View from 7 green looking north

Thankfully, the weather forecast is looking pretty good for the next couple of weeks. I have a feeling there are many folks that have been waiting for some better weather to get out and play some golf. Looks like the wait is over. Come on out and enjoy a round.

Toro Workman in the shop for service and repair

This week, the greens have been mowed twice and rolled once. The grass growth has really slowed down, which is typical for this time of year with the short days and cooler temperatures. The bunkers were raked twice (except for those that are below the water table). We made some more progress on the cart path edging again this week. Traffic stakes were moved in order to vary traffic, which helps to minimize turf damage caused by maintenance equipment and golf carts. The power issue at the fuel island was resolved this week. We had been using a temporary solution in order to fuel equipment. A broken wire ended up being the cause of the problem. Peterson has the Toro Workman in the shop for servicing and repairs. Some of the items being addressed include: shift and brake cable replacement, corrosion removal, corrosion prevention, chassis cleaning, and brake system flush.

Buck on hole 13

This week on the course: the greens were mowed, cart path edging was continued, a few dangerous trees were removed, needles were blown off greens, branches and other tree debris were cleaned up, Ropes to control traffic were put up on holes 7 and 12. In the shop, Peterson has been working on replacing bearings and seals on the rough mower.

Steven cleaning up tree debris on hole 3

Tuesday, the annual Sandpines Christmas Party was held at Holiday Bowl. Its always fun to watch lousy bowlers (like me) and great bowlers (like Don Sloto) show their stuff. We enjoyed great company and food, which are the ingredients for a great party. Thanks Michael and Nancy for putting on a great party again this year.

Andrew rolls a beauty

Jerry mowing 8 green

If you were golfing at Sandpines on November 6th or 7th, you may have noticed a film crew out on the course. They were shooting video footage for some brand new Nike rain gear that has not been released yet. Most of the filming took place on the 7th hole. I was able to get some pictures of the filming process, but was asked by the producer not to post them until now. It is unclear whether or not the footage will be used in an actual television commercial. The main purpose of the shoot was to provide training materials for the Nike sales team to communicate the advantages of their new product. As I understand it, the product will hit the market sometime next year. If you see a commercial for Nike rain gear over the next year or so, take a close look and may just notice that it was filmed at Sandpines. There is more involved in the filming process than I would have imagined. It takes more people and time than I would have guessed. The pictures below give you an idea of what the filming process looked like.

Friday night, my wife and I hosted the annual Sandpines agronomy staff Christmas party. We look forward to the party every year. It gives me a chance to thank the agronomy staff for all their hard work throughout the year. It has become a tradition that I put together a slide show of pictures I have taken throughout the year and play them on a loop on our television. I think the guys really enjoy it. It also gives us a chance to show our spouses what we encounter out on the golf course. We also enjoy a potluck style meal with good food and drinks. The white elephant gift exchange always provides a lot of laughs, which we can usually thank Steven for. Below are a couple pictures from the party.

Three weeks ago I was contacted by Cameron Healey, the publisher for Golf Today Northwest. He asked if I would be interested in writing an article for the December edition of the digital publication. Cameron thought his readers might enjoy an article from a different perspective. I thought it would be a great opportunity to answer one of the most common questions I receive from golfers this time of year. Click on the link that follows to see what I came up with. What Do Golf Course Maintenance Staff do in the Off Season?. I used some screen shots to give you an idea what the article looks like below, but I encourage you to use the link above to check out Golf Today Northwest for yourself. The article I wrote can be found on page 44 and is continued on page 53.