If you have had the chance to play this week you may have noticed that we removed the weak sod from 2 and 8 greens. This is a project that I have wanted to do for the last 2 years, but it seems like I always run out of time. This year, will be the year it gets done. The problem is that the sod is contaminated with creeping bentgrass, which does not like to be at rough height, some areas do not drain properly, and just worn out over the last 10 years. We are core aerating around all the green this fall this will help reduce some stress but the only way to fix drainage issues is to remove the sod. You can see in the pictures below that the area between the bunker and green on 8 has been lowered slightly. All sod around the right side of the green was removed and at this time we addressed any drainage issues.
There is also some work that will be done on the left side. The front and back approach have similar issues in that right near the green transition there is either a low spot or high spot. This may be cause some of the issues that I have with this green in that the water may be getting backed up and not draining properly. We will have to remove a large section to fix the problem on 8. If all goes as planned number 9 will be next. There is a lot of work on 9 that I would like to do.
Reminder For this upcoming Wednesday the 3rd, this will be the irrigation blowout. The weather is looking very good for golf and the blowout. I have done this in the cold and rain and it is not fun. I will be blowing 1500 cfm through the irrigation lines all day and with this much force it is impossible to turn off every sprinkler when golfer are near. I am sorry if we cause any issues.