Another week of dry sunny weather and the wind is really starting to stretch the irrigation system to the limit.  It has been nice to see some improvement in some of the areas where the root pruner was used and no more so than on 18 River tee as seen in the photo below.  If you look closely at the photo you can see the 2 lines from the root pruning machine.  Although the result elsewhere isn't as dramatic as this it is obviously working very well.

RHS 18 River tee

I had another qualified Greenkeeper leave this week to work in the mines and that is the second one I have lost in 6 months.  The lure of high wages is too great especially when compared to the wages for Greenkeepers which must be the lowest of any Trade qualified personnel and it's the same scene across Australia and it is difficult to even recruit young people for apprenticeships.  At least the grass isn't really growing just yet so I have some time to source a replacement.

I had the opportunity to play in the Pro am at Indooroopilly GC on Monday and our Pro said they were the hardest and fastest greens he had seen in a long while.  One under was the best score in the morning then we only got to play 8 holes before the thunderstorm rolled through causing play to be suspended then eventually cancelled in the afternoon.  Indro has had 2mm of rain in the last 10 weeks and only got 2 more courtesy of the storm which couldn't have come at a worse time.  It is virtually impossible to imagine the amount of water that was on the course just 18 months ago in the Brisbane floods and the damage that it caused to the golf course.  Host Super Charles Giffard and his crew have plenty to be proud of with the restoration works.

A major blow for turf research in Australia with the news that the research facility at Redlands is to completely close following Queensland Government cuts.  We participated in the greens grass trials with them and this research project was the catalyst for many courses, Cool Tweed included, to change their greens grass.  A number of projects are currently underway and will be cancelled.  Considering that golf injects over $573 million into the Queensland economy and provides enjoyment for over 200,000 golfers you might have thought that the research station might have survived.  Not to mention the work that the facility conducts for sporting venues.  How long since you have seen a game of high level League or Aussie Rules played on a muddy ground?  That's directly attributable to the research bodies around Australia.