What a Summer!
This summer was definitely a battle! All across the country, golf course superintendents were challenged by Mother Nature. I would say most of them probably experienced some sort of climate change. We had record setting temperatures all across the country and many areas experienced drought conditions. I would say many golf course superintendents had the hardest summer of their careers, and are glad to see fall and winter rapidly approaching.
We had triple digit temperatures most of the summer, but the killer for me was the unrelenting winds. They were blowing consistently hard most afternoons and evenings. It made it hard for us to irrigate efficiently at night. That is why you would see several of my staff hand and spot watering during the day. We also had a lot more humidity this year. High humidity increases the disease pressure on turfgrass. We struggled keeping the Pythium in check for most of the tail end of the summer. But all in all, even with the drastic climate challenges, we won the battle.
You may notice the course is alittle on the dry side right now, and I can't blame this one on Mother Nature. For the second time this summer, we experienced irrigation computer problems. The basestation that sends the signals out to the field satellites started to overheat. When it overheats, the signals don't get sent and the sprinklers don't come on. So as it would cool down, some signals would be sent and some wouldn't. We found the problem last Saturday morning and weren't able to get the new basestation until Tuesday. The course took a hit from four nights of inconsistent watering. Again, you will notice my staff trying to catch these areas up by manually watering. Because of this problem, we have put a hold on the fairway and rough aerification until we can get the course rehydrated and the irrigation problems solved. We are hoping to start aerifying again starting next week. So far, holes 1,2,3 and 9 have been punched.
I would like to thank everyone for your comments about how hard my staff works to keep the course beautiful. They take a lot of pride in the golf course and it shows in their work.
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| Hole #17- Par 4 Photo from 2002 |
