Irrigation installation at 3W was completed this week and it saw the introduction of some bigger size pipe being laid next to 12W tee as a future feed to back to the pump shed.  This pipe was some of the 200mm diameter pipe and as we get nearer to the pump shed the pipe size increases and a load of the ''big stuff'' arrived this week and is being stored on the old greens nursery adjacent to 17R fairway.  Some 355mm and 250mm pipe was included in this weeks delivery.  Considering our current antiquated system has 150mm as the biggest diameter pipe (and not much of it) we are looking at vastly improved water pressure being delivered to the sprinklers.  We move on to 11W next week and this will take at least all week as there is a multitude of underground services located on this fairway to be navigated, including 240v power, 2 x sewer lines and one of the 150mm pipelines mentioned above.

The first of the ''big stuff'' arrives.

Another 30 tonne of bunker sand was added to some West bunkers this week.  Depending on the bunkers needs anywhere between 100 and 300mm of sand is added to the base of the bunker and that is then spread, track rolled for compaction and then raked.  This is an annual project and given the vast numbers of bunkers we have we can't get to all of them, but we do as many as budget and staffing allows.  This is on top of our regular program of ''back-facing'' bunkers which is when we drag sand back of the bunker face to the floor of the bunker as well as dragging sand back to the floor of the bunker from where players drag sand as they rake.

RHS 16W green was one of the bunkers done this week with four of the loads pictured below dropped and spread in this bunker.

One of 4 loads dropped.

 

Track rolled with bunker machine for compaction.

Ready for play.

It wasn't the easiest week just gone with very low staff numbers.  Two apprentices were summoned to trade school for the week, one staff member was on annual leave and there were two sick each day which made things very tight but we got through and both courses look pretty dam good going into the weekend.  And just on the staff, one of our very experienced qualified greenkeepers will be leaving us shortly to take up the position as Assistant Super at Ocean Dunes on King Island.  I travelled there a couple of times during construction and I haven't seen a more challenging environment in which to work on a golf course but it's a great opportunity at what is one of the best courses in the world.

The cold mornings have obviouly arrived and the effect on the turf, particularly the greens is quite noticeable.  The greens on both courses had been producing quite a bit of leaf growth for this time of year but that certainly came to an abrupt halt this week.  A change in leaf colour to almost a purplish colour also accompanied the cold spell.  With less leaf growth during the day the greens produce a very tight fast surface which is what is happening at the moment.  The photos below don't really do the change in colour justice but it's surely there.

8R green Friday afternoon.

3W green Friday afternoon.

At least we have dried out to the extent that 10mm of rain shouldn't have too much of an effect on the courses.  Another few weeks of the dry weather should have us just about back to ''normal'' conditions.  The irrigation install continued this week with 2R being completed.  There was a lot of underground infrastructure such as power, a town water line and a telecom line that needed to be worked around on this fairway.  Despite the wet conditions the contractors are pretty much on schedule.  If the amount of rain we had for the first five months of the year fell at the previous course they were at they wouldn't have been able to get on the courses to work at all.

And they still lost the ball??!!

 

A pretty good sign??

 

Finally a seven day forecast with no rain predicted after another frustrating week of rain and interruption to golf.  At least the courses have dried out a little faster than they did in May but that was after the constant rain for five months.  Year to date we have had 1498mm, and that includes just 15mm in June, which compares to the 2023 twelve month total of 1314mm.  So yes it's been wet.

The wetness has been ideal for weed growth and detrimental for us to get them sprayed.  We have been able to get some of the Poa in the greens sprayed and it is a very slow acting product that was used and we are currently at week two since application and some slight yellowing is just starting which is most encouraging.

The irrigation install continues and 8R was completed this week and we have moved on to 2R.  One of the bonuses of the install is that the mainline is laid in a trench down the side of the fairway that is dug 800mm deep and 450mm wide which gives us a very nice root prune along the fairway edges.  As can be seen from the photo below the vast majority of the roots are in the top 150mm so the benefit to the fairways will be enormous.  We will still probably get our own root pruning machine out this year as well to complement the great work done by the install. 

A lot of thirsty roots cut off.

 

 

Just when you thought we had turned the corner weatherwise we finish up with a very ordinary week.  Kudos to the weather bureau for calling the rain a week in advance although this was a week when you want them to be wrong.  At least the irrigation install is on 8R fairway which is one of the driest fairways on the property but the rain prevents them from welding pipe and doing electrical connections so there has been a delay there as well.

The cooler temperatures recently have also seen a surge in Poa annua (Wintergrass) germination across the property.  Greens on both courses were treated early this week with a product that is notoriously insoluble, so the rainfall has been good for that.  We do normally put out a pre-emergent product that kills weeds as they germinate which is generally effective on Poa, even some of the resistant varieties we have.  We didn't spray this year due to the amount of turfing we are doing with the irrigation install, as the product works by killing new roots and it can't differentiate between weeds and desirable grasses so as any turf matures, it would pick up the product and have an effect on the roots of the establishing turf.

Work on the courses was restricted with the rainfall so we took the opportunity to do some tree trimming on the entry road to the clubhouse and also replaced a couple of nets in the practice bays.  Edging paths is also a good wet weather job as you are on the paths to do the work not damaging turf elsewhere.

Just a very frustrating week for greenkeepers and golfers alike and then we get a 35mm downpour on Friday afternoon to just about flood everything.