The good, ok, bad, and ugly

We are over halfway through the summer, and in the middle of the hardest stretch. The course has weathered the season fairly well so far. As is the case, nothing is perfect and we have some good, ok, bad and ugly as well.

First, the good: the Bermuda grass. Our Bermuda grass has been very strong since early spring. Now, coupled with nearly perfect Bermuda grass growing weather- warm, humid, and plenty of moisture- the fairways and tees are nearly flawless. We just completed our annual vertical mowing process and they are set for the home stretch. We still have aeration to come, but healing will be swift, and the Bermuda grass will play great the rest of the season.

The greens are just ok. Our predominant grass on greens is Poa annua, which does not like the heat at all. Luckily the species is very adaptable and has learned to tolerate the heat and stress that we subject it to, but it is still a battle. The greens take constant monitoring, and even with that, we have struggled in a few areas. As the soil temperatures rise, root growth stops, and roots even shrink. Water-logged soil can exacerbate the loss of roots and what we are left with is very weak plants that are susceptible to all stressors. With short roots, we also must deal with small areas that dry out even when we recently received rain. Here is an easy way to think about it: short roots are like a short straw in a cup- there might be plenty of water further down in the cup, but the straw can’t reach it. That can be the case with the roots as well. The soil may have moisture even just an inch or so down in the profile, but short roots cannot access it. Lastly, weak plants necessitate more babying, which leads to slower green speeds. It is a fact at this time of year that greens are slower, but we have kept them smooth and true and most importantly: alive.

On the other hand, spots on collars and green surrounds are bad. The biggest contributing factor to this is the weather. We are not using the weather as an excuse, but it is undeniably the single most important factor in turf management. Very hot, humid weather is good for the Bermuda grass but not for the other turf. However, the weather is not the only cause. We made some mistakes this year with some of our cultural practices also, and we need to make some adjustments, which we will. We are not making excuses, but we will learn from this and improve for next year.

Which brings us to the ugly: we have been without one or both of our large rough mowers since early June. Both machines have had major mechanical and electrical problems and have been at the dealer for repairs. We expect both machines to be back today (Monday 7/21). We have been struggling to mow rough with any other machines that we can, but we haven’t been able to keep up. This has left us with long, inconsistent rough around the fairways and other open areas.

The summer is not over yet, and it has already been long and hard. As always, we are not throwing in the towel, but we are aware of the poor areas, and we will keep working to get things better this year and beyond.

 

 

Etiquette Reminder of the Month

Please don’t stand in one place for an extended period to practice putting. Your footprints can be worn into the green.

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

Golf Cart tips

 

 

See you on the course!

Joe

jvillegas@bwrc.org