Greens News - Winter 2018
The greens are now at the winter cutting height of 5mm and I’m happy that they are still performing very well as we head into December. They have a good dense coverage which should help them see out the winter months. The greens were deep tined to a depth of around 11inches, which allows some much needed air into the soil profile and helps reduce the compaction caused by machinery and golfers. They have already recovered well from this procedure with minimal affect to how the ball rolls across the green.
I have been pleased over the last couple of weeks that there are significantly less pitch marks to repair in the mornings. Thank you to everyone who is taking the time to repair theirs and others pitch marks. It really ‘will’ make a difference now and especially come the spring, if we can start the season with healthy un-scarred greens.
On a more concerning note, we have been experiencing a spate of repeated vandalism to a number of greens on the course (2nd 3rd 13th 15th ).
The greens are being damaged by the use of the fence stakes or something similar to dig out large chunks of turf across large areas of the greens. Oil has also been poured over the surface of one green.
We believe this is happening during evening hours. I ask for everyone to be vigilant if you happen to be on the burrows during the evening hours, or if you have any information please let Mark know in the office.
Our winter bunker construction is going well. The 4th greenside bunker has now been remodelled and is a lot a lot softer, the face height has been reduced by over 12” and the sides have been reshaped also. The large bunker to the right of the 6th fairway has now been converted to two smaller bunkers that actually face the green as opposed to the 10th fairway. The new bunkers are also a lot more visible and attractive from the tee and they will be shallower than the previous bunker. We will also be re-turfing the walk ins and bunker tops of several other bunkers as we continue to improve the overall aesthetics of our wonderful course.
The Badgers continue to be a pain, we did repair some areas of damage, but the badgers have returned and dug the areas up again. We will have to wait until the spring to dress and re-seed when the badgers will change their food source.
This is probably the last news letter of the year. So may we wish you all a safe and enjoyable festive season.
Regards
The Greens Staff
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