Reel to Reel

The unseasonably warm weather this week felt pretty nice.  It is pretty rare that we see consecutive days in February reach the mid 60's. Turf conditions still look really good.  Ground conditions remain soft but are firming up.  It is still too soft to have the tree company finish the annual pruning.  However, my staff and I were able to get out this week and prune some of the low-lying branches that we could reach. pruned locust tree on #10  pruned Norway spruce on #9 picking up some limbs in the rough on #7

With one month behind us in the new year, we are off to a good start.  Everything on the golf course looks really good despite some bizarre weather. The month of January consisted of: several snow storms, 11 days that reached temperatures in the 40's, 2 days that climbed into the 50's, and 3.5"of rain for the month. Currently, we have a couple of inches of snow on the ground.  I'm not sure how long it will last as weather forecasts are predicting warmer temperatures and rain for a couple days this week. #5 fairway On the course, we have not done much tree pruning as ground conditions have been too soft. Hopefully, we will get some consistent cold weather in the next couple of weeks to firm things up. In the shop, we have been busy working on equipment in preparation for next season. With over 100 pieces in the fleet including carts, mowers, trimmers, blowers, etc. there is still a ton to do to get everything ready.

With 3" of rain already accumulated this month, 2017 is off to a wet start.  I was able to walk the golf course today.  Although ground conditions are extremely soft, the turf looks good.  More rain is in the forecast tomorrow and into next week.  Stay tuned for more updates. #3 fairway #12 green #13 green

The 3" of snow we received Tuesday night was short lived.  Last night's .6" of rain melted most of the snow and created quite a bit of ice. #18 green yesterday morning #18 green this morning The greens with the most ice are #1, #9, #12, #14, #15, and #18.  The greens that receive more sunlight have melted already and are clear. #8 green is clear (there are no trees south of the green blocking the sunlight) #9 green is full of ice (the large spruce trees south of the green block much of the sun) The forecast tonight is calling for warmer temperatures and more rain.  I am not overly excited about more rain, but I am hopeful it will melt some of the ice.  I will keep everyone updated.

Temperatures in the low 50's and the .35" of rain this week have melted most of the snow on the golf course. A handful of the shaded greens still have a little snow cover, but it is less than an inch.  The turf still looks really good heading into 2017. on 12/26, there was a healthy amount of water on #2 by 12/28, the water receded #5 green looking good this morning