Great news! Our new greens mower arrived this week and it couldn’t have come at a better time with more issues happening with our existing one over the last few days. This mower is critical as it gives a quality finish and reliability in probably the most important area of the course. The greens will be cut at 5 mm throughout the winter and this will give a decent speed to the surface and a true roll. This week all greens were spiked to a depth of 10 inches to improve surface drainage, root development and will allow unwanted gasses to escape from the rootzone.
Collars & Approaches
These remain being cut twice weekly, as mentioned previously, we want the course to look as presentable as we can for as long as possible throughout the winter months, and maintaining our standard in these areas is key.
Fairways
I am very pleased so far with the effects of diamond cutting on the 1st, 8th, 11th, and 18th. This has dramatically improved this appearance from the tee and achieved a more consistent carpet-like finish which is the aim of two-directional cutting.
Rough
Certain areas of rough are still growing and will be controlled by a weekly cut as long as the weather allows us.
Tees
Cutting will continue weekly but due to recent weather, some of the wetter & weaker tees will be placed on forward winter mats. These tees will be seeded, sanded, aerated, and left to make a slow recovery over the winter months.
Bunkers
These are raked, weeded and the sand is redistributed on Mondays and Fridays when the weather allows. I would also like to thank the members who have kept the bunkers tidy by raking missed footprints and splash marks.
Wildflower Areas
Due to continued mild weather, the decision to cut back to ground level has been delayed as the flowers need longer to go to seed. This will increase the amount of seed from the plants regenerating in the soil.
16th Green Redesign
Due to the heavy rain over the last couple of weeks, the last 50 meters of turf were unable to be cut and delivered. Hopefully next week it should arrive and be laid. The green itself is definitely less saturated as the bank we removed has allowed the water to gravitationally find its way away from the area. Over the next few months, this will give the area time to settle in and slowly establish itself. I feel we have achieved our goal in the project and look forward to opening it for play in the new year.
Final Thoughts
Due to the softening of the greens, pitch marks have become more prominent. The team really appreciates everybody who repairs theirs and another mark. Sadly I have been seeing a large number of unrepaired marks which is impossible to marshal. So I ask you even though it is frustrating repairing more than one other mark, I feel the only option we have as a club is to ask you as passionate golfers please help us in keeping the greens as perfect as possible. We have also included below a best practice clip on repairing pitch marks.
Happy Golfing,
Matt and The Team.