Family tees

We have had the Family tee plaques for several years now. They are a great place for any new golfer to start from because they break the course down in to manageable yardages. Recently, the teeing ground for the Family tees on the par 3 holes received an upgrade

The area was marked out first using
PVC pipe.

We then painted lines to follow
for turf removal.

The Family tee locations are marked by a plaque on the cart path, with a corresponding plaque in the grass nearby. On par 4’s and 5’s, the plaque is in the fairway and the area from which you hit is just normal fairway turf. However, on par 3’s, the teeing area was rough. This made it more difficult for beginners to get clean contact with the ball.

The prepped area.

Through communication with the Golf Committee, we developed a plan to improve these par 3 Family tees. With no need or desire to build actual raised tee boxes, the best solution was to re-grass a small area at the plaque. To keep consistent with the rest of the course, we sodded these tee areas to Bermuda grass.

An 8’x8’ square was measured, aligned and painted. Next, the old turf was removed, the area was prepped for new sod, and the Bermuda grass sod was installed.

As an added bonus, on #9 in particular, the new Family tee will also serve as a super-forward tee for high handicap golfers who struggle to clear the pond. There is now a viable alternative available, that will still play like a normal tee surface.

New sod installed.

This change impacts very few members. However, it does serve young and beginner golfers. The exact group that must be drawn to golf to sustain the game.

Etiquette Reminder of the Month

When parking your cart at a tee or green, please keep all 4 tires on the path.

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

Report on tee over-seeding

After the devastation from the winter of 2017-2018 on the Bermuda grass, especially to tees, we experimented with over-seeding. We initially discussed the idea here last fall. We are now starting to get an idea of the first results.

Ryegrass germination in early March

To recap, we over-seeded with annual ryegrass #1 white, #9 red, #11 blue/black, and #15 white/gold tee boxes. Each has a different set of environmental factors as well as differing amounts of usage. We tried to get a representative sample of the different tees to use as our test.

This past winter was much different than the winter of ’17-18. Although we did have some very cold days, they did not stretch on for as long. We also experienced some windy days, though the intensity and duration were also not the same compared to the previous winter. Lastly, what we believe was one of the main factors leading to death of the turf on the tees was desiccation. After all the rain last year and continuing into the winter, everything was much wetter this winter. Unfortunately, this adds up to a trial that was much too different to truly assess whether the over-seeding improved the health and viability of the Bermuda grass.

Up-close picture of germination

We did learn a few things though that will help us move forward with the trial. First, the seed delivery and penetration were not the best. We had learned from talking with other courses that one method was to spread the seed over the top of the tee and then water it into the canopy very heavily. This spring, we see that the density of annual ryegrass is not as thick as it needs to be. We will try more seed, but we will also try slicing the seed directly into the tee.

The seed also took a very long time to germinate and start to grow. We did not see significant growth until late February and early March. This is later than we expected and wanted. So, we will also initiate seeding earlier in the fall this year. Last year we seeded on November 12^th. We will move that date up about 2 weeks and see if we can get more seed to germinate earlier.

Overall, this was a good start to the process. We know we won’t solve any mysteries this first go-round, but we do have a few new insights to help us moving forward.

Over-seeded tee

This tee was not over-seeded

Etiquette Reminder of the Month

When parking your cart at a tee or green, please keep all 4 tires on the path.

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

New trees

Although trees have been lost over the years due to several factors, we have been consciously replanting as well. Our tree program allows us to prioritize important replanting locations and to replace trees with species well suited to those locations. Last week we made a small contribution to the tree inventory at Bretton Woods.

Prioritizing planting locations keeps everything organized. Many people want trees or don’t want trees in certain locations. By following a decided upon program and established priorities, the many opinions can be narrowed down to one concrete plan. This year, our planting plan was very modest compared to year’s past. We only planted two new trees. We decided we needed to catch up on tree maintenance and removal, which limited the money available for new planting. Although we haven’t been able to proceed with much of our maintenance because of soft ground, the plan is still in place

In coordination with our tree supplier we planted a Red and Sugar maple. The Red maple is a large tree, planted to the right of #15 fairway, across from the large maple that was planted last year. These two trees will form the edges that will guide the narrowing of the fairway near the 250-yard mark. This tree was planted in preparation for the removal of the dead silver maple nearby. We also moved the Bermuda grass- rough edge in closer to the center of the fairway. This accomplished two things: first, the new tree will not shade the Bermuda grass; and, second, the new rough edge will accentuate the narrowing of the fairway at the point of these two new trees.

Adjusting new rough edge

Planting to the right of #15 fairway

Finished product #15 fairway

The Sugar maple was planted in the pool parking lot. Two dead oak trees were removed from the island in the parking lot and left a large gap. To ensure shade is still present in the parking lot, we planted the new tree to fill back in.

New tree at pool parking lot

Both trees were planned in consultation with an arborist and staked out on a site visit. We wanted to make sure that we plant a tree species in a place that it will do well. The tree program establishes the guidelines for executing this perfectly.

Even though we only planted two new trees this year, which is a drop in the bucket across our large property, we still improved Bretton Woods. Fewer trees, the correct species, and planted in the correct place, is always better than too many, planted haphazardly.

Etiquette Reminder of the Month

When parking your cart at a tee or green, please keep all 4 tires on the path.

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

Bermuda grass discussion

There have been some mild days lately, but overall the pattern has been cooler than normal. This has hampered the progression of the Bermuda grass. You must dig into the canopy to find green tissue, but it is there, and we expect over the next several weeks to see more.

Our weather subscription service noted that this past March was the coldest since at least 1996, with the final tally not quite yet determined. Regardless of what the outcome is, March was colder than normal. In the past we have seen green Bermuda grass as early as February, and certainly in mid-March. Not this year. The first green wasn’t seen until the third week of March and that took several minutes to find.

Another component of dormant Bermuda grass and its transition in the spring is managing weeds. You will notice many more weeds in our tees and fairways this year compared to the last several years. Unfortunately, this is due in part to the sod that was laid. Sod production and movement plays an integral part in pests of all types moving from one place to another, in our case weeds to our fairways. Due to the immaturity of the sod, we elected to not treat the weeds over the winter and instead will be treating in the next couple of weeks (weather dependent). In the short term, this means more visible weeds, but in the long term we hope it was beneficial to the overall health of the

Bermuda grass to not have two herbicides sprayed on it.

A picture of a weed infested area next to
a clear area on #5 fairway.

The same picture as on the left, with the
separation between weeds and weed-free
delineated with a red line. Mother nature
does not grow weeds in straight lines
like this. The weedy are was an area where sod was
laid last year.

This picture is from last year, just prior to the sod
being laid on #5 fairway. Looking closely, you can
follow a very similar line matching
where the new sod will be laid
and where the existing sod remained. This
corresponds to the same area in the
above picture.

Another angle of the same section of #5 fairway
where new sod had just been laid. Again, the same
lines are visible that match where weeds
are currently growing.

A slightly zoomed in shot of the above picture showing the
sod lines a little better.

Another current photo of weeds in #5 fairway.

The same photo as at left, with the weed-free area
marked out in red. 

We do not see any of the signs of last years devastation from the winter. While we can’t asses completely how well the Bermuda grass fared until it truly starts to green up, we are optimistic.

Etiquette Reminder of the Month

When parking your cart at a tee or green, please keep all 4 tires on the path

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

Final #9 pond update

We are pleased to write that the project on #9 pond is wrapping up quickly. Following sod today, it will be complete.

Excavating the new trench

To recap, the existing culvert deteriorated and broke last winter, draining the pond. Rather than take our chances on the condition of that culvert, we elected to install an entirely new pipe. That trench was dug, and the pipe installed over the last 2 weeks.

The new inlet in the pond

At the end of last week, the final touches were put on the new pond outfall, which is in a different corner of the pond. Then the old pipe was excavated, exposing a completely rotted culvert. We built a concrete wall several feet wider and taller than the pipe itself to block any further water loss through the old pipe. We also filled the old outfall with concrete to further seal the trench.

The outfall of the new pipe

Back-filling the large hole was done on Friday, as well as a smaller sink hole that had developed. Sod will be finished this morning (Monday morning). Aside from playing the new sod as Ground Under Repair until it starts to grow, the project will be complete. The water level is already rising.

The extra soil was placed on the back side, along the cart path, where the old pipe used to empty into the creek. We replaced the soil that eroded over the last few months, grading it back to a gentle slope. Seed and straw matting were placed over the soil for stabilization.

Digging to the old pipe

The old pipe hole

While having to make the repair was unfortunate, we were able to complete it at a time that caused minimal impact and allowed for quick work.

Etiquette Reminder of the Month

When parking your cart at a tee or green, please keep all 4 tires on the path

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

Old pipe hole

Adding concrete to old inlet

 

Ground under repair

Soil before grading near cart path

See you on the course!

Joe

jvillegas@bwrc.org