It's Winter Time

It's winter time and that means its time to change gears and focus on our winter tasks.  Mechanic's Kenny and Ryan are fully engulfed in stripping down equipment, replacing bearings and other worn our parts and making sure each and every piece of equipment is ready for spring.  Kenny has begun grinding fairway unit reels and will be consumed with this task for the next few week.

Prepping course accessories for the upcoming season is a long and arduous task.  Over 400 cart blocks have already been pressure washed and stained and as you can see from the photos there are a boat load of bunker rakes (over 300) that are sanded, pressure washed and stained all by hand.  The guys (Rick, Johnny and Isaac) are about half way complete with this task and by the end of next week should have this process complete.

 Sanding almost complete

Isaac Kasper-winter orientation

Nick Folk is our project man in the winter.  Nick is very skilled at carpentry and is up for any task we put in front of him. This years task, build a shoe storage area for the staff for under their lockers.

I really enjoy touring other maintenance facilities and this idea came from Hazeltine National.  We have a small locker room and there is never enough space for everyone's gear.  At Hazeltine they built an area under the lockers for the staff to store their shoes.  I thought this idea would work perfect in our small locker room.  Nick wasted no time in building, painting and installing the shoe shortage area for the staff, complete with runner carpets to absorb any moisture.  Once the carpet gets too dirty, we can either wash them off with the pressure washer or just cut new carpet pieces.  

Tree Removals

A few hazardous and unhealthy trees needed to be removed this fall.  Probably the most noticeable are three large willows next to the pond on 6.  The willow trees were around 30-40 years old.  After 30-40 years these trees served their purpose.  Willows are a short lived trees and these particular trees had a great degree of rot and decay throughout their structures.  

 Before

After-We now have a great view of the 7th hole.

Below is a photo of a Green ash on the hillside left of the 5th tee.  It's quite obvious this tree needed to be removed before it unexpectedly falls.

Covering Greens

The golf course closed yesterday.  Today we will begin the process of covering greens.  This morning we have frost so the staff will not be able to begin the process until the frost lifts.  If the wind stays light we should be able to cover half the greens today and the other half on Friday. Next week tree trimming and tree removals will begin as well as landscape work to the front drive as well as finish clean-up of a few gardens.

Fall Tree Removals

Trees are an important part of the landscape on a Parkland golf course, but all living things have a limited life span.  When that life comes to a close, no matter how attached we may be to a specific tree or trees, whether the tree is dying, diseased or has become a hazard, it must be removed.  That time has come for the three large Weeping willows by the pond on six.  You can see from the photos below, the trees have large cracks in the trunks, branches have numerous shelf mushrooms emerging, which are indicators of decay, and the trunks are completely rotted throughout.

Large trees in the middle will be removed

At this time the Grounds Committee has decided not to replace the trees.  We will also be removing the cattails from the pond.  This will open the view of the pond as well as the view of the 7th hole from the 6th green.

Green ash tree behind 12 green in the no-mow area.  The trunk of the tree is rotten which makes this tree hazardous.  We will be removing this tree in November.

Another view of the same ash tree.

American elm to the right of the 8th tee will be removed. 

Bur oak behind the 17th tee will be removed as it has become a hazardous tree.

The base of the tree has split and the cavity of the tree has decayed.

Tim's Tree Service will be here beginning the week of November 5th.  They will start with tree removals and then the remaining budget will be utilized on trimming.



Fall Projects

Last fall the construction of the new practice facility as well as the addition of three bunkers and three tees consumed our time as a staff.  This fall we are construction free, but not project free.  There's always detail work that needs to be accomplished.  One of the largest projects we undertook during the past two weeks was the rebuilding of various bunker faces in need of repair.

10" of sand had accumulated on the face of this bunker on the first hole.  That's 1" of sand for every year since the restoration

 The bunker face on #1 was brought back to the original contours 

Prepping the bunker on #5

The finished product on #5

Over time bunker faces begin to show the stress of daily wear and tear and repair work is required.  Damaged turf on bunker faces on holes 1, 5, 7, 12, 13 and 16 has been stripped and sodded.  Sodded areas have been painted Ground Under Repair and are roped off.  Please stay off of these areas until the ropes are removed.

A Tribute to Man's Best Friend

On September 13th our dog Pepper lost her battle with cancer.  It was only a month ago when I took her to the vet, as she was not her usual self.  The test came back as cancer and it took its toll on her quickly.  Pepper was almost 14 and she spent here whole life here at the golf course.  It was her favorite place to be.  After a weekend of being at home she could not wait to get back to the course.  As we would make the turn from France Ave. onto 38th Street she would whine with excitement as she knew we were getting close to work.

Stalking Geese

There weren't many animals she hadn't chased or tried to tangle with on the course.  The squirrel population definitely was diminished during her early years (her best day was 3 squirrel kill in a time span of 30 minutes) as her herding ability allowed her to turn on a dime.  Her mix of Border Collie and Australian Cattle dog provided her with exceptional speed, agility and of course intelligence.  She pursued many raccoon's (one time just a little too close costing here the tip of her ear, a trip to the pet hospital and $250 for me) and chased many deer.  One morning while touring the course Pepper got a little too close to a fawn and was subsequently pursued closely by a doe that was not too pleased with Pepper.  This may be one of the funniest things I have ever witnessed; seeing a dog get chased by a deer.

For almost 14 years she rode everyday next to me on my cart.  Sometimes she was relegated to the office and usually for reasons she did not understand.  Pepper wanted to be where the action was. Sunday evening cart rides were always a treat and she would sit right between me and my boys.  Most mornings we would stop at the club house; for me a better cup of coffee and for Pepper a blueberry muffin and if she was really lucky fresh bacon from the kitchen.  Her final ride was on September 13th.  I knew she was not feeling well.  She laid on the cart all morning.  I was in my usual morning rush, rolling greens and hurrying around the course.  She didn't seem to mind.  I'm pretty sure neither one of us knew that day was going to be her last ride, but I did find time to talk to her as I usually did and tried to comfort her as I knew she was not well.

Continually working, looking for something to herd

The ride for me is a little lonelier now, but I have many wonderful memories of my fury friend.  Having grown up on a farm, we always had dogs, and many of them, but Pepper was by far the BEST dog I have ever had.  Her first place ribbon from obedience class has a permanent a place in my office and she will always have a place in our hearts.  Thank you to the members of Minikahda for allowing me to have Pepper roam the grounds and earn her keep maintaining the golf course free from geese. We had a good run Peppergirl.

After a long run on a hot summer day, nothing like cooling down in a mud puddle. 

Irrigation Pump Issues

Since July 22nd we have been operating the irrigation system with only 36% of our total capable capacity. The pump on Well #1 quit working and we have been forced to rely solely on our secondary pump (thankfully we have a second well). The reason for the broken pump is yet to be determined. In fact today the well company was finally able to extract the pump. We do know that the main shaft broke and this caused the pump to fall to a depth of 316ft down the well casing. We know the exact depth since we had to have a company investigate the casing with a camera so we could determine if the pump was still in the well and if so what its condition was.

 Once the pipe column was located McCarthy Well had to fabricate a jig to fish for the column so the pump could be retrieved. Success happened last week and after a few days of removing the column pipes, 10 ft at a time, the pump was finally removed today. Most of the shaft, rubber gaskets and spiders were all destroyed. At this time we do not know what is repairable and if replacing with a new pump will be necessary. The entire process has been quite slow and thankfully we have had a break in the weather as well as a few rain events to help us manage our irrigation needs.

 Camera being lowered down the well casing

View from the camera inside the truck  

 The loss of our main pump for an extended period is an excellent example of why we want to encourage creeping bentgrass as our main sward of fine turf. We also want to encourage deep rooting plants that are not conditioned to require water on a nightly basis. We typically water our fine playing surfaces deep and infrequent to encourage deeper more healthy roots. Something we have been very successful at on our tees and fairways. With our current pump situation we are limited to how much water can be applied at night and are forced to make light infrequent applications. Not something we encourage but are forced to do out of necessity. Thankfully this is a temporary (although we don't know for how long) adjustment to our maintenance practices and once the pump is up and running we will return to our deep and infrequent philosophy for irrigating fairways and tees. 

Fabricated jig built to fish the pipe column that was resting at 316ft.

Success.  This Vertical Turbine Pump has 7 bowls and has the ability to pump 900gpm when its completely maxed but we only run it at 700 gpm.  McCarthy Well will now take the pump back to their shop to inspect and determine what the next course of action will be.  

Preserving the Practice Facility

The Grounds Committee and the Board of Governors have concluded we need to limit the amount of days we allow for practice on the new tee.  The tee has received a great deal of play in the limited amount of time we have been open (opened to grass on July 3).  Play will be allowed on the grass from Wednesday through Saturday.  Practice will occur on the Mats on Sunday, Monday and Tuesday.  The turf is less than a year old and needs more time to mature.  Players practicing have also created a large amount of divots that will take a considerable amount of time to heal before the played area will be ready for play again.  You can see in the photo taken, this is less than 3 weeks of practice.

We also need to have players improve the way they practice.  Please view the video created by Dan Meersman, Director of Grounds at Philadelphia Cricket Club.  Dan gives an excellent presentation of how to properly practice.

It's a Team Effort

It takes a dedicated staff to prepare the golf course on a daily basis.  Whether its the extensive seasonal and daily planning, setting the mowing units for daily mowing, making sure the back pack blowers are working properly, filling divots, mowing playing surfaces or making sure the gardens have been weeded and flowers deadheaded, it's all important and everyone on the staff has a part in making it happen.  We have an outstanding staff this year.  From the seasoned veterans down to the rookies with only a few weeks under their belt, they have done a great job this year.  We have a long ways to go before the snow flies, so if you see them on the course, be sure to say a little "thank you."  I know they will appreciate it.

Weather

One thing about working outside, we get to see some pretty cool things that happen with the weather, such as this shelf cloud moving in this morning.

Happy Birthday

Its not often I have a "Happy Birthday" post, but it's also not everyday that one of our staff members turns 80.  Our Rough Mower operator for the past 15 years "Pistol Pete" Geier, turned 80 today.  Pete started working at Minikahda back in 1993 following his retirement from Control Data.  Pete had a brief stint as one of the guys of our divot crew but we soon realized he would be a good fit for mowing rough.  Despite his wife's attempt to get him to call it quits, Pete has returned for another season.  Pete typically works Monday through Thursday allowing himself plenty of time to spend a long weekend at his cabin.  Having an individual we can count on day after day to mow the rough provides us with many benefits.  Pete knows how the rough   grows, which areas grow the quickest, where he should and shouldn't mow and as our mechanic says, we have a talking hour meter because he always lets the mechanics know when the oil needs changing and when the blades need sharpening.  Thanks Pete for your years of commitment and dedication.  I hope you have a great birthday celebration.

Practice Facility

The new practice facility opened on May 26th on hitting mats only.  All comments have been positive about design and layout.  We will continue to keep players on mats until we feel the turf on the tee will be healthy enough to tolerate daily play.  Based on the amount of practice we are seeing off the mats I expect to see a great deal of practice off the turf.  We will be closely monitoring the traffic to make sure turf recovery will match the amount of play off the turf.  Currently our practice has been to allow unlimited ball usage, if there is an increase in players practicing we may need to either limit ball use, hours the range is open or close it earlier in the fall.  All options we may consider if necessary.  Otherwise, enjoy!

Clink these photos for 2 great panoramic views of the practice facility.

Spring Projects are Keeping Us Busy

 XGD Systems was here on April 23rd-26th installing internal drainage into greens 1 and 6.  These two greens, on average, are our wettest greens.  It was time for us to make a decision and use what tools are available to us to improve the overall playing condition of these putting surfaces.  Each green took two days to complete and once finished were ready to play on the following day.

 The crew from XGD, of about ten guys, was extremely efficient during the process. Each man had a specific job to do each and every step of the process.  It was like watching a finely oiled machine work in complete precision.

Trench lines before they were filled and compacted

Tamping and filling of trench lines

The completed product as final clean-up was taking place.

The completed product on 1 green following .66" of rain in less than an hour.

The front right of 17 green following the same rain event.  It's quite obvious this green will be a good candidate for the XGD internal drainage.

 Nick Folk has been extremely busy the past two weeks repairing and sodding a few of our weaker bunker faces. The photo above shows the repair of the left greenside bunker on #10.  The edge had deteriorated to the point where it needed repair.  At some point the entire face may need to be rebuilt as you can see the 8-10" of sand that has built up over the past 10 years.  Thankfully the quality of the turf on the face is in extremely good condition and is really not an issue to be concerned about at this time.  Greenside bunkers on 5 and 7 were also repaired.

The approach bunker on the left side of 7 was re-sodded and we were also able to do a little reshaping of one of the back slopes which now allows the player a little more room to swing their club if their ball is in the right corner.  

 The new bunker on the inside of the dogleg on 7 was a concern for the members that they could not see any  sand from the tee.  On the recommendation from our Architect Ron Prichard, Nick raised the face of the bunker so more of a flash of sand will be visible from the tee.  This "little" project took over a day to complete as it was a real fineness job to make sure the sod matched the existing bunker and to make sure it looks as if it was part of the original construction.  Nick did a great job making sure it all turned out right.

 Perennial gardens have been planted at the new tennis facility as well as at the driving range and 10th tee house.  Horticulturalist, Ryan Hogan, along with some of our seasonal staff did a great job with the installation.  I'm sure everyone will enjoy the new looks these gardens will provide.

Its been 10 years since the restoration and during this time some of the tee surfaces have sloughed off leaving us with an uneven teeing surface.  We continually look for these areas. Rick Krause has leveled many over the years as the soil settles.  This year is no different.  These two photos are of the back of the white/blue tee on 5.

 The red/green tee has also sloughed off on the east side.  This is the second time re-leveling of this tee has been performed.

Following a recommendation from the Grounds Committee to expand the size of the Ball Drop at #6 we have since tripled the overall size of the area to aid with improving the overall condition.  We will be using tee markers to dictate the area of the Ball Drop that will be used that day.  Thanks to my former Assistant and current Superintendent at Olympic Hills CC, Jake Schmitz, for providing us with the sod for 5 tee and the Ball Drop here on 6.  He has plans to renovate his nursery and was giving the sod away.

 The front right of 17 green has healed very nicely.  We still have the height of cut a little bit higher in this area and will slowly begin to lower it over the next few weeks.  Hopefully by some time next week we will remove the ropes and open this area for play.  Thank you to the membership for showing extreme patience as we bring the condition of this area of the green back to proper health and condition.

 17 following the removal of covers in March.  You've come a long way Baby!