PGA Tour Set Up, Bunker consistency and Fall Maintenance

PGA Tour Set Up

























I had the great pleasure of helping out on the maintenance crew at Silverado last week for the PGA Tour's Safeway Open. Working for former Sonoma Golf Club Superintendent Mat Dunmeyer is always a treat and last week was no different. I especially enjoyed seeing old friends and making new ones from all around the turf industry. My job assignment for the week was Back 9 bunker crew and I wanted to share an "inside the ropes" view of PGA Tour bunker preparations.
The vast majority of course preparations are spent in the weeks and months leading up to the event. Once tournament week arrives, the course is expected to be prepped and ready so the crew can get out and perform routine course set up without skipping a beat. When we arrived early in the week it was obvious the staff at Silverado had done well to meet their goals. The course was in fantastic condition and more than ready. This was especially true in the bunkers. Edges were crisp. Sand depths perfect. Ready for the big show. Then, leave it to Mother Nature and her ability to change even the best of plans. Rain fell Tuesday and while totals were low, it was enough to wet the bunkers and change conditions somewhat. Thankfully the rain let up early in the week leading to sun and perfect Napa weather. By the weekend, winds had picked up resulting in very dry bunker conditions and lots of debris clean up. My point here is...
The bunkers were prepared perfectly throughout the week and yet still, perfect consistency day to day and bunker to bunker was an impossibility. The preparation of bunkers was consistent each morning. The bunkers looked and played beautifully but conditions differed. A snapshot of reality for the tour and for day to day set up at every golf course. Please take a look at the below article from the USGA on bunker consistency.

Bunker Consistency - FIVE reasons why bunkers are not consistent - by the USGA

Despite the best efforts of any agronomic team, maintaining perfectly consistent playing conditions in every bunker is not possible.

Although golf course maintenance teams may spend more labor hours attending to bunkers than greens, golfers will still find that bunkers are inconsistent. Maintaining totally consistent playing conditions in bunkers is not achievable, nor is it necessarily desirable. Here are five reasons why the playing conditions in bunkers will never be perfectly consistent:

1.    Sand depth – The depth of sand on the bunker floor has a profound impact on playability. If the sand is too shallow, bunkers may be wet and firm. However, too much sand yields soft conditions that increase the probability of buried lies. Inconsistencies in bunker sand depth develop on a daily basis from events such as normal play, raking and wind exposure. The recommended depth for bunker sand is 4-6 inches but varies depending on factors such as the physical characteristics of the sand and the properties of the underlying material.

2.    Sun exposure – Bunkers that receive more sunlight will dry faster and play softer than those that receive less sunlight. For example, east- and southeast-facing bunkers dry faster in the morning than bunkers oriented to the west or the north, causing them to play softer.

3.    Wind exposure – Bunkers facing the predominant wind direction will dry faster and play softer than bunkers that are shielded from the wind or face the opposite direction.

4.    Play volume – Bunkers that receive more play will be softer and less consistent than bunkers with very little play. Why? Golf shots, foot traffic and raking disturb bunker sand and soften conditions.

5.    Irrigation – Many golfers wonder if irrigation systems can be designed to avoid adding water to bunkers. Unfortunately, such a design is impractical due to the shape and strategic location of many bunkers. Uniformly irrigating irregularly shaped playing surfaces such as greens, green surrounds and even fairways often places adjacent bunkers in the line of fire of sprinklers. If bunker sand is shallow, contains fine materials such as fine sand, silt and clay, or has been contaminated with organic matter, bunkers will retain moisture. Wet sand plays firmer than dry sand, so bunkers that receive more irrigation and retain more moisture will likely play firmer than those that are well drained and out of the way of irrigation. In the Southwest, where there is little rain and high water demand during summer, bunkers are often wet and firm due to frequent irrigation.

The bottom line is that golf is an outdoor game with inherent variability. For example, no two lies in the rough are exactly the same and, like it or not, the wind blows on some days while other days are calm. Sometimes the wind even blows from one direction in the morning and the opposite direction in the afternoon. Golfers are encouraged to embrace variability in the bunkers and throughout the golf course as a welcome challenge. Remember the wise words of the late Payne Stewart, "A bad attitude is worse than a bad swing." For additional information on bunker consistency, please review the Green Section Collection, “Managing Bunkers,” or contact a USGA agronomist.

 Fall Maintenance 

This fall our maintenance routine has changed from years past. A sure sign that the work we have accomplished over the years has paid off. Greens were aerated with a solid tine and given a medium amount of sand topdressing. Fairways and approaches were slit-seeded with blend of Fine Fescue seed. Tees were aerated with a deep tine. No cores pulled. Less surface disruption and less impact on play. This work was complete in just over a week despite a few equipment breakdowns and being a bit short on staff. As always we do everything we can to minimize disruption to the membership while performing these important "preventative maintenance" tasks. With the first rains of the season falling last week the greens are growing at a good pace and we should be back in shape come this time next week. 

My hat is off to the staff in the Turf Department for their efforts this season. Their work over the year and especially the last few weeks will ensure a strong finish to 2018 and will no doubt set us up for a fantastic 2019. We hope you enjoy the golf course this fall and we appreciate all the support in doing what is right for the health of the golf course. 

First Rain in 6 Months

Well it's about time...Rain is finally back in Northern California and we couldn't be happier. It's been another great season with many successes, challenges and lots of good times. The rain forecast for today and continuing throughout the weekend will no doubt give the turf and the staff some much needed stress relief. The below picture was taken on September 23rd and it gives you a good idea of what things look like following four weeks without irrigation. As you may know, water was shut off on the 1st tee and beginning of the 1st fairway in early September to prepare for the construction of the new golf shop and cart barn. More on that later...

Currently we're prepping the course for our last big event of the season, the RIX Invitational. In the weeks following the RIX we will work to get the course ready for winter. No scheduled greens aeration this fall although we will verticut and give them a fairly heavy sand topdressing. Tees and approaches will be core aerated, seeded and sanded. Fairways will be slit-seeded and (weather dependent) aerated with a solid tine. Pretty minimal impact this fall.

Our seasonal staff of greenkeepers will head home for the winter on November 4th. During the winter months many of our full time staff take vacations and time away. There will be many days this winter that we are short staffed. This will impact what work we can and cannot complete each day. Please take this into consideration when playing the course this winter. Mowing and course set up routines will change to a winter schedule in early November. Bunkers will not be raked daily but on an as-needed basis. Around storms our focus will be the clean up and repair of the course. When caught up with mowing and clean up our focus will turn to the many projects on our to-do list. You will see quite a bit of work in bunkers this winter. We'll also be out mowing and seeding in various natural grass areas as well as taking on a few irrigation and drainage projects.  Always something to do!

 Thanks and we'll see you on the course.

2015 Invitational Recap

With our biggest event of the year now in the rear view mirror, I wanted to share some pictures and discuss the hows and whys of setting the course up for tournament play.

It was a long two weeks of prep work and set up. Over 250 hours of overtime went in to produce the conditions we had for our Men's Invitational last week. The staff really turned it up a notch and I thank them for their hard work and long hours. The focus leading up to the event was catching up with all the detail work we fell behind on this spring. With the dry weather this winter and into spring combined with a short staff, we had fallen behind with some of the little things around the course as we made mowing and setting up for play the priority. The focus during tournament week was drying the course out and fine tuning the playing surfaces for our major event of the year. This means lots of extra mowing and rolling of greens and daily mowing and hand watering of tees, fairways and approaches. The result of this focus and detail was a course that set up and played as good as I have seen it.

While it's fun to tune the course up for these big events, it is unrealistic to expect these conditions daily. Many factors go into preparing the golf course in this fashion with the most important being the health of the turf leading up to the event. Greens and fairways have been in the best shape that I've seen and Mother Nature was kind enough to help out with some mild temps.  Therefore we were able to push things pretty well to the limit without any adverse affects. All of the aeration, sand topdressings, soil and water testing, inter-seeding, fertility and water treatments and general care and planning over the last few years is paying off nicely with the results being a healthy turf that can stand the kind of stress we put it through. Our goal now is to maintain the health and playability of the course through the summer. We will monitor the health of the turf closely and when we can push, we will. When we need to back off, we will. Please enjoy the course each day you play knowing we are doing all we can to provide the most pleasant experience for members and guests possible.

Thanks and we'll see you on the course!

Happy Father's Day Dad!



Happy Father's Day Pop and Happy Father's Day to all the Dad's out there. My Dad introduced me to the game of golf. He got me me up early in the morning to get in 9 before school. He taught me to leave the course better than I found it and sent me to the car when I got out of line. My Dad is the one person I have to thank for the very rewarding career that I've now gotten myself into. Without his introduction and my resulting love for the game, who knows what I'd be up too!  Father's Day Sunday is indeed a great day. For more reason than one.

Father's Day means US Open Sunday. This year the toughest test in golf lands at Merion Golf Club. A classic gem at less than 115 acres with wild fescue grass areas, roughed-up bunkers and quarry holes. Sound familiar?











As I look across the course at Claremont, I see many similarities to the look found at Merion. The bunkers are wild with minimally maintained fescue grass edges on both properties. Claremont is a charming 18 hole classic laid out on under 100 acres while Merion is a brute set on a small property as well. Both courses ooze character with the select placement of fescue native areas mingling in between lush green fairways and greens. Both very cool tracks with a rich history in the game.



 While the look is similar, it's not the same and for the most part this is due to climate. The fescue at Merion is long, lush and green right now thanks to the climate of the northeast that brings regular rainfall during the season. With the dry season that we experience each year in California, our fescue and native grasses take on a golden hue that resembles the native grass hillsides found throughout the state. Maintaining these areas to look natural and to be acceptable for playing the game of golf is truly an art form. Ask some of the pro's this week how they feel about the playability of Merion for the Open!

  

A big congratulations goes out to Superintendent Matt Shaffer and all of the staff and volunteers at Merion this year. They received over 7 inches of rain in the days leading up to the event and the course is looking flawless. Nothing short of amazing!

Here's to a great US Open...

Here's to great classic golf architecture...

Here's to a great Father's Day!



It's That Time Again!

Boy does time fly when you're having fun... Seems like not to long ago, we were getting ready for the winter that never really happened and then, all of a sudden, it's Invitational Time!

Over the last few weeks all of the staff in the Turf Department have been busy catching up on the many details around the course that we seem to fall behind on over the winter. Due to the dry beginning of 2013, the course has been so busy with member play and outside events that our focus has been on mowing and daily preparation. Thanks to the staff's hard work, we are now caught up and the focus this week will be on the mowing and general clean up of the course in preparation for our biggest event of the year.

The forecast this weekend is for hot weather (for Oakland) and we will have no problem getting the course to play firm and fast. Thanks to Mother Nature, the course is looking and playing different than in years past. To give you an idea as to why, in 2012 between January and June, our rain totals were 12.75". This year, in the same time period we've received just over 3" and no rain what so ever in the last 2 months! The farmer in me says it's gonna be a long season....

All things considered, the course is looking and playing very well and we are looking forward to a fantastic Men's Invitational! Thanks and we'll see you on the course.

US Open Week

A once in a lifetime opportunity has come and gone for myself and our Equipment Manager Mike Newbould. Last week we volunteered our time to help the staff at the Olympic Club prepare the golf course for the 112th United States Open.

First of all I must thank Director of Maintenance Pat Finlen, Lake Course Superintendent Justin Mandon, HR Director Celeste Repsher and all of the staff at the Olympic Club for their amazing hospitality and for allowing us to be part of such a special week. This group is truly a class act!

Sunday afternoon prior to the tournament, all of the staff and volunteers met for the first time to eat dinner and get job assignments for the week. I would be off to mow fairways morning and night and Mike was assigned to the shop to assist in maintaining the equipment.

There was an amazing amount of equipment to maintain and Mike and the other volunteer technicians worked as hard or harder than anyone else. Not your average everyday tournament as there were thirteen fairway mowers rumbling down each fairway morning and night. A very impressive sight I must say!              

The hundred or so volunteers from 16 different countries, all the extra equipment and all of the chaos that surrounds a tournament of this size made for many logistical challenges. The planning, coordination and timing that goes into this event was amazing to see from "inside the ropes" and the staff at Olympic pulled it off seamlessly.

For me, the most impressive aspect of seeing the golf course set up for a major championship was the amount of time and scientific data that goes into managing water. The players are so good and so critical of the day to day set up of the course that they notice any slight change in the course. Moisture readings, firmness testing and speed readings are taken all over each green morning and night to insure that the pros are getting the most difficult test in golf all while keeping the consistency and fairness that they expect. That course was a firm and fast as anything that I've ever seen and witnessing first hand the best in the world get tested on one of the great golf courses in the world  in that condition was an experience I'll never forget.

Take look at the video below for an inside the ropes look at the US Open maintenance and volunteers:

Lastly I must thank Claremont Country Club, it's Board of Directors, the Greens Committee and the Management team for their support and for allowing me the time away from work during the US Open. The experience was invaluable and I feel Mike and I both are back this week excited to bring with us some of the tips and tricks that may only be learned at a US Open.

Thanks again and we'll see you on the golf course!

Men's Invitational Week

Despite the light rain today, all systems are a go for a fantastic Men's Invitational this week at Claremont. Something about Murphy's Law and Mother Nature... the last thing we need today is rain. Monday of tournament week is a big day when we plan many maintenance activities to help set the course up for the biggest week of the year. These activities include the application of a preventative fungicide on the greens as well as applications of growth regulators to the greens and fairways. All of these products should be allowed to dry on the surface for an hour to achieve the desired result. Thanks Mother nature!

With or without the rain, the course will be in tip top shape this week and into the summer. We are very happy with the condition of the turf and this week the focus will be on mowing and clean up work. It's the little details that will set the golf course apart from day to day condition to tournament condition and the staff in the turf department has worked well at preparing for the big week. Good luck to all participants and here's to a great Men's Invitational. Thanks and we'll see you on the course!

MacKenzie Gathering

"The best golfing grasses vary in color. They may be red, brown, blue, dark green, light green, yellow and at times even white. A golf course that is consisted entirely of one shade of green would be merely ugly." - Alister MacKenzie

On the eve of the final day of the MacKenzie gathering, I must say that it's been an honor and privilege to be a part of such a special event. The staff in the Turf Department and I are proud of the work that has been accomplished leading up to and throughout the event. It's been a long stretch and it takes a lot of work to prepare the golf course to look and play as it has over the last few weeks. I must say that tournament preparation for me is the most rewarding of all the things we do as Golf Course Superintendents and I will be a bit sad to end the day tomorrow. I've had the opportunity to meet with and spend some time with some very special people who are all so passionate about one thing - Golf. Thanks to all involved and thanks for a great week.

Josh Clevenger
Golf Course Superintendent

US Open Set Up

Another US Open is in the books and as we watched Rory lap the field, talk of course set up became the focus. I thought it would be interesting for many of you to get a taste of what it takes to set up a golf course for the US Open. The link below is a clip of the superintendent at Congressional Mike Giuffre and Mike Davis of the USGA discussing the set up and preparation of the golf course leading up to the tournament.

http://www.gcsaa.tv/view.php?id=422

Hat's off to the staff and 120 volunteers at Congressional for preparing the golf course to look and play as the major championship venue that it is. The golf course looked and played fantastic leading up to the event and then the rains came and softened the course to the point that the best in the world could go low. What's the point here? All the work, all the blood sweat and tears that go in to making our golf courses great can be diminished on many levels by Mother Nature. Weather a US Open or a Men's Invitational it's something that we, as superintendents deal with daily and the weather dictates many of the practices we employ especially around tournament time.

Next year, the US Open comes to San Francisco and the Olympic Club. Myself and a few of the staff from Claremont will make the trip across the bridge for the entire week to volunteer for the tournament. We will be just a few of the 100 or so other superintendents and assistants volunteering to rake bunkers, handwater fairways and help the staff in any way we can as Olympic Club sets up for their big event and I can't wait! The opportunity to be part of such a tournament is one not to pass up and for me, setting up a golf course for a big event is really what it's all about. As a superintendent and a staff, you are tested on all levels. The US Open or the Invitational at Claremont, either way it's time to step up to the plate! Lastly, for those of you still interested, a link below details the week at a US Open for the volunteer.

http://www.gcsaa.tv/view.php?id=426

Thanks and we'll see you on the the course.

Invitational Update

I know it's been quiet on the blog page for a while so I thought I'd share some of the pictures I took while setting the course for the Men's Invitational. The course looked and played great throughout the week for the men and continues to shine for the ladies this week. Thanks to the staff in the turf department for their hard work and attention to detail over the last few weeks. The staff looked like the professionals they are, all dressed in new uniforms. They stepped up to the plate and hit a home run during those three days of tournament time when all the pressure was on. Enjoy the pictures in the slide show above and we'll see you on the golf course.