Winter Blues Got You Down?

Two years ago we had a young man working on our staff from China.  This was Tony's second year with us as a Trainee.  The first time he worked for us was in 2009.  We enjoyed having him so much we invited him back in 2011.  Tony always made us laugh.  He had a wonderful personality and he's one of those guys who once you meet them you never forget.

Tony was watering one of our bunker faces and had the hose inserted into an irrigation head.  When he turned on the head the o-ring was bad and water was shooting out everywhere.  He was determined to get the head turned off.  And...he finally did. Enjoy the videos.

A Winter Wonderland...or a Cruel Joke?

Minnesota was dealt another setback to spring yesterday. Over 9" of snow fell at the Minneapolis/St. Paul airport with areas northwest of the Metro receiving considerably more snowfall totals. Year-to-date our staff has amassed 2 days of labor on the course. This was back on April 5th and 8th.We have yet to reach a temperature of 60 degrees and that is the average this time of year.  Last year the club opened the earliest in its 114 year history, March 23.  This year we are on pace to break our latest opening of April 27, 1974.  I guess this is Mother Natures way of balancing the seasons and this is what gives us Averages. Personally I'm not a big fan of this method.

The state of Minnesota needs moisture, but I'm pretty sure we would rather have it in the form of rain.

Never Ending Winter

April 11th.  Six more inches of snow

When will the weather finally break so we can start working on the golf course?  There have basically been two days when the staff has been able to work on the course.  Last Friday and this past Monday.  Both days  the crew spent the day removing covers from the greens.  Now the course is covered in snow and the long-term forecast shows temperatures remaining in the 40's and cloudy.

Last year the course opened the earliest in the clubs history, March 23.  This year? Well who knows when it will be? For sure after the 23rd of April putting us well over a month past last year.  The last time our records indicate this happening was in 1973 and 1974.  In 1973 the course opened on March 28th and in 1974 the course opened on April 27th.  Based on what's happening my guess is we will be pushing closer to the 27th of April this year unless Mother Nature changes her mind quickly and sends some warm weather our way and soon.

Minor Winter Damage

This week we were finally able to remove the greens covers.  Just in time too.  We've received some timely rain and are preparing for record snow fall amounts this week.  The additional moisture is welcome since last fall was so dry.  Unfortunately, we do have some minor damage on a few greens.  Water was able to find its way under the covers and settle into the low spots.  The worst damage is on the front left of 11.  Due to the late start to the season and with a forecast that shows no immediate warm-up we may end up having to resort to sodding these areas as opposed to seeding.  I will keep you posted as we address these damaged areas.  

Other areas of the golf course appear to have weathered the winter just fine.  Overall the fairways are in good condition with a few minor blemishes to some low spots where the turf is poa annua.  The tees emerged in great shape as they should since they are 95% creeping bentgrass.  Patience is going to be necessary by everyone this spring.  April is feeling like a typical March.  Until soil temperatures warm-up significantly, plants are going to remain ideal for quite some time.  Until then we are at the mercy of Mother Nature.

Front right of 9 green

 Front left of 11 green

Middle left of 16 green

Welcome Brian Cowin

Welcome Brian Cowin, Head Equipment Technician, to our staff.  Brian is originally from Burlington, Washington, but most recently was working in the Coeur d' Alene area in Idaho.  Brian has a host of golf course experience as well as heavy equipment experience.  We are looking forward to his fresh set of eyes as well as leadership in the shop.  Ask any golf course Superintendent and they will tell you, the Equipment Technician is one of the most important positions on the staff.  If you want a quality product, its all begins before the equipment sets foot on the golf course.

Brian has already made some wonderful changes to the shop area.  Thankfully the weather has remained cold and Brian has been able to use this time to get organized before the golf season hits full stride.  Welcome to Minikahda Brian.

Cheesebrough Burns

For the past 12 years the bunker rakes we have used came from a small company in Freeport, Michigan, Cheesebrough Manufacturing.  This past week the family run business burned to the ground. Cheesebrough provided a wonderful hand made product to the golf industry, that may never be replaced.  The future for Cheesebrough is uncertain.  Cheesebrough provided a niche product of wood bunker rakes, wooden flag sticks and would even hand craft tee markers for golf courses.  Their products provided a classic look and style to many classic golf courses who desired the older look and feel.

Cheesebrough could always be found at the Golf Industry Show, but you would have to search for them.  They had a very small booth with only a few products.  The owner was always a pleasure to speak with.  A simple company, a simple but high quality product, with quality service.  My hope is that they will rebuild but I'm sure they have a lot of decisions to consider at this time.  Thankfully no one was injured in the fire.  Our thoughts and prayers go out to the owners and employees of Cheesebrough.

News footage of the fire. Cheesebrough fire

 Cheesebrough has been in business since 1872.  That's 141 years!

 We have over 300 rakes from Cheesebrough

Our staff places a lot of time and effort into maintaining the quality of our Cheesebrough rakes.

The Finishing Touches

 It's March 25th and by all indications we are looking at another two weeks before we are able to get on the course.  The staff has done a great job this winter completing all the winter tasks and now that places us in a position to put the finishing touches on the equipment and complete those tasks that are on the bottom of the list.  The ones that if you get to them great and if you don't, no worries. But who's complaining, if you look hard enough there is always work that needs to be done and always something more that needs to be worked on.  So now is the time, so let's get it done.

Nick applying Vinyl Guard to the flag poles.

Painted and new decals for G.U.R signs

Johnny, waxing and buffing utility carts.

Spring Cleaning and Refurbishing

After our mechanic of 22 years left, it was time to really dig deep and do some thorough cleaning of the loft and refurbishing of the mechanics office.  Our loft had become the catch-all for old parts and equipment.  The office had probably not been updated in 20 plus years.  Anytime there is a change in a department an opportunity is then provided to make some positive change.

It's almost hard to believe (because I feel we keep a clean maintenance facility) but we were able to recycle close to 3000 lbs of metal from the loft, cabinets and the mechanics bench area.  It's really quite embarrassing to know that this much material was being stored with little to no value to the club.  With a new  technician coming on board we felt it was imperative we give the shop a good cleaning and update the office before his arrival.  It's obvious from the photos we had a lot to clean, recycle and pitch.  

About time for some serious cleaning.

Organized chaos?  Not for me, just a mess!

Yikes!  This is what causes two days of extra work.

2990# of scrap metal.

This is better, now let's keep it this way.

The office needed to be updated and brought up to speed with the 21st century.  Isaac Kasper did a great deal of the work with some assistance from Nick Folk and Ryan Hogan, the office looks almost new.  There was some sheet rock work, removed the old flooring and applied a floor paint, new trim, a fresh coat of paint on the walls and doors, rearranged the Lawson containers and probably the most important, provided the office with a new computer (actually the old irrigation computer with a new monitor) and internet access. 

The trim was in dire need of replacement.

The old flooring was removed. 

The old cabinets were removed and new sheet rock added.

Cleaned up the desk and provided a computer and printer.

Our new Technician, Brian Cowin, will be able to place orders on-line, research prices, research parts and have an area where he can do what he needs to do to provide us with a quality product in a professional manner. If we want a professional why not treat him like one?  

Do You Know Where Your Water Goes?

Sure we all track our irrigation water usage, right? We know how many gallons of water we use in any given year, any given month and for many any given night.  For those of us in Minnesota, the Department of Natural Resources (DNR) requires that we record our monthly irrigation usage.  We then pay a fee (aka. tax) based on the monthly usage along with our yearly permit.  But do you know exactly where your water is going and the amount being applied to your surfaces by the nightly irrigation cycles?

For the past 6 years we have been keeping close tabs on the volume of water being applied to the majority of our fine turf areas.  Based on the irrigation programs we created through our Toro Site Pro irrigation control system we have been able to get a fairly accurate account of our water needs as well as where the majority of our water requirements ultimately end up.

We have a wide variety of programs we use to meet our course's specific needs.  Superintendents understand there can be variability from year to year for irrigation requirements.  Those factors are based on elements surrounding weather and how that affects our turfs needs as well as the playing conditions players expect at that particular course, grass varieties, quality of the irrigation system, number of trees on the golf course, soil types as well as an whole array of factors that are really too numerous to list.

For the past 5 years our irrigation numbers have consistently ranged, from 24.1-31.3 million gallons.  This past year (2012) we saw a significant increase in our water needs, 44.5 million gallons.  There is certainly a reason for this increase. First was the grow-in and establishment of our practice facility.  Sodded bluegrass has a greater water requirement, establishing of a bentgrass tee as well as the 2nd hottest summer since records have been taken, all factor to the water requirements for our new practice facility.

The other issue affecting our large increase, I'm assuming but do not have the data to back...yet, was the loss of our main irrigation pump at the end of July.  The loss of the main pump which provides 900 gpm of water reduced us to using only our second pump which only has a 400gpm capacity.  We went from a combined capacity of 1100gpm to 400gpm for 58 days.  During that time frame we were unable to water to our normal philosophy of deep and infrequent cycles and were forced to water light and frequent to keep up with the plants water demands during the extreme heat of the summer.  I'm very interested to see how our water needs will be met this coming season with full pump capacity and if that translates into more of a normal water usage for us? This past year water used strictly on the course was up by an additional 10 million gallons compared to the average of the previous 5 years and I do not view this as an acceptable number based on past years history.  I'm hopeful the 2013 year will see our volume usage more in line with the previous 5 year history.  

One area where we seem to have less control and lack the specific knowledge to where the water goes is what we call miscellaneous or waste water (I dislike the term waste water as no water is intended to be wasted). We are unable to calculate how much water is used for syringing fine turf areas, watering in product, irrigation leaks, filling spray tanks, washing equipment, filling the pond on our 6th hole to maintain a static water level and the watering of the Har-Tru tennis courts. But based on the graphs we have a very good idea of what is being applied to our turf from year to year.

If you are a course Superintendent, do you know and have a good understanding of where your water is being used?  I view this as a valuable tool.  Planning for the unexpected is always a good idea.  That's why we buy insurance, right?  Are you prepared to address your Green Committee, Board or Owner if the DNR, city or county places water restrictions on your golf course?  If you are asked to reduce a percentage of total use, do you know how you will go about dealing with the changes required?  Knowing how much water is used and where it goes provides you with a great deal of valuable information you can use as a tool to aid you, your course and the industry, if and when those tough decisions are placed on you and your club. 

"Success Occurs When Opportunity Meets Preparation" Zig Ziglar

"People don't plan to fail, the just fail to plan."

"A goal properly set is halfway reached"

Zig Ziglar

I'm always a sucker for a good quotation. In fact I keep a little booklet in my office of favorite quotes assembled by Zig Ziglar.  Knowing how important planning is for the upcoming season, I spend a great deal of time developing a thorough and comprehensive maintenance schedule for the upcoming season (just in case you are wondering what I do in the winter season).  Utilizing successes and failures from  past experience, information shared from fellow Superintendents', continuing educations seminars, self-research, and assistance from local vendors are all avenues which are considered when formulating a comprehensive maintenance schedule.

Developing a blueprint for the upcoming season takes a great deal of thought and consideration.  All cultural and nutritional practices need to be considered.  When first developing our schedule I consider the timing of applications, products that will be used and rates of the products being applied and how they fit within the golf calendar.  Once that has been established I am then able to develop a calendar of events based on these applications. All potential application data can then be entered into our SPaRKS web based program.

There are many aspects that need to be considered when developing a strategy for each area of the golf course. As we enter the season I want to make sure we have a comprehensive plan and schedule in place, because even though we have a specific objective there are times we need to vary from the plan based on weather, growing conditions or changes to the golf calendar. By developing our applications now we know what products we expect to use, how much we estimate will be utilized and the cost associated with the implementation of the programs.  When planning, I typically design the program for a worst case scenario with rates and frequency of use, ultimately being more than we will need to use that season.

The areas that require planning are as follows; greens, collars, weak greens, tees, weak tees, fairways, fairway weak spots, green banks, bunker banks, intermediate rough, rough, high traffic areas, the practice tees, practice fairway, practice range rough, gardens, large cotoneaster hedge, and club house lawns. Within those areas we need to consider topdressing applications (for greens, tees, approaches, fairway weak spots) soluble fertility applications, granular fertility apps, fungicides, insecticides, wetting agents, growth regulators, core aeration, solid tine aeration and deep tine aerification practices. 

Once each individual application is scheduled on the calendar, then the tedious task of developing each individual fertility and fungicide application begins.  I utilize a program called SPaRKS Superintendent Version software (very inexpensive) that is tailored to golf course operations.  Through this software I am able to develop each application in advance.  Once all the data is entered, I can then use that information to make sure our expected fertility applications are at the rates we desire and within the budget we have been allocated. The software also allows us to print application sheets for each individual application, record the information as well as print reports that show us fertility rates, final product costs and usage.  I can then utilize this information for future planning and ordering of product based on past years needs and requirements.

The beauty of it all, we have a solid comprehensive plan in place before the season begins.  But, even the most well thought out plans change.  As Superintendents we know changes occur and we need to adapt to the environment.  We work in an ever changing environment so this is nothing new for us.  But I feel better knowing what products we plan on using, the timing of the applications, the total expected cost for the season and we have the calendar in place to help us remember what our plan is. Once we go into battle its very easy to lose focus of plans we made in January and having a plan keeps us on track so we can provide the best product we possibly can for our members. 

"Our daily objectives should include an honest effort to improve on yesterday."

Zig Ziglar

Setting the Height of Cut on a Greens Mower

The importance of setting the proper height of cut (hoc) on a greens mower is critical towards providing exceptional daily conditions.  Having the proper tools to set the hoc and making sure the tools have been calibrated on a yearly basis insures mowers will be set up properly day in and day out. This video does a great job explaining how and why only a .001" can make a big difference in the quality and health of the turf on greens.  Setting the HOC link