Bermuda grass sod

We are scheduled to begin sod work on the Bermuda grass this Thursday, June 14^th. We will contract the work to McDonald and Son’s, who also completed our Master Plan work.

The priority areas for sod are all necessary areas on holes 1, 10, and 18. This includes tees, fairway areas, as well as approaches (the areas just short of the greens). We will also sod all necessary tees and all necessary approaches on the rest of the course. Newly sodded areas will be “ground under repair” for about 2 weeks. We will put out signs and have reminders, but not every inch of new sod will be roped off or painted, as this would be too time consuming for us to do. Please be aware of new sod areas and use your best judgment to allow the quickest healing possible.

While this project will be significant, it is important to remember that not all damaged Bermuda grass will be fixed. To repair all dead Bermuda grass across the course would have been far too expensive. We will use the funds that we have to generate the biggest return for our money, but it will only stretch so far. In addition, some areas are too small and therefore not efficient to sod. It takes labor, equipment, and time to do sod work. If the crew is constantly moving from tiny area to tiny area, lots of their time and energy is spent traveling and not repairing.

We will continue to fertilize regularly, we will be sprigging (which was supposed to start last week, but the weather didn’t cooperate), and we will seed later in the season. Allowing areas to naturally heal is also a viable option. Any small areas that are showing signs of filling in on their own may be left alone to continue growing. We would like to encourage any Bermuda grass that survived last winter to populate any areas of turf that did not survive. Increasing the quantity of grass with strong genetics that was able to withstand the weather will only help in similar future situations.

This does not mean that following the sod project, that the Grounds staff will sit back and relax and no longer worry about the remaining injured areas. As we have mentioned, sod is only one aspect of the recovery process. Our work will not end once the sod is complete.

Etiquette Reminder of the Month

Please limit hitting extra shots on the course, especially if taking large divots or making ball marks.

Also, as part of a Golf Committee initiative to improve course etiquette, we have included links to videos teaching proper on course etiquette. Please take a moment to watch:

Ball Marks - How to properly repair

Bunker etiquette

See you on the course!

Joe

jvillegas@bwrc.org