Golf cart traffic management

Golf carts are a fixture at most golf courses around the world. They add many advantages to a round of golf.  Carts can increase the speed of round of golf and allow someone to play 18 holes that may otherwise be unable to walk that much. However, carts can also be detrimental to a course and its appearance and maintenance. Proper cart traffic management is crucial to minimizing unnecessary stress on the turf grass.

No matter if you are driving on the beltway or the cart paths at Bretton Woods, everyone is in a hurry. For golfers, being in a hurry in a golf cart means cutting corners and driving across turf grass. While all golf cart traffic is stressful to the turf grass, driving in the rough and fairways is far less detrimental because of the size of the area. However, repeatedly cutting the inside corner of a turn can wear grass out as fast as anything and, because it is such a small area, each tire hits the exact same place. The grass wears thin, dies, and then the area turns to dirt and mud. Weeds may invade the worn areas, but even they cannot handle the constant traffic.

The Grounds department has a couple of techniques for managing these unsightly worn cart path edges, including something new this year. First, as you all have seen in the past, we use stakes to help guide carts around a corner instead of through it. These short, green and white stakes are just visible enough to catch your eye but they also blend in enough to not seem too unsightly. We have strategically placed these stakes at many “problem corners”- corners that have been continually worn out from cart traffic. We have more stakes that can be added to areas that develop through the season. We also will monitor the stakes that are currently in place to see if they need adjustment, if more are needed at a particular location, or if the stakes can be removed.

This year we have taken cart management a step further in our chronic trouble areas. We have taken large rocks that we have gathered from throughout the course and placed them at these worst locations. The rocks should work as a great deterrent to cutting the inside corner of a turn. Either, the driver of the cart will take a slightly wider angle on the turn or they will hit the rock with their golf cart. These rocks will be more than just a bump in the road due to their size, but have been used in areas that will not interfere with play. The rocks are a natural, more attractive and permanent tool for directing traffic.

Managing cart flow on a golf course is a constant and fluid challenge. As carts are directed away from one place it creates traffic wear in a new place. Shifting the patterns to different areas is the key to never letting one area be completely destroyed. With more lasting solutions to some of the worst corners, we can continue to monitor and shift traffic in other areas to reduce the unattractive worn out areas.

See you on the course!

Joe

jvillegas@bwrc.org

Definition and mowing patterns

There are many factors that affect turf quality on a golf course. Some are under the control of the turf manager’s, but many are not. When we do things we can control we do it for the health of the plant, for the playability of the golf course or things that accomplish both. One such tactic we are going to focus on this year that accomplishes both is the definition and crispness of our mowing lines.

When someone describes the definition of a golf course they are referring to the way different surfaces stand apart from one another. For example, when looking at a green, definition would be how one can tell the difference between where the green edge ends and the collar starts. Similarly, one would then see where the collar ends and the green surround rough starts. These lines are usually created in two ways. First is the height of cut of the turf grass. Back to the example of the green, the putting surface is mowed much shorter than the collar. This difference in height creates a visual difference. The second way to create the line of definition is with different turf grass species. Using the same example, collars are often a different species of turf than the rough surrounding them. The color, texture, and growing pattern of different species create a visual difference in surfaces.

This picture shows the fairway, step-cut and rough.
The step-cut is dew-covered and very light colored, while
the rough is darker and furthest to the right.

At Bretton Woods, one of the ways we want to improve this year is by increasing the definition between fairway, step-cut, and rough. The fairway and step-cut are both Bermuda grass, while the rough is a mix of ryegrass and tall fescue. We have created definition through different grass species on the surfaces. We also mow each of these at a different height of cut. But to make it more defined and more aesthetically pleasing, this year we are working on making the lines that separate each surface crisper. When we applied Roundup to kill weeds in the dormant Bermuda grass we sprayed into the step-cut as well. The line between what was sprayed and the rough outside of that is the edge of step-cut to rough. By removing the weeds we have created a mono-stand of Bermuda grass, and the visual difference between Bermuda grass and ryegrass will create the definition.

The line between the fairway and step-cut is a little trickier. Because both surfaces are Bermuda grass, the definition is created by the difference in height of cut. The fairway is mowed shorter than the step-cut. This year, to improve the step-cut we are marking the exact width that the mower can cut and making each hole the same. Increasing the uniformity and consistency on the entire hole as well as the entire course will define the edge between the step-cut and fairway even more. To do this, we measured a piece of wood to the cutting width of the mower, attached another piece of wood to work as a handle, then walked each hole and marked a line with paint every fifteen paces. This line acts as a guide for the step-cut mower as well as the fairway mower.

This shows a clear difference between
the rough and the step-cut and painted lines.

An added bonus of making the step-cut more consistent throughout the course is the reduction of turf that is considered step-cut. In some areas the width was two or three times as wide as the mower. The machine we use for the step-cut is not one of the faster machines so turning around several extra times is inefficient. Now, by adjusting to a consistent one mower width, we can save time each time we mow.

This may seem like a small change or even a change that will go unnoticed; however, this particular adjustment will make a visual impact for the course and we can also improve the efficiency of mowing the step-cut. Cleaning unwanted species of turf out of the step-cut and improving playability and aesthetics also makes this a good change.

See you on the course!

Joe

jvillegas@bwrc.org

Spring update

We are just around the corner from another golf season. The temperatures are slowly on the rise and the days are getting longer. It is time for the Grounds Department to start revving up. Over the next few weeks we will be putting some of the course setup materials back out on the course and tidying up from the winter.

The first thing you may notice when heading out on the course this spring is our new tee markers. Through some connections in our local Superintendent fraternity, we were able to have a terrific metal logo tee marker made for a very minimal cost. The new markers were cut out of 1/8” thick sheet metal with a plasma cutter. Once we had the “raw” tee marker, we ground off any rough edges, cleaned them with acetone and primed them to be painted. We then painted each marker with the corresponding color of the set of tees on the golf course: black, blue, white, gold, and red. Anywhere that two colors share a tee space we used one marker of each color. This will be easy to identify for players, but will also be very convenient for our staff during setup because there is no worry about the wrong color being in front of the other. The old tee markers will be stored and used during the winter while the metal tee markers are being refurbished. This will allow a full set of tees to be out on the course at all times during the year. Repainted ball washers, hazard stakes, and yardage stakes were also all put out this past week.

Another improvement that you may notice is the yardage posts out on the driving range fairway have all been repainted and new flags put on top. The bright, fresh paint makes the posts jump out to a golfer standing up on the driving range tee. The posts look clean and crisp and are now much more visible.

As you head down 3 fairway, you may notice stakes surrounding a sinkhole about 50 yards from the green. This is where we moved the Japanese maple from 3 fairway to near 15 forward tee. Because the soil was so dry during construction it did not compact quite as well as needed. With the wet winter, some of the soil sank, leaving the outline of the tree hole. For now, we will simply keep the area staked off. Any necessary repairs will be made once the Bermuda grass begins to grow so that some of the sod can be salvaged and any new sod we have to lay will have a legitimate chance of surviving.

Finally, we have also put our purple martin houses back out on their poles. March 15^th is the general date for purple martins to return to our area. Providing housing and having it ready on time is not only a benefit for the birds and bird enthusiasts at the club, but we will also be using it as documentation for our Audubon Certification.

It is good to start getting the course put back together. Some of the staff’s hard work over the winter is on display through freshly painted items. The turf gets a fresh start in spring and so we like to give the course a fresh start as well.

See you on the course!

Joe

jvillegas@bwrc.org

Cross-country skiing

Bretton Woods provides a unique location for some great winter activities. The front field of the property is a local favorite for sledding. Easy to access and lots of space make for some great fun after a snow storm. Cross-country skiing is another winter sport that might seem fit for Bretton Woods. But skiing across a golf course, especially the greens, tees, or fairways can be very detrimental to the turf grass below. Bretton Woods is no different.

When the snow is compacted by the skis it melts slightly. Overnight, the tracks from the skier refreeze as ice instead of snow. This track of ice is now much more difficult to thaw and will remain around much longer than the snow surrounding it. Now, the turf below the ice will remain cold, with less oxygen and sunlight later into the spring. Turf grass needs every bit of strength it can produce to come out of winter and begin to grow in the spring. By delaying this, the area beneath the ice may be weeks behind the other turf around it.

This problem is exacerbated on intensely managed turf grass, like the turf grass on golf courses. Grass on the golf course is already being asked to survive in less than ideal circumstances because of the stress of being maintained at short mowing heights, mechanical wear from machines, traffic stress from golfers walking on it, heat and drought stress, and any other biotic or abiotic stresses that occur. Slowing the growth and recovery as the plant prepares to handle the season is not the way to begin the year. Greens are the most intensely managed and therefore the most susceptible to damage from the ice. At Bretton Woods we have another specific challenge also: Bermuda grass. Bermuda grass is already struggling to make it through the winter and can be delayed in greening-up by many uncontrollable weather factors. However, creating ice on top of the Bermuda grass from skiers is a completely preventable and unnecessary issue.

With so many factors contributing to healthy or unhealthy turf that are out of our control, unnecessarily creating ice on the plant makes things that much more difficult. Cross-country skiing in the wrong places on the golf course can lead to damage and cause weeks of recovery time into the season.

On a side note, skiing across unfamiliar terrain can also be very dangerous. Golf courses usually have one or two if not many more ponds on their property, including Bretton Woods. Thin ice can easily be covered by snow. If one is unfamiliar with the site or depth perception is lost in the all-white surroundings, it would be very easy to trek onto the pond unknowingly and fall through the ice.

See you on the course!

Joe

jvillegas@bwrc.org

Welcome Tyler, Audubon certification

As we slowly progress towards another golf season, the Grounds Department staff is ready to get back outside. While we are never short on things to accomplish, it is hard not to feel a little cabin fever. As we prepare for another season, we have added another member to our team. We would like to welcome Tyler Brunk to the department as Assistant Superintendent.

Tyler started the third week of January and has been quickly learning the ropes. Tyler went to school at the University of Maryland, spent some time working at Cattail Creek Country Club, and most recently worked at Hermitage Country Club in Richmond, VA. Tyler is young, energetic, and has a great willingness to learn. These attributes are what made him the top candidate to fill our assistant position. He will bring an added dimension of agronomic knowledge and hard work that will fit right in with our current staff.

One of Tyler’s early projects has been starting Audubon certification for Bretton Woods. The Audubon Cooperative Sanctuary Program for Golf Courses certification is a distinguished honor that shows a facility’s commitment to the environment. The program is a detailed process that involves a self-evaluation, improvements, and documentation of progress in several areas. These areas are environmental planning, wildlife and habitat management, chemical use reduction and safety, water conservation, water quality management, and outreach and education. Each of these topics takes an in-depth view of our particular property and operation and provides guidance for achieving the parameters set by Audubon International. Each step to attaining certification is its own process in which new standards must be implemented, progress monitored, and then results documented. This is not a quick procedure; instead it is a methodical progression towards the goal of certification. However, with Tyler on board to shoulder some of the workload, we have completed the initial phase, a site evaluation, which sets our current baseline. From this we can analyze what to implement and begin monitoring progress.

As we move forward with the Audubon certification, more updates and information will be available. Be on the lookout for opportunities for member and community involvement in our programs as part of the outreach and education portion of the program. We plan to meticulously work through the different aspects of certification. Some changes will be noticeable as we implement new features on the course and some other changes will be made in the background but the end result will be full certification for Bretton Woods.

See you on the course!

Joe

jvillegas@bwrc.org