Greens

I’ve given the greens a month for the sand to dilute into the profile, but now it’s time to resume grooming the surfaces.

This procedure uses spinning metal teeth, located between the front roller and the cutting cylinder, to comb up any flat-lying grass leaf. The plant is then instantly cut, removing any longer leaf with one swift snip.

This process is minimally invasive and doesn’t stress the plant like verti-cutting or scarifying. The benefits of grooming are smoother, truer surfaces with a slight increase in pace, as the ball travels over the surface rather than bobbling. There’s also a small improvement in the plant’s ability to photosynthesise, as more leaf area is exposed to sunlight.

Pictures below show the groomers and the material removed during this process. Note: the length of the leaf is longer than you would get from daily cutting.

Secondly, we’ve resumed micro-coring of the greens on a weekly basis, ensuring this doesn’t interrupt play. We’ve completed six greens so far, and hopefully by mid-November we’ll have finished the rest.

Course Cutting

Due to the mild conditions we’re experiencing, we’re continuing to cut the greens daily, tees and collars twice a week, and the rough once a week. This is essential to keep course presentation and playability at their best.

Upcoming Tree Work

Between now and Christmas, we’ll be carrying out several areas of cutting back, including:

  • The hedge on the right of the 1st
  • Removal of a couple of trees on the left of the 2nd, just in front of the tee (to give those with a big fade a better chance of finding the green rather than the trees!)
  • Cutting back the 4th boundary hedge
  • Removing a few branches from the left of the 7th tee
  • Cutting back the hedge line on the right of the 8th
  • Removing overhanging branches near the 9th tee
  • Cutting back a few branches near the 16th green to allow a better view from the tee

We’ve also cut back a few areas of blackthorn that were in play, as requested.

Final Thoughts – Volunteers

Volunteers are crucial in helping my team with the smaller but essential tasks. Since George’s appointment, we’ve had several members step forward — this is down to his commitment and enthusiasm to move the Club and Course up a notch. Let’s hope more members jump on the bandwagon; this can only be a step in the right direction.

Receiving recognition from golfers far and wide for their praise of the experience at St Austell is our driving force. A big thank you to all members who have stepped forward recently — your help is very much appreciated.

Happy Golfing,


Matt and the Team