Reel to Reel

2000 feet of rope and 300 stakes later, carts will be available on the back nine. Please keep the carts on the fairways as they are much firmer than the rough. I think we can all agree that April's weather has not been favorable. Below is a brief glimpse of historical weather data comparing this April to previous years.

Although the golf course remains saturated, we were able to mow greens, approaches, tees and 9 fairways this morning. We will continue to pump off excess water from fairways to aid in the drying process. See you on the course-

The golf course is extremely wet as we received another inch of rain last night. Rain totals for the month have now exceeded 5 inches . Pictures do not do it justice, so here's a brief video.

The seasonal staff returned last week eager to get back to work. Now that aerification is complete, this week's focus will be raking and bunker maintenance.

Although aerification of the greens was delayed due to inclement weather, it was a huge success. The greens received over 75 tons of sand, averaging 8000 lbs of sand per green. Below is a photo of #15 green at ground level. The large volume of sand that filled the aerification holes will help the soil retain air space and make it easier for roots to grow. The greens are rolling smooth and true. I am pleased with the finished product and grateful for the exceptional effort exhibited by my staff. We were extremely aggressive with our hole spacing, creating and filling over 7.25 million holes. The holes should be healed in 7-10 days with some nice weather.

The weather cooperated long enough to aerify and topdress greens 7-9, 18 and the putting greens. Wet conditions have hampered clean-up, but the sand should be dry enough tomorrow to completely work into the holes.

The first six greens were aerified and topdressed yesterday afternoon. Aerification will resume Thursday and Friday as rain is predicted the next two days. Thanks for your patience as we work around Mother Nature.

Growth regulators were applied this week to suppress the seedhead production of our poa annua greens that will surface later in the season. The goal of the application is to reduce seedhead production, keeping the greens smooth, fast and consistent. Seedhead suppression is a complicated endeavor due to the hundreds of poa annua bio types that exist and several environmental factors that affect seedhead production. Inconsistent results from traditional applications prompted me to experiment with new approaches to seedhead suppression two years ago. The new model that I have developed takes into account the variability of the spring weather and has produced extremely consistent results. My seedhead suppression approach is certainly a departure from what is happening in the industry. However, the success that we have had is hard to argue with. My peers, as well as, researchers at Michigan State are intrigued with these new ideas. Notice the numerous seedheads and uneven appearance from un...

GREENS AERIFICATION & TOPDRESSING Sunday, April 17 - late afternoon Monday, April 18 - all day The quality of the putting surface is directly related to what is happening below the surface. Throughout the golf season, routine aerification must be done to improve the soil profile. Benefits include: increased air and water filtration improved channels for rooting increased pore space reduction in compaction *graphic courtesy of linksaerificationplus.com

Due to the rain we received yesterday, cart activity will be limited to the back nine today. Although the 28 mph wind gusts helped dry the course, numerous wet areas still remain on the front nine. It has been an extremely productive couple of days this week: - irrigation system pressurized - bathrooms opened - greens mowed and rolled - tees mowed - fairways mowed - cups cut - remaining tee markers in place - water hazards painted - continued course clean-up See you on the course-

As I walked the course this evening, ground conditions were extremely soft. Several areas remain under water from today’s showers. Rain totals for the past seven days have surpassed 1.25”.

In less than a day, the golf course has gone from pretty firm to quite soft. As we are all too familiar with Michigan weather, conditions this time of year can be unpredictable and chaotic. The rainfall that occurred yesterday was much more than predicted. As a result, carts will be restricted this morning. I will assess conditions at 11:00 a.m. and determine if the course has dried out enough for cart traffic this afternoon.

The weather is cool and damp this morning, but spring-like temperatures are right around the corner. The extended forecast is looking like temperatures between 55-65 degrees this weekend. High winds and low humidity the past few days helped firm up wet areas on the golf course. Although there are still some wet locations, carts will be available today. Please avoid any areas that are roped or staked off, as they are still too soft for traffic. Greens were cut this morning for the first time. The golf course will also be set-up today with a limited number of tee markers and bunker rakes. Thanks for your continued patience this spring as we juggle the various tasks required to prepare the golf course. I look forward to seeing everyone out on the course.

Although the golf course has dried up nicely these last few days, there are still several areas that remain too soft for cart traffic. The upcoming forecast is calling for significant rainfall. Before carts are allowed, I need to assess how the golf course absorbs the upcoming rain. The turfgrass continues to remain dormant. Until the plants are actively growing, they are slow to recover from cart traffic. As soon as conditions allow, carts will be available. Thanks for your patience.

It has been a productive week, as clean-up on the golf course has run extremely smooth. The staff has done phenomenal work in preparing the golf course, as it has been done with limited personnel. The seasonal staff will be arriving later this month as weather conditions become more consistent. Hand raking #5 green complex Cups cut for weekend play Blowing off #6 tee and surrounding rough Loading up debris #9 rough Next week's activities weather depending, will most likely include: -continued course clean-up -ornamental bed preparation -mowing of greens -application of poa annua seedhead suppression