Watching weather

Forecast for thursday night and Friday has my attention. I may have to cover Thursday, i'll keep everyone posted.

Wet weekend!

We got 6.1 inches of rain this weekend at Maumelle CC ! Course is wet and bunkers are washed. We will have to play number 12 as a par three for a few days and we will have to use the gracel road rather than the cartpath on 11 and 12. Thanks.

Wait and see.

Our plan, based on the forecast above, is to begin removing covers Thursday as soon as the covers are thawed. Hopefully we will be able to remove all of them before the temperature drops below freezing again. 

Putting green today at 11:00. 

Winter!

Everything is good out here on the course thus far! As of yet there is no ice build up on tree branches, but the roads are getting slick! Greens are tucked in and ready for the serious cold tonight! Stay warm and safe!

Wayne making sure all is well in the club house!

Winter wonderland on 13 pond!

Covering Greens Wednesday

IDue to the upcoming cold snap we will be covering the Greens Wednesday starting at 11:00am

We have to cover on Wednesday due to the forecasted rain and wind on Thursday.
The forecast is for the cold to stick around for many days, so we will leave them down until it is safe to remove. Check in here for updates!

Painting Greens

Because of th cold weather coming in later this week and into next week we have moved up our schedule. We are painting greens today. This process takes two or three days to complete. Tomorrow we will have to close two  greens at a time while painting. So please pay attention to signage on tees. Thank you. 

Here i a picture of the unpainted Putting Green. Behind it is the painted Chipping Green. Big difference! 

Cold spell

Forecast is still cold, but not too cold for our greens. This morning soil temps were still 37 degrees in the root zone. With todays bright sunshine and tomorrow's nearly 50 degree forecast, we are not even close to worrying about covers!

However, it will be quite cold in the morning with a good chance of frost, si please noone come out ti play until at least 10:00am. I will remove thecourse closed sign on #1 as soon as it is safe! Thanks! Happy thanksgiving!!

Still watching.

The forecast is still warm enough that we do not have any need to cover the greens. Although we are bringing the covers out today and getting them ready incase the forecast changes. 

  We received another .35 inches if rain yesterday so the course is pretty wet and leafy. We are still cart path only. 

Weather

Tonights forecast and the forecast fore the next few days s to be quite cold. However the forecast is not calling for the temperature to dip below the 25 degree mark for very long. Above is a screen shot from the most recent hourly forecast. 

Several factors are in place that assures us that our greens are safe. First is the moisture levels in the soil are high, which slows the rate the soil temperature drops. Second is the current soil temps are warm. And to top it off, the damp top layer will freeze quickly acting like a blanket to the soil below. 

So although it is going to be cold, the forecast is still out side of our "danger zone". 

More rain.

We received another .5 inch of rain Friday night. Looks like more coming early in week. Still watching temperatures, but everything looks fine so far. 

Rain!

We got 1.8 inches of rain Thursday and thursday night. Looks like more is on its way later this weekend. Possible freezing precipitation too. Forecasted temperatures are not threatening to greens so far but i will continue to watch!

Number 11

As of today we are CART-PATH ONLY on number 11. We have to do this to protect our fairway. We have already seen some damage from traffic. 

Thank you for you cooperation. 

Greens Covering Policy

A reminder of our greens covering policy: We will cover when the forecast is for the air temperature to dip below 25 degrees for an extended period of time. We will uncover when the forecast is to be above freezing for a full day. Many other factors are to be considered when deciding to or not to cover the greens. Some of these are wind, moisture and time of season. Also, we will attempt to cover the greens before the weather moves into the area. It is very difficult to handle the covers when the wind is blowing at 15-20 mph, or when it is raining. Please understand that the few days each winter that the course is closed it is for the future health of our greens.

Frost delays will be handled the same way as past years. We will open the course just as soon as the frost has burned off of the greens. Even though we have dormant Bermuda grass greens foot traffic can still damage the plant when covered in frost.

Thank you and I hope everyone has a great holiday season!

Pin locations

Below is a picture of one of our cup covers on a green. This year we are employing a different tactic to reduce the number of old cup plugs.

We have cut three holes in each green, pin locations b, c, d. For a few weeks we will rotate between theses three. As in past years we will move pins to a new location Wed., Friday, and Sunday. After the first few weeks we will move the cup in C location to the E location, after a week or two, depending on the amount of ware, we will then move the cup from D to A, and so on. This will reduce the number of old holes by at least one third. 

Please contact me if you have any questions or concerns. Thanks and have a great round. 

Blog is back!

Over the last several months I have had numberous clitches, problems, and set backs with both my blog and my computer, although it is still not bug free, I am once again able to post! I will hopefully be more consistent with posts so I cam keep everyone more upto date!

This weeks weather has been a rollercoaster and looks like it will continue with up and down conditions and temperature through out the week.

We will be pulling the tarps out this week in preparations for the winter.

Thank you for your patience and I hope everyone comes back to stay updated! 

Verticut / Aerifying update

Due to the forecast yesterday morning I made a last minute change in our aerification plans. Rather than pull cores and risk getting caught in a thunderstorm, that in turn would create a large muddy mess and delay the completion, I decided to use solid tines instead and simply ventilate the greens. This procedure gives many of the same benefits as core aerifying, but not all. So although it is an acceptable alternative on occasions core aerifying can not be replaced over the long haul.

The healing process will be much faster this time, with nearly no disruption in putting quality. And the back nine will be opened by early afternoon.

We were able to aggressively verticut the greens, which helps us control thatch and grain. We will perform our follow up verticut, which is less aggressive, next Monday.

Verticutting/Aerification

Our current plan is to begin our Verticutting/aerification process this evening as usual, and to continue Monday and Tuesday having the front nine open Tuesday and the entire course open Wednesday morning. This is the same plan and time frame we have been using for years. However, the weather forecast is not favorable.

If we proceed as planned and we get any significant rain during our process it will obviously extend the time frame some, depending on the rain amounts/duration. I just wanted to give everyone a heads up before hand.

 

 Thanks Have a great Sunday.

 

Jason Baker, GCS

Maumelle Classic

Over the last couple of weeks we have been in preparation mode for the Classic. We were able to get the course into great shape by the Friday before the Classic, and then the rains came. We received several inches of rain over the week prior to the Classic including 1.5 inches during the first round of the tournament. But through all of that my crew was able to keep the Course in Great shape! Here are some pictures of our daily preparations!

A Big Thanks to al my Staff for one Hell of a week!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Taylor Mowing Greens Sunday morning

 Vern Mowing Greens Sunday Morning

 Ken Mowing Greens Sunday Morning

 Luis Mowing Greens Sunday Morning

 Chi CHi mowing greens and Alfredo Rolling Greens Sunday Morning

 Jose Raking greenside bunkers Sunday Morning

 Lorenzo Mowing Fairways Sunday Morning

                                    

                                     

Cande also Mowing fairways Sunday Morning

                                       

Clint Changing pin locations Sunday morning

Mike Dragging Fairways behind mowers Sunday before play!

A Big Thanks to al my Staff for one Hell of a week!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

A quick follow up.

I apologize for not replying to my last post in a more timely fashion but I have been having technical difficulties with my computer. ANYWAY, as all can see the greens have recovered nicely. Our treatments for nematodes seem to have helped, the weather has been perfect growing conditions and the results from the lab came back, it was fairy ring! We have since changed my treatment program and have now got it under control! Greens are in great shape! Enjoy.

Course update

6.25.13

Maumelle Members,

 

I wanted to give the membership and update on our golf course condition.

Over all I feel the course is in good shape at this time. The two exceptions being left over storm clean up, which will be addressed very shortly. And there are a few obvious issues with our Greens.

To begin, the vast majority of our greens surfaces  are in good to very good condition and health. However, we do have some issues, three different issues to be more precise. I will do my best to explain each of these and what we have done and are going to do to correct each separate concern.

 

The first problem is the several very thin or bare patches on the greens. These include #4 and back #12 as examples. Theses patches/thin areas were a result of poor growing conditions early this spring combined with heavy nematode activity. Nematodes are always present in the soil and feed on roots, but normally our turf grows fast enough and is strong enough to withstand normal numbers of nematodes. However this springs cool temperatures slowed our growth during the time nematodes are quite active and the numbers became  greater, so in some areas the turf was not able to out perform the feeding.

This problem is not a Maumelle CC problem, many courses around town have been fighting the same problem. I treated for nematodes and have now added this to my chemical program. We have also been giving these individual areas more fertilizer to stimulate growth.  We have seen some good results already. There is much more I could discuss in regards to nematodes but will not take the time. Please feel free to ask if you are interested.

 

The next problem is physical damage to a few greens surfaces from aerification/veriticutting on June 10/11. Number 3 in particular, but there are a few smaller areas  on other greens also. This damage was caused by the verticutter grabbing and pulling the turf in areas of excessive grain. Mowers then defoliated some areas, and in extreme cases pulled chunks of turf out of the ground, like on back right of  #1. This has happened in the past, to a much smaller degree and normally much more localized. This damage occurs when areas of turf are weak. The roots are unable to hold so the verticutting blades raise the turf. This year our turf was not as strong as in previous years once again due to the cool weather, less than ideal growing conditions, and the added pressure of nematodes. Again this was not exactly wide spread but it occurred on more square footage than anytime before. Number 3 is the only green with large area of damage. We are treating this area with fertilizer and will be adding extra topdressing to help smooth the bumps. It should heal and be good as new in a few weeks. Even though the aerification process is aggressive and in this case caused minor damage it is extremely important for the overall health and playability of the greens.I can go on further about our verticutting/aerification process and why it is so important but will not take the time now, please contact me if you are interested.

 

The third concern, is the recent appearance of disease spots. Number 10 and 11 being the most obvious but patches are showing up on many greens. These patches are not fairy-ring, they are caused by a different pathogen.  Although my current fungicide program, put in place primarily for fairy ring suppression, should have prevented most disease that we deal with for some reason it did not suppress this disease. After discussing with my chemical rep who helped me with the program, although we are puzzled we believe the disease is Rhizoctonia zeae, but are not sure yet. I have sent off samples this morning to the lab and should have results within two days. I will then proceed as needed.  I have treated again, on Friday early morning, with a broad spectrum fungicide to slow the progression while I positively identify the pathogen and find the proper treatment.  This is very strange occurrence because I have plenty of fertility in the soil, I have been treating the greens preventively all year(including just two weeks ago), and our moisture levels are good.  It is occurring in areas of high organic matter, and in areas with lower organic matter. I do not believe it is a disease that is moved via traffic as there is not surface residue to track. In short I have done everything in my power to prevent such an outbreak. So far the cause and why it continues to appear is a mystery to me. The tests will shed much light on the subject. I will keep you posted and informed.

 

I just wanted to keep the membership informed and upto date , PLEASE feel free to contact me if you have any questions or concerns.

Transfer Pump

Now that it is hot and possibly moving into a dry spell we will be running our transfer pump. This pump is located in the shed on 13 pond. It pumps water from 13 pond, through our irrigation system, into our irrigation pond on 2 and 3. 

We have been working on it for the last week and finally got it fine tuned this morning. 

Mike installing the check valve.

Mike and Taylor installing new gasket in check valve.

Alfredo and I trying our hand at installing check valve.

It was a team effort but Mike and Taylor were finally able to make it work on Friday! 

This morning the Pump is on line!

Pump in action! 

Irrigation work

We have not yet needed to run our transfer pump, but no doubt we will at some point. So while we had a chance we re installed our check valve. Here is a picture of Mike working in the pond this morning. 

Aerifying continues

The front nine is open this morning, but the back nine will remain closed today. 

Aerifying Greens

Monday and Tuesday we performed our first aerification of the year. Our second and final aerification is scheduled for August 5 & 6.

When we "aerify" we are actually performing three necessary cultural practices at the same time. First we aggressively Verti-cut the greens. This vertical mowing helps to control thatch build up and helps manage the grain. We then top-dress heavily with sand. This helps to smooth the surface but also the sand is incorporated into the soil allowing water and air more space to travel. Then we aerify. When we pull the cores we are not only relieving compaction but removing some more organic material and in turn mixing in the cleaner sand.

Below are pictures of all the steps in order of completion. 

Jose Veri-cuts the greens

Cande and Luis mowing after verticutter

Alfredo and Vern topdressing

Then Lorenzo, Taylor, and Chi-chi aerify

I break up the plugs with a drag mat

Everyone blows off the left over debris

Jose then brushes the sand into the holes

Clint then adds soil amendments

And then Alfredo fertilizes

Clean up progress!

We have made quite a bit of progress this week on our clean up effort. Especially considering we had tournament play all week and I was only able to dedicate two guys to the job! 

Great work Vern and Ken!!!

Storm May 30, 2013

The storm last night caused quite a bit of damage on the course. The front nine suffered minor tree damage but the back nine is a different story. Straight line winds took down  15 trees and damaged dozens more. Here are some pictures, i will post more over the next few days. Clean up has begun but will take a very long time ti complete. 

Verticutting greens today!

Today we begin our bi-weekly verticutting. Every other week we will perform a non aggressive vertical mowing of the greens. This procedure helps us control both the grain and the thatch levels. 

Too much thatch will create a spongy feel to the greens. Too much grain effects both putting and mowing. 

Twice a year, during our greens aerification we verticut aggressively. This is done during the height of the growing season so healing time is minimilized

. 

Been a beautiful Spring!

90 Degree Rule DELAYED

Due to weather. I am sorry but the weather today, and the forecasted weather to come will not allow us to go 90 degrees for a short while. I will go 90 degrees as soon as think the course is dry enough to handle the traffic. Thanks!

90 Degree Rule Coming!

Starting on Friday March 29 we will begin following the 90 Degree Cart Rule.

A reminder for everyone what is meant by 90 Degree Rule:

Once a player strikes their ball follow the Cartpath until cart is perpendicular with the ball then turn cart and drive straight to the ball. Once ball is played please return to the Cartpath via the same route. Please do not ever drive carts with in 25-30 yards of a green or tee. Please do not Search for Balls by driving around and around in the roughs. Simply follow the 90 degree rule then get out of the cart and search on foot. his will save much wear on the rough. Thank you Very much and as always the 90 degree rule is weather permitting, always check signage or ask the proshop if there is a question.

7 is done! Thanks MGA

Another MGA Funded project completed!
We have some extra sod so we are placing it on 8 where we have bare spots.
Thanks again MGA!

Mystery solved

A plaque is being installed for Landon Hearns' double eagle on 15 during last years Classic. Thanks to all the jr. Detectives out there who helped solve the mystery!

PLEASE HELP...

Solve this mystery! This morning I found this hole dug in the middle of 15 fairway. It is a square about 2' x 2' with sand packed in the bottom. Whomever dug it was kind enough to mark it with stakes and flagging. The tracts left in the fairway suggest a four wheeler was used to haul away the dirt. No real damage was done, we are fortunate that we just had sod delivered for the project on 7, so i can repair the hole today.
If you have any info or ideas please let me know! I have never seen something like this and I am very curious. Thanks, Jason.