Proper Practice Tee Divot Pattern



 I am frequently asked what would make the Practice Tee at HFCC better?  The first and most obvious answer is to make it larger.  While we do have plans to make it somewhat larger in the future, the reality is there is just not enough room to make it as big as we would like.  However, there is something that everyone can do to make it as good as it can be.  Use a linear pattern when making divots and limit the number of shots you make each time your at the practice tee.  The following pictures are courtesy of the USGA and show the correct method for making divots at the practice tee and the incorrect ways.

 

(Left) Concentrating divots in one area is arguably the worst practice method because it creates large voids requiring the most time for turf recovery. (Right) Scattering divots is a popular practice habit that is frequently taught because it does not create large voids in the turf that are slow to recover, but it removes the most turf in total because a full divot is taken with every shot.

 

STEP 1 (left) – Practice in a linear pattern by placing each new shot directly behind the previous divot. STEP 2 (right) — Leave a strip of live turf at least 4 inches wide between each line of divots. This keeps divots narrow so that lateral growth of turfgrass from both sides of the divot will lead to rapid recovery, and it also protects seedlings from desiccation and mower injury.

  



Greens Aerification - October 28th

We will begin aerifying greens on October 28th.  Depending on the weather, this process will take between 2 and 3 days to complete.  This is one of the most important practices we do to provide for the health of the greens.  We purposely wait until after the Club closes to aerify because we understand that the Fall is the best time to play golf in the mountains.  After we finish the aerification process, please be aware that with the Club officially closed for the season, we will no longer prepare the course for regular play as we will be changing our focus to winter projects and agronomic practices.

Core aerifying a green

Close-up of core aerification

Core removal with a core harvester

Aerification is one of the most important agronomic practices for the maintenance and health of the greens.  For the greens at HFCC, the normal aerification requirement is twice in the Spring and once in the Fall with hollow tines that pull a plug.  After removing the plugs, a heavy topdressing of sand is applied on top of the greens along with several soil amendments and fertilizer. The heavy sand topdressing does several things; fills in the voids from the plugs, reduces organic matter, keeps the surface firm, and protects the turf from desiccation during the winter. 



Benefits of aerification

There are several reasons why it is important to aerify greens on a regular basis.  First and foremost is that it alleviates compaction and loosens the soil for better water infiltration and air exchange.  Secondly it helps the soil to "breath" allowing it to expel harmful gases caused by decomposition.  Additionally, aerification removes dead plant and excessive organic matter otherwise known as thatch.  Thatch can greatly reduce water infiltration and gas exchange while also providing a breeding ground for disease pathogens.

Greens & Grounds Open House

I would like to personally thank everyone who attended the very successful Greens & Grounds Open House yesterday afternoon. We had over 70 people in attendance and I thoroughly enjoyed discussing the operation with so many of you. I hope it left you with a better of understanding of what it takes to manage the Club's largest asset and the confidence that we manage it properly.

Additionally, I want to thank the members of the Greens and Grounds Committee who helped serve the food and beverages. Extra thanks go to Bob Trevathan and Teri Dolci for their tireless efforts throughout the entire event.

If for some reason you wanted to see something that you didn't or you still have some questions about our operations, please feel free to stop by anytime or you can call me at 526-9417 or email me directly through this link fgehrisch@clubhfcc.com.  Thank you for your continued support and we'll see you on the course!

 

The Truth About Green Speed - Part 2

In my last post I discussed the "Stimpmeter" and how it is used to measure green speed and why.  While knowing the green speed may or may not be important, it is important to know if green speeds are consistent from green to green in addition to knowing what may affect that speed.

First, I think it is essential to know what affects green speed.  The most obvious is height of cut.  The lower we cut the grass, the faster the ball is going to travel across the green.  However, there are limits to how low you can mow before the health of the grass is affected.  For most of the summer, we mow the greens at .110 of an inch which is considered on the low side.

Another factor which affects the speed is moisture.  The wetter the surface the slower the speed.  With either rain or dew, greens speeds are going to be slower in their presence.

Other factors that affect green speed are but not limited to; mower sharpness, time of day, turf species, location, temperature, maintenance practices like rolling and topdressing, weather, budget, amount of play, and course architecture.  Golf Course Superintendents can and do manipulate many of these items to achieve consistent greens speeds.  However, some of these items are out of our control and we are left at the mercy of Mother Nature.

With so many factors affecting green speed, sometimes it can be difficult to achieve a desired speed at a given time.  As a result, our number one goal is to achieve consistent greens.  This means that ALL the greens are smooth, putt true and are very close to the same speed, and that we do very well.

The Truth About Green Speed - Part 1

Golf course putting green speed is measured with a device called a "Stimpmeter".   The Stimpmeter is basically an aluminum channel on which a golf ball rests.  When one end is raised to a specific height, the ball travels down the channel and travels a certain distance on the green.  That distance is measured in feet and is then considered the speed of the green.  So a green with a speed of 10 means that the ball traveled 10 feet from the Stimpmeter.

Green speed notification at the pro shop.

The original intention of the Stimpmeter was to ensure that all the greens on a course were of relatively equal speed. This would provide the Superintendent with a method to evaluate the speed of different greens and then take the appropriate action to make them equal.

 

The "Stimpmeter"

However, many golfers misuse Stimpmeter readings by comparing them to other golf courses or by equating them to green quality.  They think the faster the greens, the better the quality and that is absolutely false. The quest for fast greens has serious consequences in terms of cost, environmental quality and the long-term health of the green.  Additionally, comparing greens to other courses is flawed without considering course architecture.

Measuring green speed.

 

HFCC celebrates July 4th!

Despite nearly 6 inches of rain over the last few days, a greater power created just enough good weather (about 4 hours) for our crew to paint the American flag on the 17th fairway.  This has become a special tradition at HFCC and this year it was even more so.

Because of the rain, we had to blow the turf to get the paint to dry.

The crew painting one of the stripes.

Josh painting a star.

Finishing the last stripe.

BASF (one of turf chemical providers) is donating $100 to the Wounded Warrior Project for every photo of a Golf Course Superintendent in front of an American flag.  So to help do our part, we invited area Superintendents to come out and get their picture taken in front of our American flag.  I am happy to announce that we had 10 guys come out to get their picture taken, despite the rainy weather.

Local Superintendents in front of the flag.

I want to personally thank every person who has served this nation and helped make it the greatest place on earth.  Happy 4th!

A very beautiful sight!

Asphalt Sealcoating on the Cart Paths

So long as the weather holds out this week, our staff will begin to apply asphalt sealcoat to the cart paths throughout the course.  Fresh sealcoat is essential to the preventative maintenance of the paths in addition to making the course look better.

One of the major benefits to sealcoating is when applied properly, it can extend the life of blacktop to well over 15 years by protecting it from UV degradation.  Also, the sealcoat fills in small cracks that if left unmaintained, would get larger and damage large sections of pavement.  And lastly, there is no question that it just makes the paths look better and maintained.

Sealcoat is applied by hand through a spray wand.

We will have to reroute cart traffic while we are applying the sealer.  Please be patient as there will be times that we need to reroute cart traffic around entire golf holes.  This will happen in areas that we have bridge crossings like on #10, #14, #16, #17, etc.  However, we will do these areas when it will least interfere with golf play.

300 gallon asphalt spray tank and pump.

I thank everyone for your patience while we work to improve your golf course.  If you have any questions please feel free to contact me at any time.