Turf Talk

Welcome to the 2011 golf season! 

We are excited to get the season going and look forward to providing an outstanding experience for you and your guests.

The winter season was a heavy one, with record snowfall amounts in the month of March. The snow and slow melting process has contributed to heavier than usual winter damage to the turf. The recent temperatures have been below average, which means there has been very little growth at this point. As a comparison, our first mowing this year was nearly three weeks later than in a “normal” year.

The greens have some patches of snow mold but are showing signs of growth. Our practices in the spring include slicing, verticutting, seeding, fertilizing and topdressing to smooth out the surface and get them in playable condition again. We have used covers extensively this spring to help warm the surface and start the growing process. The greens will initially be a bit bumpy as the growth rate of the different grasses evens itself out. You will likely see some sand on the surface since we have topdressed the greens three times so far to smooth the putting surface. Greens 1 and 17 have sodded areas that will be roped until they are ready. As always at this time of year, our emphasis is on encouraging root growth and recovery before we start to increase the green speeds.

Fairways and roughs suffered more damage than usual. There are several areas of the course that are just starting to see the sun for the first time, and will take a while to begin growth. They will be off-color until the temperatures are consistently warm to stimulate recovery. Cool season turf does not actively start growth until the soil temperatures reach 50 - 55 degrees. 

There are some fairway areas that suffered winter kill from either snow mold or standing water that froze. We are re-sodding some of these, while all other damaged areas have been aerated, seeded, fertilized and topdressed with sand and compost to encourage rapid recovery and density. They will need to be played as ground under repair as we start the season.

As we usually see in heavy winters, there are areas where groundwater is surfacing and causing wet spots. These are on holes 2, 3, 4, 10 and 13, and will be roped off as we begin the season.

Because of these early season conditions, we will have strict cart restrictions to allow these areas the best chance for complete recovery. As we start the season, no disabled flags will be issued, as it is necessary to keep all carts on the path until we feel that the course can handle the traffic.

Despite these early season challenges, we anticipate full recovery and great conditions once the busy season hits. We are constantly looking into what can be done differently, or better, to try to avoid winter damage, however we are always at the mercy of Mother Nature. Your understanding and cooperation is appreciated as we work to recover quickly from the wrath of winter. We look forward to having a great golfing season!

Jeff Clouthier, CGCS
Grounds Superintendent