Shown in this picture is Fernando our mechanic sharpening the greens mower reels; this is done three times a month to ensure a clean cut on the greens.
Thursday, December 22, 2011
Tuesday, December 6, 2011
Soil pH & TDS (Total Dissolved Solids)
One of the biggest problems the putting greens encounter is high sodium (salt) content; this is a byproduct of reclaimed water, which is the golf course's irrigation water supply. High levels of sodium prohibit the roots from properly up taking nutrients, and the grass displays characteristics of drought and nutrient deficiencies.
One thing we do to help this is apply calcium; the calcium simply binds itself to the sodium as not to interfere with plant's uptake of nutrients. When the calcium is attached it also is easier to leach out the sodium and move it down the soil profile and into the drainage system.
There are side affects to the application of calcium, the biggest being that the pH of the soil goes up, making it more alkali. The creeping bentgrass on the course prefers slightly acidic soils; from 5.0 pH – 6.5 pH. As an example, pure water has a neutral pH at 7.0.
On November 15, a significant rain downpour was forecasted for later in the week, and we used this as an opportunity to address the pH and sodium levels of the soil on the greens.
Before the rain, readings were taken to record the pH and the TDS (Total Dissolved Solids) of the greens. The TDS has to do with EC (Electrical Conductivity), and it is the easiest way to judge the sodium levels in the soil.
As a bench mark the greens would be the healthiest at a pH from 5.0 to 6.5 and an EC reading of 0.75 to 1.50.
Before the rain the average reading for all the greens was 8.0pH
Before the rain the reading of the greens TDS mS/cm was .8 which = an EC of 3.0.
On November 18th, we applied 2,000 lbs of limestone (calcium) to the greens. This is a sound practice that many golf courses use to help leach out excess salts.
As it started to rain we applied a synthetic acid to lower the pH of the greens. Both of these practices require watering, which is why the timing of the chemical applications along with the storm played a big factor in our success.
Today the reading recorded from the greens is at 6.2pH.
The post rain recording of the greens TDS mS/cm was .2 which = an EC of 1.3.
This is a substantial improvement in a very short period of time.
Friday, December 2, 2011
Thursday, December 1, 2011
USGA
Golf Etiquette 101
Unlike many sports, golf is for the most part played without the supervision of a referee, umpire or coach. The game relies on the individual golfer to show consideration for other players and to abide by the rules. New golfers are often in need of advice about customary behavior and practices to follow on course so that play proceeds safely and without delay. Here are 10 tips to help all players get the maximum enjoyment from the game.
The Spirit of the Game
The game is based on integrity of the individual to show consideration for other players and to abide by the Rules. All players should conduct themselves in a disciplined manner, demonstrating courtesy and sportsmanship at all times, irrespective of how competitive they may be. This is the spirit of the game of golf.
Safety
Players should ensure that no one is standing close by or in a position to be hit by the club, the ball or any stones, pebbles, twigs or the like when they make a stroke or practice swing.
Players should not play until the players in front are out of range.
Players should always alert greenstaff nearby or ahead when they are about to make a stroke that might endanger them.
If a player plays a ball in a direction where there is a danger of hitting someone, he should immediately shout a warning. The traditional word of warning in such a situation is "fore."
Consideration for Other Players
No Disturbance or Distraction
Players should always show consideration for other players on the course and should not disturb their play by moving, talking or making any unnecessary noise.
Players should ensure that any electronic device taken onto the course does not distract other players.
On the teeing ground, a player should not tee his ball until it is his turn to play.
Players should not stand close to or directly behind the ball, or directly behind the hole, when a player is about to play.
View Avoiding Distraction Animation
On the Putting Green
On the putting green, players should not stand on another player's line of putt or when he is making a stroke, cast a shadow over his line of putt.
Players should remain on or close to the putting green until all other players in the group have holed out.
View Putting Green Animation
Scoring
In stroke play, a player who is acting as a marker should, if necessary, on the way to the next tee, check the score with the player concerned and record it.
View Scoring Etiquette Animation
Pace of Play
Play at Good Pace and Keep Up
Players should play at a good pace. The Committee may establish pace of play guidelines that all players should follow.
It is a group's responsibility to keep up with the group in front. If it loses a clear hole and it is delaying the group behind, it should invite the group behind to play through, irrespective of the number of players in that group.
View Playing at a Good Pace Animation
Be Ready to Play
Players should be ready to play as soon as it is their turn to play. When playing on or near the putting green, they should leave their bags or carts in such a position as will enable quick movement off the green and towards the next tee. When the play of a hole has been completed, players should immediately leave the putting green.
Viewing Being Ready to Play Animation
Lost Ball
If a player believes his ball may be lost outside a water hazard or is out of bounds, to save time, he should play a provisional ball.
Players searching for a ball should signal the players in the group behind them to play through as soon as it becomes apparent that the ball will not easily be found.
They should not search for five minutes before doing so. Having allowed the group behind to play through, they should not continue play until that group has passed and is out of range.
View Saving Time with a Lost Ball Animation
Priority on the Course
Unless otherwise determined by the Committee, priority on the course is determined by a group's pace of play. Any group playing a whole round is entitled to pass a group playing a shorter round.
View Priority on the Course Animation
Care of the Course
Bunkers
Before leaving a bunker, players should carefully fill up and smooth over all holes and footprints made by them and any nearby made by others. If a rake is within reasonable proximity of the bunker, the rake should be used for this purpose.
View Bunker Etiquette Animation
Repair of Divots, Ball-Marks and Damage by Shoes
Players should carefully repair any divot holes made by them and any damage to the putting green made by the impact of a ball (whether or not made by the player himself). On completion of the hole by all players in the group, damage to the putting green caused by golf shoes should be repaired.
View Divot Repair Etiquette Animation
Preventing Unnecessary Damage
Players should avoid causing damage to the course by removing divots when taking practice swings or by hitting the head of a club into the ground, whether in anger or for any other reason.
Players should ensure that no damage is done to the putting green when putting down bags or the flagstick.
In order to avoid damaging the hole, players and caddies should not stand too close to the hole and should take care during the handling of the flagstick and the removal of a ball from the hole. The head of a club should not be used to remove a ball from the hole.
Players should not lean on their clubs when on the putting green, particularly when removing the ball from the hole.
The flagstick should be properly replaced in the hole before players leave the putting green.
Local notices regulating the movement of golf carts should be strictly observed.
View Preventing Unnecessary Damage Animation
Conclusion; Penalties for Breach
If players follow the guidelines in this Section, it will make the game more enjoyable for everyone.
If a player consistently disregards these guidelines during a round or over a period of time to the detriment of others, it is recommended that the Committee consider taking appropriate disciplinary action against the offending player. Such action may, for example, include prohibiting play for a limited time on the course or in a certain number of competitions. This is considered to be justifiable in terms of protecting the interest of the majority of golfers who wish to play in accordance with these guidelines.
In the case of a serious breach of Etiquette, the Committee may disqualify a player under Rule 33-7.
Unlike many sports, golf is for the most part played without the supervision of a referee, umpire or coach. The game relies on the individual golfer to show consideration for other players and to abide by the rules. New golfers are often in need of advice about customary behavior and practices to follow on course so that play proceeds safely and without delay. Here are 10 tips to help all players get the maximum enjoyment from the game.
The Spirit of the Game
 |
Safety
Players should ensure that no one is standing close by or in a position to be hit by the club, the ball or any stones, pebbles, twigs or the like when they make a stroke or practice swing.
Players should not play until the players in front are out of range.
Players should always alert greenstaff nearby or ahead when they are about to make a stroke that might endanger them.
If a player plays a ball in a direction where there is a danger of hitting someone, he should immediately shout a warning. The traditional word of warning in such a situation is "fore."
Consideration for Other Players
No Disturbance or Distraction
Players should always show consideration for other players on the course and should not disturb their play by moving, talking or making any unnecessary noise.
Players should ensure that any electronic device taken onto the course does not distract other players.
On the teeing ground, a player should not tee his ball until it is his turn to play.
Players should not stand close to or directly behind the ball, or directly behind the hole, when a player is about to play.
View Avoiding Distraction Animation
On the Putting Green
On the putting green, players should not stand on another player's line of putt or when he is making a stroke, cast a shadow over his line of putt.
Players should remain on or close to the putting green until all other players in the group have holed out.
View Putting Green Animation
Scoring
In stroke play, a player who is acting as a marker should, if necessary, on the way to the next tee, check the score with the player concerned and record it.
View Scoring Etiquette Animation
Pace of Play
Play at Good Pace and Keep Up
Players should play at a good pace. The Committee may establish pace of play guidelines that all players should follow.
It is a group's responsibility to keep up with the group in front. If it loses a clear hole and it is delaying the group behind, it should invite the group behind to play through, irrespective of the number of players in that group.
View Playing at a Good Pace Animation
Be Ready to Play
Players should be ready to play as soon as it is their turn to play. When playing on or near the putting green, they should leave their bags or carts in such a position as will enable quick movement off the green and towards the next tee. When the play of a hole has been completed, players should immediately leave the putting green.
Viewing Being Ready to Play Animation
Lost Ball
If a player believes his ball may be lost outside a water hazard or is out of bounds, to save time, he should play a provisional ball.
Players searching for a ball should signal the players in the group behind them to play through as soon as it becomes apparent that the ball will not easily be found.
They should not search for five minutes before doing so. Having allowed the group behind to play through, they should not continue play until that group has passed and is out of range.
View Saving Time with a Lost Ball Animation
Priority on the Course
Unless otherwise determined by the Committee, priority on the course is determined by a group's pace of play. Any group playing a whole round is entitled to pass a group playing a shorter round.
View Priority on the Course Animation
Care of the Course
Bunkers
Before leaving a bunker, players should carefully fill up and smooth over all holes and footprints made by them and any nearby made by others. If a rake is within reasonable proximity of the bunker, the rake should be used for this purpose.
View Bunker Etiquette Animation
Repair of Divots, Ball-Marks and Damage by Shoes
Players should carefully repair any divot holes made by them and any damage to the putting green made by the impact of a ball (whether or not made by the player himself). On completion of the hole by all players in the group, damage to the putting green caused by golf shoes should be repaired.
View Divot Repair Etiquette Animation
Preventing Unnecessary Damage
Players should avoid causing damage to the course by removing divots when taking practice swings or by hitting the head of a club into the ground, whether in anger or for any other reason.
Players should ensure that no damage is done to the putting green when putting down bags or the flagstick.
In order to avoid damaging the hole, players and caddies should not stand too close to the hole and should take care during the handling of the flagstick and the removal of a ball from the hole. The head of a club should not be used to remove a ball from the hole.
Players should not lean on their clubs when on the putting green, particularly when removing the ball from the hole.
The flagstick should be properly replaced in the hole before players leave the putting green.
Local notices regulating the movement of golf carts should be strictly observed.
View Preventing Unnecessary Damage Animation
Conclusion; Penalties for Breach
If players follow the guidelines in this Section, it will make the game more enjoyable for everyone.
If a player consistently disregards these guidelines during a round or over a period of time to the detriment of others, it is recommended that the Committee consider taking appropriate disciplinary action against the offending player. Such action may, for example, include prohibiting play for a limited time on the course or in a certain number of competitions. This is considered to be justifiable in terms of protecting the interest of the majority of golfers who wish to play in accordance with these guidelines.
In the case of a serious breach of Etiquette, the Committee may disqualify a player under Rule 33-7.
Wednesday, November 23, 2011
Nursery Green
The preparation of a nursery green construction is now almost complete.
The nursery green is used as a bent-grass supply for replacing worn or damaged areas on the putting greens.
This is a four week process:
The nursery green is used as a bent-grass supply for replacing worn or damaged areas on the putting greens.
This is a four week process:
- First the soil is sterilized with a fumigant
- Then the area will be leveled
- Next the cores are spread over the prepared area. The cores are collected from our aerification June 26th.
- Last the area will be leveled and seeded; the green will be ready to use next summer.
Tuesday, November 22, 2011
Bermudagrass Color Retention
Fall is in the air, literally.
With the dropping temperatures, I have been asked a few times “When are the fairways going to turn brown?” I would like to discuss the factors involved that make this change happen and when to expect to see the change.
In the fall, bermudagrasses will start to lose their green color when the soil temperature drops below 55 degrees F. When soil temperatures drop to and below 55 degrees F, bermudagrass has difficulty producing chlorophyll more rapidly than it is degrading in the plant, particularly with high light intensity. As a result, the turfgrass will start to lose its dark green color. All bermudagrass will go dormant with air temperatures below 32 degree F. The ice crystals that form within the cells of the leaf tissue with freezing temperatures pierce the cell walls, ultimately killing the leaf tissue. It takes several days after this event for the bermudagrass to turn its characteristic dormant color; this happens gradually over the next several days as the sunlight degrades the chlorophyll in the leaf tissue.
#13 Fairway
Monday, November 21, 2011
Course Update
Calabasas Country Club
Course Update
So far so good; the month of November has given us 3.5’’ of precipitation and the damage has been minimal.
This week the grounds staff will be cleaning debris left from Sunday’s storm as well as:
· Seeding the greens
· Light greens top-dressing
· Preventative fungicide application on the greens
· Fertilizing greens surrounds
· Fertilizing tee-tops
Regards,
Eric Wenzinger
Golf Course Superintendent
Wednesday, November 9, 2011
Anthocyanin
Picture taken of #18 green showing purple colored bentgrass.
I've received a few inquiries as to why the greens are so many different colors of grass, and below is a quick read from an article I found at www.paceturf.org/ which is a trusted authority on turfgrass management:
As temperatures cool, some bentgrass plants produce the red pigment anthocyanin, a stress-response chemical. This behavior is restricted to only small patches of bentgrass, which are most likely clones that have segregated into small clumps of progeny that are not exactly the same as the parent variety that was originally planted.
As temperatures cool, some bentgrass plants produce the red pigment anthocyanin, a stress-response chemical. This behavior is restricted to only small patches of bentgrass, which are most likely clones that have segregated into small clumps of progeny that are not exactly the same as the parent variety that was originally planted.
Even the latest and best bentgrass varieties will segregate over time to yield patches of turf of diffferent texture, color or growth habit. Since the appearance of these patches is driven by the genetics of the plant, there is unfortunately little that can be done to manage it, other than to wait until environmental conditions favor more acceptable appearance of these clones.
The good news is that while these segregating clones do create a cosmetic disturbance, they rarely have any impact on playability.
Saturday, November 5, 2011
Course Update
Calabasas Country Club
Maintenance Department
There has been a lot of positive feedback about the course since the Calabash, and congratulations to Rich Colabella on his victory. Some questions have arisen about the advantages and disadvantages in bringing up the course's playability.
It definitely is a give and take situation, which I separate it into three categories: health, aesthetics, and playability.
Members see that when we aerate or perform other necessary activities to ensure the course's health, the playability of the course goes down. Conversely, when we double cut and double roll the greens for three days straight (as we did for the Calabash) in order to enhance playability, the health of the greens decline.
The aesthetic value is affected by both conditions in different ways. Maintenance projects disrupt the short-term aesthetic value, but are done to ensure health and thus long term aesthetics and playability are gained.
On the other hand, constant sweeping and mowing makes the course look great for a short period, but in time the mowers will wear the grass down to nothing, which has adverse effects on health and aesthetics.
My main concern is health; it is not possible to keep aesthetics and playability up long term without raising the health. The goal is to raise the health and slowly bring up aesthetics and playability until they are all at a notable and sustainable level.
A few activities planned for November;
· Tree trimming and clearing dead trees
· Needle tine aeration on the greens
· Light top-dress applications on the greens
· Soil, tissue and water test were conducted to ensure proper nutrient and amenities are added to the greens over the next few months.
· Collar and approach verticutting; this removes excessive thatch build-up and reduces scalping.
· Edging cart paths
· Fungicide application to the greens
· Fertilizing the greens
Regards,
Eric Wenzinger
Golf Course Superintendent
Frost
This morning the temperature dropped to 30 degrees.
 | |||
| Soil temperature has been recorded the last few weeks. |
The average soil temperature on the course is currently is 55
and with the frost you can expect the fairways to start shutting down.
As soon as the soil temperature reaches an average of 50 the
bermudagrass leafs will dye and the plant will be dormant.
Monday, October 31, 2011
Update
Calabasas Country Club
Course Update
I hope that everyone had an enjoyable Halloween weekend with friends and family. The following issues will be addressed by the Maintenance Department this week:
The bunkers have successfully been edged; all excess grass was removed last week. However, the over-seeding process left seed in the bunkers, and has been germinating over the last few weeks. A regular inspection will continue until all has been removed.
If anyone has notice there hasn’t been any divot sand on the tees for some time, the program that is in place is the following:
Mondays and Fridays the section foremen fill all divots on the tees. The reasoning for this program is to achieve a uniform coverage of divot mix, and add seed to aid the healing process. Filling your divots/damage on the fairways, approaches, collars and roughs is still expected and appreciated.
Just as a reminder the course will be closed on the first Monday of every month for maintenance. A few hours of uninterrupted maintenance is truly necessary and will greatly benefit the overall productivity of the Maintenance Department.
October marks forty-three years of service for Mr. Gary Williams of the Maintenance Department. Gary was born in San Fernando, CA in 1945. He was in charge of the Calabasas Park Company grounds before the golf course construction began. For the last 35 years he has been our Chemical Technician, spraying the greens and searching for gofers. If you see Gary around the golf course, please take a moment to thank him for his hard work and dedication.
Regards,
Eric Wenzinger
Monday, October 17, 2011
Course Update
Calabasas Country Club
Course Update
Fall is here and the greens aerating and over-seeding process was a success. Moving forward into the fall the crew is working hard to lower the roughs to an acceptable level; the sweeper and blowers are out to keep the clippings to a minimum until this is achieved.
A few other activities planned for this week include:
· Applying starter fertilizer to over-seeded areas
· Edging sprinklers, drains, streams, trees & valve boxes
· Fertilizer, growth regulator and fungicide application to greens
· Cleaning bridges, steps & D/G paths
· Lowering greens height
· Applying a fresh coat of varnish to benches
Regards,
Eric Wenzinger
Golf Course Superintendent
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