Golf Course Maintenance Monthly Report

Transcription

1 Golf Course Maintenance Monthly Report August 2016 Shane George Course Superintendent

2 Summary of Works During this month we have being preparing the course for the opening of the new holes and routing (1 st August). Tee signage, distance marker plates and directional signage has all been installed. Together with Golf operation staff, we will monitor how the players move around the course and assess if more signage is required. It is great to hear positive feedback about the visual appearance of the signage, with many commenting on the acceptance of the natural and recycled theme. As I write this report, again it s raining (25 th August) and we were only just starting to dry out nicely from rainfall earlier in the month. This rain that was forecast earlier in the week has made us change our maintenance program leading into the Links Open (28 th August), but on the upside of the rain we were able to carry out extra scarifying on greens. We have completed coring of all green collars this month, which was always our goal to have it completed by the time we carry out green renovation, starting on Sunday 28 th August. Golf Shapes have started the bunker rectification on holes 9, 14 and 18. The old bunker sand, was used to top-dress areas on the golf course 15 th fairway, sections on the 18 th fairway and 1 st fairway. The new drainage works on the 1 st fairway performed great after 40mm of rain. The lower part of the fairway remained playable. Fairway extensions on holes 4 and 18 were also cored to help get water into the sub profile..

3 Weather During this month of August, we have recorded above average rainfall and only a couple strong strong windy days, which is quite unusual for this time of the year as normally August is the windiest month at The Links Shell Cove GC. Rainfall recorded at the Links Shell Cove GC: 77mm August Minimum Temperature Lowest temp 3.6 degrees 9th Average this month 7 degrees +1 degrees Long term average 6.4 degrees August Maximum Temperature Highest temp 24.8 degrees 10 th Average this month 18.5 degrees degrees Long term average 18.6 degrees

4 Staff Summary Course Superintendent: Shane George Greenkeeper: Chris Craft Mower Operator: Jason Williams Apprentice Greenkeeper: Shannon Bonnie Mower Operator: Steven Hile Shannon Bonnie will be leaving us in September, to take on a full time position as a trade s man at Studley Park Golf Club, Camden. He will be a loss for the Links Shell Cove. We wish him all the best for the future. We are currently advertising for a new employee. The closing date for applications is the 2 nd September Cutting Heights Tees: 10mm Fairways: 13mm Aprons: 10mm Greens: 3mm Rough: 70mm New 3 rd green: 3mm, still using walk behind mower on run arounds Dam Capacities Main pump dam: 100% capacity 13 th dam: 100% capacity 16 th dam: 100% capacity

5 Works Undertaken in August Greens Week ending 7 th August cut 4 times, rolled 3 Week ending 14 th August cut 3 times, rolled 5 Week ending 21 st August cut 6 times (triple cut on 19 th August), rolled 4 Week ending 28 th August cut 5 times, rolled 5 All greens were needle tined and lightly top dressed on the 8 th August. The aeration is required to relieve compaction in the soil and to assist in the movement/exchanges of gasses from the soil and allow for better penetration of water and products that need to get to the plants root system. This will be a vital part of our on-going maintenance practices, as we have increased the amount of times we are rolling greens now. The drainage pit on the 10 th green was repaired and raised on the 9 th August. We raised this pit to reduce the severity of the angle which has been a concern the machines cutting over it and to prevent plant damage. During mid-august Tupersand (selective herbicide) was applied to all green collars. This is to assist in controlling kikuyu grass runners in the edges of the greens. The control of the Kikyu runners has now become a high priority from feedback obtained during greens committee meetings. This will also be an on-going task throughout the year.

6 As most members and guests have no doubt noticed, comprehensive course renovations have again been undertaken this spring. We again thank our members for their understanding and patience at this time of year, it is an essential part of the course management plan, and helps to prepare our playing surfaces for the pressure of high course usage and summer heat in the months ahead, which in turn means these areas will go into winter in better condition. Coring of the 10 th green It is also a fundamental part of our Integrated Pest Management (IPM) strategy. This is a fancy way of saying we aim to maintain the best possible growing environment for our turf so that it stays as healthy as possible and is less reliant on fertilisers and pesticides to achieve the quality of surfaces we desire. This makes the course healthier and safer all. Green renovations were carried out during 28 th August to 30 th August. All greens except the new 3 rd,7 th and 13 th were hollow tined with 13mm tines to a depth of 35mm at a spacing of 50mm. Soil testing was carried out in July, and from the results of the soil analysis, products were applied as a result of the recommendations. Green renovation process 1. Cut and Scarify green surface 2. Core green surface 3. Remove cores from the putting surface using a tow behind blower, on to the surrounds 4. Cut up cores and rub into green collars (assist with Kikyu health of collars) 5. Blow off excess cores from surrounds into the rough 6. Re cut green surface 7. Apply soil amendments. 8. Top dress with USGA approved greens sand 9. Allow sand to dry and then rub in sand into open core holes

7 The fist cut on the greens at 4-5mm will usually happen between 7-10 days after renovations and slowly lowered to the normal 3mm. The new greens (3 rd, 7th and 13 th ) do not require coring, due to their young age. These greens have had soil amendments applied, as recommended from the soil analysis results, top dressed and aerated with solid 8mm tines.. Blowing off cores Rubbing in Sand I was extremely happy with the process this year and everything is on track to have the greens running smoothly again for the club championships.

8 Aprons/Surrounds During the month of August all green collars were hollow-cored to an average depth of 80mm. This practice is to assist in eradicating the Rye grass, Parramatta grass and help to improve the desired grass species of Kikuyu to give us the uninformative of turf variety from fairway to green. This coring practice is timed to be completed before greens renovation, because when we core the greens, and blow off cores to the surrounds we rub them into the surrounds. These cores from the green are a higher quality of soil than the cores from the collars. As well as when the soil amendments and topdressing are applied to the greens, if there is any excess that is rub off it will not go to waste, and will be also be rubbed into the green collars. Rye Collars The above practice is part of our program to eliminate the rye collars. Parramatta Grass The turf on the surrounds around Hole 7a (old 1 st green) have also been added to the areas we will be eradicating the Parramatta grass from, this item was a recommendation coming out of the greens committee. Coring of the 6th green collar

9 Tees In addition to regular cutting routine the following was carried out. The new 1 st quarry, 4 th quarry tee and 8 th tee have been cored and top-dressed. This is to assist the in turf establishment and to promote growth The 3 rd tee extension has been top-dressed, this will be an ongoing practice to achieve level ground between the old section and the new section. We have been watching the wear and tear, especially on the 8 th and 14 th tees, with the extra fertilizer, coring and top dressing, the increase of the temperature and some extra sunlight we should see some improvements soon. We may have to look at rising the cutting height also to assist in turf establishment. Golf operations staff have been fielding complaints from golfers regarding confusion surrounding the 18 th /3 rd quarry tee. To alleviate this confusion we have recently separated these areas by cutting two tees into the one surface. This should be noticeable in approximately 3-4 weeks. Top dressing on the 3 rd tee

10 Fairways In addition to regular cutting routine the following was carried out. Cutting heights on the fairways have been lowered to 13mm (11 th August). This is to assist in stimulating growth and to produce a tighter surface leading into summer. The 15 th fairway was top-dressed during this month (22 nd to 25 th August) and rubbed in. This material was from the 14 th bunkers, which are getting refurbished (part of the bunker plan). The 1 st and 18 th fairway, have also had some topdressing carried out over some new work zones. This topdressing material came from the 18 th and 9 th green side bunkers. As we continue with all the new bunker works, this sand will be used to top dress newly constructed work zones. This will assist in providing a greater turf quality to play from. Top dressing on the 15th fairway

11 Rough and Out of Play Mulch has been added to the back of the 8 th tees in preparation for spring plantings. Pruning of tress along the alternate fairway on Hole 7, this was done to highlight that players have an option off the tee. I would like to thank Mark Sheldrick in the Golf Operations for assisting us with this task. Tree pruning on 7th tee Bunkers All bunkers were spot sprayed for weeds this month. All bunkers are raked/attended to at least twice a week. We have most bunkers raked and repaired for Tuesday s competition and then we will rake and repair them again on Friday ahead of Saturday s completion. The method we use in maintaining bunkers is 1. We use a broom on bunker faces, to assist in firming up the faces, never a toothed rake on faces as it loosens the face 2. The bunker bellies are raked with either a tooth rake, grass rake or broom. Each method is depended upon how much moisture is in the sand. With more moisture in the sand we will use a tooth rake, the drier the sand we will broom the bellies. All bunkers are hand raked/attended to due to their design, which we cannot get a machine inside them to rake. Whilst hole 14 was out of play during the bunker rectification, players used hole 7A (the Links new 19 th Hole) and from all reports enjoyed this experience.

12 It was noted that the green surrounds for Hole 7A were not of the best quality due to the Parramatta grass in the rough. You will notice that this area has had the cut lines changed and added to our turf areas that we are eradicating Parramatta grass. Tee Gardens and Course Furniture Tee gardens were spot sprayed this month, however the rain diluted this application and it did not have the usual effect therefore a secondary application will be applied. Cleaning of drive way and Gutters in carpark Pruning of plants in carpark. This task is ongoing, due to cars being parked at the time Tree pruning and removal has been carried out on the 7 th hole. This is to give the golfer on the tee options where he plays to from the tee. Hazards Hazard pegs around both dams have been realigned and replaced, the spray line around all hazards was due to be treated, however with the breakdown of the spray rig this has been put back. Irrigation Replacing broken valve box lids and top dressing around valve boxes.

13 Planned Works September Greens In addition to the normal maintenance routine 1 st cut after green renovations will take place in the first week of September at 4 or 5mm, with the intention of being back to the normal height of 3mm by week 3 or 4 in September. I am excited to start our new management practice of weekly dusting of greens, which should happen (weather dependent) on the 3 rd or 4 th week in September and coincide with the lowering of cutting heights. The dusting process will happen on Monday mornings with a light application being applied weekly and rubbed in immediately, golfers will not notice the application. The benefits are to have a more consistent rolling surface. One application of a folia fungicide will be applied One application of a drench fungicide will be applied. 1 st application of insecticides will be applied. New cups have been ordered and will be in play for the Links championships. Aprons/Surrounds/Collars In addition to the normal maintenance routine One application of broadleaf control will be applied. One application of insecticide will be applied. Tees In addition to the normal maintenance routine All tees will be scarified periodically throughout the month. (4-5 holes will be done every few days.) One application of broadleaf control will be applied. One application of insecticide will be applied. I am also discussing with management the possibility of adding (tee line) artificial turf to the back or front of a couple of our par 3 tees to help alleviate wear and tear during the winter months. Samples of the tee line artificial turf have been ordered for inspection.

14 Rough and Out of Play In addition to the normal maintenance routine Broadleaf application will be applied to all rough areas. Bunkers In addition to the normal maintenance routine Kustom bind will be applied and sand brought into the bunkers on the 9 th green, 18 th green and 14 th green. We expect these all to be in play by Saturday 17 th September. The next stage of the bunker rectification plan will begin in the 3 rd or 4 th week of October. Work on the surrounds of the new fairway bunker on the 8 th hole will continue to improve turf quality around this bunker. No additional work on bunkers is planned. Tee Gardens and Course Furniture New putting green cups have been ordered. Directional signage for the 8 th Hole and clubhouse has been ordered. Directional signage for Hole 2 will be erected. Volunteers are scheduled to erect steps to the 15 th tees. Drainage An audit of drainage issues on the course was performed and these issues are currently being prioritised. Construction and Grow in Current mowing heights on the new 3 rd and 13 th are 3 mm. This was lowered from 3.5mm on the 28 th July. The sections on the 3 rd that were re seeded, didn t strike due to cooler weather and heavy rain which washed it of the surface. Staff removed turf plugs from the edges of the 7 th green and put them into the bare areas in the middle of the 3 rd green to help assist in establishment We have top dressed all new greens this month. As we continue with the bunker refurbishment, we will be using the old bunker sand to top-dress and level out the newly constructed playing areas

15 Items from Greens Committee Drainage to right of 17th Hole This area is quite extensive and work cannot be performed with current staff. Golf Shapes (course contractor) are preparing a quote to have this area rectified. Work to be performed will include complete drainage system installed along with reshaping of the area to the right of the fairway including the hill to make the fairway wider at this point, as this is the main landing zone. From the August meeting no further updates were given. Once quotes are received the rectification of the drainage in this area will be included in the 2017/18 capital works program for consideration in the council budget. Areas of Parramatta Grass (old 4 th green and 5 th green) The committee has noted these are areas of concern. From the August meeting Method of eradication outlined in July greens report and explained to committee 3 areas on top of the committee s request have been added. Cut lines and treatment has begun. The total of 5 areas is also added as separate jobs to this list under date of 10/8/16 these include holes management requested committee to recommend any further areas of concern. Rob Birkin highlighted that if hole- 7A is in play then the area beyond this green that is full of Parramatta grass could be looked at. An extensive area of Parramatta grass on hole 7A has been added to the treatment program. Members should notice a substantial improvement in these areas towards the end of the 2016/17 growing season with then no noticeable difference from normal kikuyu surrounds by the end of the 2017/18 growing season. Kikyu Runners Item was discussed and treatment method accepted. Mushrooms Growing in Greens This has been eradicated and will be monitored over the warmer months. Item not discussed at this meeting.

16 Customer Service of Maintenance Staff The comimittee raised this as a potential issue and an item it feels could be improved. Management is currently reviewing proposals for training, however nothing will be started for this until the position currently beinng advertised is filled. (Applications for the qualified greenkeeper position closed on Friday 2 nd September.) Bunker Rectification Complete bunker rectification plan has been made available on the website for all members at the request of the greens committee. Drainage on the 18 th Fairway This item was discussed at the August meeting, as the committee has raised it as a concern that this area is now in the 2 nd shot landing zone for a lot of players. It was explained that much like the area on Hole 17 this fix is a much larger project than what is capable with current resources. Plans from Sydney Water have been obtained and are currently looking at diverting water from the sewer trench towards the creek in front of the 9 th tees before it gets to the 18 th fairway. Peter Fien from Shell stone excavations will attempt to alleviate this issue with use of the Sydney water plans, there is currentlly no scheduled date for this work. If the work done by shell stone excavations ius not succsessfull then a full drainage sytsem on the 18 th fairway will be included in the 2017/18 capital works program for consideration in the council budget. Poor Turf Quality of 17 th Green Approach from Golf Cart Traffic Item was noted and barriers have been placed across the fairway to restrict cart access. Drop Zone on Hole 3 The committee expressed concern regarding the length of the grass on the drop zone and the general poor turf quality. This was noted, agreed and the drop zone has been moved slightly closer to the green and identified with orange markers until turf quality has improved. Golf operations staff are also working on identifiable signage to be placed on the tee that clearly shows players there is a drop zone available to them rather than having to tee off again. Cart Congestion on Holes 1,4 & 18 Committee expressed concern regarding congestion around these areas for cart traffic. Golf staff have discussed possible solutions with course maintennace staff, however long term solutions involve erection of alternate cart paths which are unable to be funded in this financial year.

17 Interim solutions are being looked at in more detail. Annual Treatment Program The committee requested that an annual treatment program be added to the monthly greens report. This has been noted and agreed the annual treatment program is atatched to this document. Pitch mark repair Coming out of the greens committee golf operation staff will be giving a pitch mark tool to groups in the comp to help repair pitch marks on our greens leading into summer. Valve Boxes Broken The committee expressed concern regarding the number of junction boxes throughout the course that have been broken. An audit was performed and we found that there was a total of 12 lids broken requiring replacement (the course has a total of aproximately 300). These 12 lids have been replaced. There are still 4-5 actual valve boxes that will require replacement these will be considered for replacementg in the 2017/18 budget. Tee Markers The committee suggested some form of plastic brick to be used in lieu of the real bricks currently being used as tee markers. Without any examples to view management will continue to use the current bricks, Barry Kime is sourcing examples. Wet Areas on the Edge of Paths Volunteer group will meet with the course superintendent to discsuss. Steps to Hole 15 The committee expressed concern that this walk up the dam embankment will become dangerous especially in the wet. The Volunteer group will start this project the week beginning Setember 12 th. Hole 18 creek Zone. The committee expressed concern of the unsightly nature of the works to the creek zone on hole 18. Works to this zone was done as part of the re-routing construction project and plans were forwarded.

18 This creek zone has been included in the landscape management plan, which is able to be viewed on the Links Website. Maintenance Audit The greens committee will perform a maintenance audit of the facility ranking the condition of various aspects of the course and maintenance practices. These areas will receive a grade of pass, marginal pass and fail. The greens committee are requested to perform 2 audits per month. The committee performed an audit of the 3 rd green (new green) and its surrounds. The areas that failed the assessment were; Green playabilty, mulch gardens, cup setting, surrounds, tee marker condition, tee location The areas that received a pass were; flag condition. The committee perfomed an audit August 11 th The green that was assessed was hole 18 and its surrounds Smoothness and playability were assessed as a pass with a stimp speed of 10.7 (this is getting on the high end of our acceptable range) The rye collars on this hole received a marginal pass there is aproximately 20% rye coverage) Cup setting was examined and received a pass.

19 Volunteers Volunteers totalled 52 hours on the course for August and an additional 32 hours in the clubhouse. 1. Rope repairs to the 8 th Hole 2. Assisted with drainage work on the 1 st Hole 3. Installed sand bucket holder on 1 st Hole 4. Removed plants at clubhouse in preparation for concrete slab to house ice freezer 5. Removing ropes on 5 th Fairway 6. Preparation work for new steps on Hole Administrative work in acquiring more used power poles. 8. Toilet maintenance 9. Painted external AC unit on side of clubhouse 10. Installed new posts on Hole Assisted contract carpenter in building furniture for brasserie.

20 Golf Operations Saxon Gripper Thanks to Gael Doyle from the committee for supplying us with 2 Saxon Grippers (as pictured below). These tools have been a massive help in fixing pitch marks on the golf course. Golf operation staff will be handing these out to different groups that play in the Saturday and Midweek competitions.. Tee Placement Schedule Golf operation staff have been working closely with course superintendent to implement a tee placement schedule to gain more consistency with tee placements in competitions. Golf Operation staff will elect to play some mid-week competitions from the steel works course.

21 Practice Fairway The old 1 st and 9 th Holes are being utilised by some of our members as a practice area. It is management s intention with the help of the committee to turn this area into a full service practice area including driving range, hitting nets and short game facility. Management are currently looking into this further. In the meantime members are encouraged and welcome to come and use this area to hit their own balls however we do ask the following: 1. If possible avoid taking divots off the old 1 st and 9 th tees (feel free to use these areas for driver play) 2. For Iron play please use the old 9 th fairway when possible. 3. If hitting shots into the old 1 st or 9 th greens please fix all pitch marks. Slow Play The time it is taking for Saturday play at the Links is becoming unacceptable. Golf operations staff have been monitoring this over the past three months and most recently had a staff person on the 1st tee to ensure players hit off on time and were ready to hit off on time. This had an immediate effect with the result being a field of 180 players in a stroke round all hit off on time. Golf operation staff would like to encourage all players to read the ready golf mantra below and all do there bit to save 1 minute per hole.

22 Chemical Applications NOTE : no spraying has been carried out this month, due to machinery problems with the spray tank Greens Fairways and Tees Rough

23 Annual Greens Program Month Preventative Fungicide Preventative Insecticide Fertiliser July 1 application 1 iron application August 1 application Complete NPK September 2 application 1 application Renovation fert based on soil results October 2 application 1 application Complete NPK November 2 application 1 application Complete NPK Growth Regulation 15 Applications Applications Applications Applications Applications 21- December 2 application 2 application Fert PK 15 Applications 21- January 2 application 2 application Fert PK 15 Applications 21- February 2 application 1 application Fert PK 15 Applications 21- March 1 application 1 application Fert PK 15 Applications 21- April 1 application 15 Applications 21- May 1 application 1 iron application June 1 application 1 iron application 15 Applications Applications 21- Regards, Shane George Course Superintendent Links Shell Cove GC