Wild Horse will be opening on schedule March 1 with carts allowed. Each opening day brings anticipation from you the golfer but we as a maintenance staff are always anxious to get back in the swing of things too. Here are some reasons we are excited to begin another great season of golf at Wild Horse.
1) The turf is looking great! Winter has been much more kind to us this year so greens and fairways should be coming into spring in fine shape.
2) New greensmowers! We just received a new model of greensmower that we are anxious to use this season. While there will be some minor differences to adjust to for us, this new mower style should provide an even better quality of cut resulting in a smoother putting surface. With the recent weather we might get to use them earlier than ever!
3) A bolstered fairway mowing fleet. We purchased a used fairway mower to give us more reliability and flexibility in our fairway mowers. Our fairway area of 54 acres is nearly double that of most other courses. We spend around 800 hours mowing fairways in a season so having dependable equipment is crucial.
4) A completed transition to bluegrass/ryegrass greens surrounds. We have talked about this often in other posts and we are thrilled with how well this transition has went. While it might not seem like too big a deal to many of you, switching turf species with relatively little disruption is tricky but will pay dividends long term in how we manage that turf and how it affects playability around the greens.
5) Better looking bunkers. This is a subtle nuance that you will probably not notice. However a before and after picture would clearly detail the last fall's renovation of some of the bunkers to a more rugged look. Over time bunker edges had become too "smooth" so we tried to return them to the blowout styled edges that were originally conceived by the designers.
6) An intact staff. I am very lucky to have a great group of guys that really like coming to work and take pride in providing a great product for you to enjoy. Many have been with me for a few years and I am happy to say they all return for 2016.
7) Last but most exciting for our facility is that the lodging cabins are nearly complete and ready for your stay. This is a whole new venture for Wild Horse that we think will add to your experience here.
#12 @ Wild Horse
Monday, February 29, 2016
Monday, February 8, 2016
Blizzard
It's been several years since we have had a snowstorm like we had last week. I forgot how much snow can pile up in certain places as seen in the picture just above. It took us an hour to get this far on the cart path from the parking lot to #1 tee. We will continue to clear out some cart paths so that we can start to get around the course and possibly be ready for carts on March 1. That is still a long ways off so we will see what Mother Nature deals us in the weeks to come.
The top picture shows #1. As you can see all is white except the fairway and green. The second picture shows #9 green completely void of snow. The wind whipped all 10" of snow off the turf and deposited it in the rough or beyond. So all the benefit of a good snow was unfortunately negated by the strong winds. The turf only has 25% coverage and greens even less than that with 10% covered. That being said the turf still looks pretty good at this point of the winter. We are looking forward to getting back out on the course and starting up the golf season.
Thursday, January 21, 2016
What we like to see
I welcome any questions or inquiries about what we do or why we do it a certain way. I can continue to write about what I find interesting on the course but really want to hit topics that you find intriguing. As we progress through the winter I hope to keep updating consistently to get you in the mood for golfing this spring. Feel free to email me at jmahar@live.com with topics you might want to learn about here at Wild Horse.
Monday, January 11, 2016
Rough management and playability
One of the most difficult areas to manage on the course for proper playability is the rough or "Wooga". The rough should be somewhat penal as that is inherently its role. Our feeling is that a shot into the rough should be findable but cost the golfer a half shot. By that we mean the golfer should be able to advance the ball back into the fairway but not all the way up to near the green (thus a half shot penalty). Sometimes our rough can be more unforgiving than that. While we try to address that concern through burning, haying, and irrigation management there are some situations that are out of our control that can lead to difficult playing options.
One of the most common complaints we hear is that the rough is thickest along the edge of the fairway so a small miss is more penal than a big miss. That is definitely not fair or preferable to us. Much of the blame goes to errant irrigation but that is mostly untrue. While some spots do receive irrigation overspray from sprinklers we have really tried hard over the last few years to eliminate that as much as possible by moving sprinklers in or out for more precise coverage. There will still be some drift but it is minimal.
One of the biggest problems for that area along the edge of the rough is seen below. It is the amount of snow that piles up along those areas. Wind sweeps snow off the fairway and deposits it along the edge. A couple of these events can deposit 2-3 inches of extra moisture in that strip which can mean the difference between playable rough and unfair rough. There is not much we can do about snow blowing into the rough but we have started periodically mowing a couple of swaths around the outside of the primary rough cut to make that strip more even with the rest of the rough. Also this fall we aggressively applied glyphosate (Roundup) to those areas to thin out the bluegrass that wants to thrive in that wetter environment.
There will always be some luck as to the lie you might get in the wooga but we are cognizant of the conditions out there and try to make them as fair as possible while still maintaining the look of a links course with "unmaintained' rough.
One of the most common complaints we hear is that the rough is thickest along the edge of the fairway so a small miss is more penal than a big miss. That is definitely not fair or preferable to us. Much of the blame goes to errant irrigation but that is mostly untrue. While some spots do receive irrigation overspray from sprinklers we have really tried hard over the last few years to eliminate that as much as possible by moving sprinklers in or out for more precise coverage. There will still be some drift but it is minimal.
One of the biggest problems for that area along the edge of the rough is seen below. It is the amount of snow that piles up along those areas. Wind sweeps snow off the fairway and deposits it along the edge. A couple of these events can deposit 2-3 inches of extra moisture in that strip which can mean the difference between playable rough and unfair rough. There is not much we can do about snow blowing into the rough but we have started periodically mowing a couple of swaths around the outside of the primary rough cut to make that strip more even with the rest of the rough. Also this fall we aggressively applied glyphosate (Roundup) to those areas to thin out the bluegrass that wants to thrive in that wetter environment.
There will always be some luck as to the lie you might get in the wooga but we are cognizant of the conditions out there and try to make them as fair as possible while still maintaining the look of a links course with "unmaintained' rough.
 |
Snow blown into edge of rough
|
Snowmaking
It was nice to hear from some of you that missed my blog when its tab was put under the members login section. Now it is easily accessed from the main page. You have not missed much as there hasn't been a new post in over 3 months-shame on me!! I appreciate hearing that there are a few avid followers which will motivate me to be more timely with my posts.
It is the dead of winter now and while we haven't had much snow here at Wild Horse the little bit we have had has been good cover. For the most part it laid down pretty well and provided decent protection for the greens. Also the mild December without many real cold overnight lows has kept the turf a bit green and looking good for the end of the calendar year.
We have started a new process this year to try to avoid the calamity of winterkill we experienced last year. It is SNOWMAKING!!
We are very new to this process and are learning as we go about what kind of conditions are necessary to make good snow, the equipment necessary to do it, and other little things that can complicate a relatively simple process if all goes well. We have not done much snowmaking this year because the first half of December was too mild even at night to do much. Since then we have had some snowcover provided by Mother Nature, but are starting to lose that now and will probably try to get some snow laid down in the next couple of weeks.
So why make snow? Because it seems we never get much snow anymore!! Even this year when many places north and west and also east have received snowfall we have been mostly left out. And we know from experience that snow is the best insulator against cold temperatures and also provides moisture when it melts. So we thought what better way to "cover" greens than with snow rather than expensive, labor intensive greens covers. Will this guarantee survival? No there are no guarantees in the natural world but we think it will really help our grass survive in most cases and also come out with more vigor in the spring.
So we are still in the learning process with this new tool but we think it definitely has potential.
It is the dead of winter now and while we haven't had much snow here at Wild Horse the little bit we have had has been good cover. For the most part it laid down pretty well and provided decent protection for the greens. Also the mild December without many real cold overnight lows has kept the turf a bit green and looking good for the end of the calendar year.
We have started a new process this year to try to avoid the calamity of winterkill we experienced last year. It is SNOWMAKING!!
| Snowmaking on #2 Green |
We are very new to this process and are learning as we go about what kind of conditions are necessary to make good snow, the equipment necessary to do it, and other little things that can complicate a relatively simple process if all goes well. We have not done much snowmaking this year because the first half of December was too mild even at night to do much. Since then we have had some snowcover provided by Mother Nature, but are starting to lose that now and will probably try to get some snow laid down in the next couple of weeks.
So why make snow? Because it seems we never get much snow anymore!! Even this year when many places north and west and also east have received snowfall we have been mostly left out. And we know from experience that snow is the best insulator against cold temperatures and also provides moisture when it melts. So we thought what better way to "cover" greens than with snow rather than expensive, labor intensive greens covers. Will this guarantee survival? No there are no guarantees in the natural world but we think it will really help our grass survive in most cases and also come out with more vigor in the spring.
So we are still in the learning process with this new tool but we think it definitely has potential.
Friday, October 2, 2015
Greens and greens surrounds-what's going on?
Sorry for the lack of reports lately but here's an update on what's been going on. Once again this fall we overseeded with bluegrass on the greens surrounds and then sprayed them with Tenacity. The whitening of the turf is very apparent but if you noticed there was less "white" because we had removed most of the unwanted bentgrass last year. The ryegrass will flash white but usually recovers as you are seeing right now. Within a couple of years we have gone from 75% bentgrass to almost none. The bluegrass /ryegrass mix is about 50/50 which is about as good as we could hope for. So we are extremely pleased with that transition to the grass types we want and expect exceptional turf quality around the greens in the years to come.
Just around the corner (Oct. 5-7) we will be aerating greens with a 3/8 inch tine. We will be pulling a core with this tine which doesn't mean much to you as the hole will still be the same size--not a large hole but it will affect putting quality some. But we feel we need to get more aggressive with our greens aeration practices to reduce compaction and improve our root structure. We will drag the cores to break them up and then topdress heavily on the 7th to fill in the holes. We will be raising height of cut and reduce mowing frequency to help speed recovery before winter sets in. But we will still roll the greens regularly to maintain speed and smoothness. We have not pulled a core on greens in several years so this is a major change in our greens management. We expect to do the same process again in the spring and are anxious to see how much this helps our turf. We expect better rooting, a slightly firmer surface, and better water infiltration which should lead to healthier more manageable greens. The putting quality once healed should be as good as ever.
We have lots of chemical and fertilizer applications to ready the course for the winter and bunkers to work on this fall to keep us busy as mowing slows down. In the next blog I will share some things we do to "put the course to bed."
Get out and get that last golf round in before the snow flies!
Just around the corner (Oct. 5-7) we will be aerating greens with a 3/8 inch tine. We will be pulling a core with this tine which doesn't mean much to you as the hole will still be the same size--not a large hole but it will affect putting quality some. But we feel we need to get more aggressive with our greens aeration practices to reduce compaction and improve our root structure. We will drag the cores to break them up and then topdress heavily on the 7th to fill in the holes. We will be raising height of cut and reduce mowing frequency to help speed recovery before winter sets in. But we will still roll the greens regularly to maintain speed and smoothness. We have not pulled a core on greens in several years so this is a major change in our greens management. We expect to do the same process again in the spring and are anxious to see how much this helps our turf. We expect better rooting, a slightly firmer surface, and better water infiltration which should lead to healthier more manageable greens. The putting quality once healed should be as good as ever.
We have lots of chemical and fertilizer applications to ready the course for the winter and bunkers to work on this fall to keep us busy as mowing slows down. In the next blog I will share some things we do to "put the course to bed."
Get out and get that last golf round in before the snow flies!
Sunday, August 2, 2015
Upcoming Aerification Schedule
Hard to believe but its coming up on aerification season again. Here is our schedule for this fall.
Right now--Aug 3-6- Fairways
August 24-25- Overseeding (with bluegrass) greens surrounds.
This will be the last year we do this as we have established a good ryegrass/bluegrass blend on the collars.
August 26-27-- Greens surrounds
September 8-9 -- Tees
October 5-6--Greens
This will be different than previous years. We will be pulling cores rather than just solid tineing. They will be rather small (3/8inch) so they can heal quickly before winter sets in. We feel like our root zone is becoming compacted and the best way to relieve that is by removing cores. We know that can be a pain for you the golfer but it is a practice that is necessary to maintain great greens through the summer.
.
Right now--Aug 3-6- Fairways
August 24-25- Overseeding (with bluegrass) greens surrounds.
This will be the last year we do this as we have established a good ryegrass/bluegrass blend on the collars.
August 26-27-- Greens surrounds
September 8-9 -- Tees
October 5-6--Greens
This will be different than previous years. We will be pulling cores rather than just solid tineing. They will be rather small (3/8inch) so they can heal quickly before winter sets in. We feel like our root zone is becoming compacted and the best way to relieve that is by removing cores. We know that can be a pain for you the golfer but it is a practice that is necessary to maintain great greens through the summer.
.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)