watering, also known as syringing, is often applied in the afternoon sometimes just to lower the surface temperature, even if only a few degrees. Moisture levels are closely monitored by several members of the crew throughout the day to avoid under or overwatering. 

We know this can be a minor inconvenience to some and we do appreciate our golfers patience as we perform our afternoon watering.     

What is Poa?

Annual bluegrass, also known as poa annua, is a turf type most commonly considered a weed or at least a nuisance. It is a winter annual which means it germinates in the late summer/early fall and matures throughout the winter. During the spring it will set seed and then eventually die off during the summer heat... Theoretically... 

Poa at rough height

One of the problems with poa is that many types have been able to survive through the summer and act as a perennial. Poa has adapted very well to low mowing heights. It is able to produce seed at this close mowing height, giving it an advantage over more desirable turf that surrounds it. Their seed is easily spread throughout the course often from clinging onto golf shoe spikes and then being transplanted in a different location. This process repeats over and over. It can even be carried from course to course in this same manner. Once a single plant has taken root it can easily form a colony and overtake a putting surface. 

Poa at fairway height

Poa annua is undesirable because of it tendency to die off in hot weather, its off light green coloring and its seed heads. The main problem lies in the pesky seed heads that grow in early spring. At the close mowing height of a putting green the puffy seed heads are aesthetically unpleasing and affect the smoothness of the ball roll. 

At Adams Pointe our plan of action for combating the spread of poa is to use plant growth regulators(pgr). If the application timing is just right you can catch the poa just before it goes to produce its seed heads. The goal of the prg application is to stop the seeds from being produced or render the seeds it produces less viable. Certain plant growth regulators can also hinder the growth of the poa annua and not the bentgrass. This would give the desired bentgrass a chance to infiltrate some of the space occupied by the poa. 

Poa at greens height

In this picture is a patch of poa in our chipping green after the plant growth regulator application. The seed heads are not obvious in the photo. You can, however, see the off color which is highlighted more so by the pgr doing its job. 

All of this is not to be a deterrence. I just played the course the other day(once a week actually) and the greens are currently rolling great! 

Spring into golf season

#18 topdressed before holes being punched

 As of this week winter is still dragging on a bit with over night temps still below freezing. We are still dealing with frost delays and late starts. But it is officially spring and this years golf season has unofficially kicked off. Our cool season grasses are greening up, slowly but surely, here at the Pointe. Greens aerification on March 21st went relatively smoothly but the cooler temperatures are forcing the healing process to take a little longer this spring. The greens will be turning 25 years old this year! With the greens getting up there in age and usage we have decided to implement a deep tine process every 2 years or so. The half inch in diameter tines can penetrate 4-5 inches deeper into the soil profile than our standard core pulling aerification process. Ideally, this extra depth will help drive our grass roots deeper into the soil and provide a healthy putting surface above.

Bridge on #3

Between snow storms this winter the crew was able to get a few projects completed. As always over grown brush around the course and in the native areas was cut back. Some trees have been either removed or trimmed up due to damage and/or disease. Other trees have become overgrown and impede play of the course. Most notably, a large cottonwood in front and to the right of the white tee boxes on #3 was removed. This tree was large enough for us to cut down and turn into boards for future use on the bridge that it sat next to. The major project of the winter was of course the aforementioned bridge. The bridge on #3 was in rough shape. 27 boards had to be replaced.         

A new set of tees will be opened for play April 1st. A 500 sq. ft. tee has been built roughly 70 yards closer to the fairway on the par 5 10th. The green blocks will be moved from their previous location to this new tee box.