Club Champ, downburst, aeration, low humidity, high humidity...

 


We were feeling pretty good about the golf courses leading into the Club Championship last Friday but it has been a whirlwind since then.

A crazy microburst storm hit South Charlotte just before 4pm Friday. Over 60 mph straight line winds were recorded which led to over 20 trees coming down, some being snapped off mid trunk. The largest tree to come down also fell across 6 North black tee.

Debris was scattered all throughout both courses but the brunt was from 2 and 3 South and then back through the North course.

1.25" of rain also came down inside of half an hour along with all the debris. With some help from the golf shop we ran around the South to blow and clear the greens off and the Club Championship was back out on holes 6-18 at 5:30pm. 

It was all hands on deck Saturday for a big time storm cleanup. Our blowers, sweepers and the chipper were humming most of the day in order to have both sides playable for the weekend. The guys put in a great effort considering the amount of debris that was out there and the wet conditions. It was great to see everyone come together and make it happen over the weekend. The appreciation level was high from the membership as they got their course back quickly and were able to finish the Club Championship on time.

Getting back on schedule the South greens were core aerated for the final time this season. Small 1/4" cores were popped out Monday and Tuesday morning this week in order to provide some air into the upper profile of our sand based greens. The last few weeks have been probably the most stressful for the bentgrass. High temperatures and frequent moisture have depleted oxygen levels so this aeration is a well timed event.

Two cool nights and a drop in humidity helped dry the plugs quickly. The blowers were back out to clean the plugs off and then scoop them up.

After cleanup the greens are rolled smooth again.

A light topdressing went down along with some humic acid, potassium and calcium. Our root systems are probably the shortest they will be all year here at the end of summer. Burying these greens with sand and brushing them aggressively would only send the greens backwards right now.

The small holes will fill in quickly and we will let these greens grow for a few days to help the process. Green speeds will ramp back up on the bent as the weather continues to change towards the end of the month. September looks hot however and our weather guys are calling for the hottest September on record in fact. That doesn't sound as scary as the hottest July on record did but fall temps sound like they are ways off.

The North course continued their storm cleanup this week and also got in another nice verticut, topdress and brush on the greens. We may be able to get one or two more of these events in if the weather stays warm but we continue to lose daylight every day which lowers bermuda growth potential headed into fall.

Israel and his team worked on 17 South on Monday during the aeration closure. After the aerators went through, we swapped out the sod that never really got established along the new wall with fresh sod from our Pure Eclipse bentgrass nursery on 11 North. 

We also got started on some concrete cartpath repair during the South closure. Two different areas on 9 were replaced and are now open. Next week these new contractors will be back to replace a large broken section on 10 North. We will keep working on Monday's and Tuesday's as much as possible to continue patching up areas of the paths.

Finally this week we have also been working to apply our organic fertilizer out to all the roughs were it is most needed. This poultry litter is a great source of nutrients as we talked about last week, and goes a long way in helping build the health of our soil and aid in water use efficiency. Although a little dusty to load and apply, it breaks down relatively quickly and the (great) smell dissipates after about a day.

Enjoy your weekend as we prepare for whatever Mother Nature brings us next week!

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