A beautiful Sandpines rhododendron

We have had three days with temperatures around 80 degrees, and two days with temperatures over 90 degrees since my last post. For those that may not know, that is not normal for the Oregon Coast. Sandpines is more accustomed to seeing "warm" temperatures in the low to mid 70's. We also had a few spring-like days with showers and sun mixed. Overall, the weather has been nice for golf. It is a great time to get out and enjoy a round at Sandpines. I have received several compliments on the condition of the greens, they are rolling nicely.

Dylan's (my son) tee shot on hole 8

I was able to get out and play 9 holes with my son on Friday. The highlight of the round was the tee shot he hit on hole 8 (pictured above). He hit driver from the tee (the hole was playing about 170 yards) and he knocked it about 16 inches from the hole.

John aerating, Steven blowing, and Jerry shoveling during greens aeration

The greens aeration went very smoothly. We used small tines (1/4 inch), and the holes healed up quickly. The greens were aerated and cleaned up, rolled, top dressed, and brushed once. At this point, you can't even tell they were aerated.

Jerry aerating and Thaddeus harvesting hole 6 approach

Approaches were aerated using larger tines (5/8 inch). They are healing up nicely, but they will take longer than the greens to fully recover.

Syringing the green on hole 4

The turf at Sandpines is not used to 90 degree temperatures. On the afternoon of April 30th, the temperature hit 91. In order to cool the greens down, we turned on the greens sprinkler heads for 3 minutes (about 1 turn). This process is called syringing. We don't syringe greens very often (0-5 times per year). The purpose for the syringing is to cool the turf, it really isn't so much about the water. In fact, it is important not to over water when the temperatures are high. High temperatures and wet turf can lead to Pythium diseases, which are far worse than having dry spots. We normally hand water dry spots on greens with a hose instead of using sprinklers, but syringing allows us to cool all the greens in a short amount of time when the temperatures are hot.

Thaddeus mowing the new tee on hole 8

The new tee on hole 8 is growing in pretty well. It has been mowed a couple of times, which should help encourage lateral growth. It was recently spot seeded to help the thin areas fill in. It isn't quite ready for play yet, but we are getting closer.