The Season is Here

13 approach and green following the first mowing of 2015

Tomorrow the golf course will open for the 2015 season.  We are very happy with where things sit at
this point in the spring.  Playing surfaces look great and we've been able to get a great deal of cleanup and prep work done.  We've seen over the last few weeks that weather has been dicey, looks like it could continue that same trend for a bit.  We'll take advantage of the weather we are presented in any way we can.
This week has been a blessing, especially the last 3 days.  The sunshine and moderate temperatures have allowed us to carry out all the tasks we wanted.  Mowing of playing surfaces began this week.  Greens, approach, and fairways were all mowed for the first time.  Always exciting when we get those first cuts done, removes the brown leaf tips and exposes some green tissue.  Although we've begun to mow, turf has yet to start to grow.  Currently soil temperatures are still on the lower end but, climbing slightly.
Due to the turf not growing, we will not allow carts to be used.  There are still many soft areas on the course.  Once the turf starts to grow the roots will help hold the ground better, plus any damage created now will take a while to heal due to inactive turf.  Please be patient and help us protect our greatest asset, the golf course.  Carts will be permitted once the course conditions are favorable for the traffic.
A great amount of cleanup has been done the last few weeks.  Bunkers have all been cleaned up and raked.  We have started to check sand depths and have found a few bunkers needing some work.  We'll be shifting sand in bunkers to make a consistent depth throughout, along with adjusting some drainage that has worked to the surface through frost heaving (5 right-hand green-side, 18 left-hand fairway).  These lines will be dug up and adjusted, recovered with pea gravel then sand.

Brushing fairways ahead of mowing, helps cleanup surface

Now that we've got most of cleanup completed we are able to shift to maintenance but, also wrapping up a lot of projects that were started last fall and need finished.  Most of these projects are to the stage of seeding.  Berm projects, nursery native, and native regrassing are all on the list to be completed.  So over the next few weeks we'll begin to drill seed as well as hydro-seed some of these areas to promote early germination.
Hard to believe it's already here, the 2015 golfing season.  We are excited for the season ahead, as we are for each new season.  We've done a lot of work with a lot still to do and we always look forward to making your club more enjoyable for yourself and your guests.