View from the clubhouse putting green on a gorgeous December day

The last few months have flown by at Florence Golf Links.  The agronomy staff has been working hard on a variety of projects.  In September, tees and fairways were aerated in addition to routine golf course maintenance.

Thad harvesting cores on 13 fairway

In October, greens and approaches were aerated.  We had great weather for greens aeration.  The greens healed up from aeration faster than usual with the ideal weather.

Aerating and cleaning up 2 green

Love seeing the bright blue sky during greens aeration!  It was a short sleeve kind of day for sure.

Jerry top dressing 2 green after aeration and cleanup

Also in October, a new green was built on hole 7.  This was by far the biggest project of the year. 

New green on hole 7

Casa Verde Golf with assistance from our staff shaped and installed irrigation for the new green.  All the greens at Florence Golf Links have been constructed using native dune sand.  Typically, golf courses use USGA specs to build greens which includes internal drainage and specific particle sizes in order to ensure proper infiltration and water retention.  Adding a green using the native dune sand is a far easier process.  That said, it is still a ton of work.

Casa Verde scraping sod off the new green complex site

Sod had to be removed from the site of the new green complex prior to shaping.  Some of sod was used in other areas of the golf course.  Most was used to fill in a void where sand in the adjacent dune was blowing onto the golf course.

Rough shaping was performed using a dozer.  Final shaping was performed with a mechanical bunker rake and hand tools.

Casa Verde Golf shaping new green complex on hole 7

The golf course maintenance staff did an amazing job pitching in and helping out as needed on the project in addition to performing all the usual golf course maintenance tasks. 

Jerry in particular put in a huge amount of time and effort into the project.  He was on the project site for about two weeks straight performing a multitude of tasks.  Jerry works extremely hard and is very good at his job.

Jerry installing irrigation 

The green was sodded by our staff with Dominator Creeping Bentgrass.  Dominator is a blend of 007 and Tyee creeping bentgrass cultivars.  All sod for the 7 green project was purchased from Bos Sod.  We sodded the green and 1st portion of surrounds two days prior to greens aeration.  It was definitely a busy week.  The green was sodded on October 11th.

Florence Golf Links staff sodding the green

The weather was absolutely gorgeous the day we sodded the green.  It was all hands on deck working to get the job done.

Florence Golf Links staff sodding the green

With the weather being so nice, we were eager to get the new sod watered as soon as possible.

First irrigation of new green after sodding

The first order of business on the second day of sodding was to edge the bentgrass sod in order to make a smooth transition for the surrounds sod.  The first portion of surrounds was sodded on October 12th.

Bentgrass sod edged in preparation for surround sod

Green surrounds were sodded with a coastal sand based perennial ryegrass and kentucky bluegrass sod mix from Bos Sod.

Florence Golf Links staff installing green surrounds sod

After the sod was laid and watered, a water filled roller was using to smooth the surface.

Irrigation of green and 1st portion of surround sod

Emerald Lawns sodded the remaining green surrounds area over a two day period (October 23rd and 24th).  They laid the sod, and our staff tied in the transition areas to ensure a smooth transition. 

Emerald Lawns installing remaining green surrounds sod

No irrigation was required after the surrounds sod was installed.  The rain was taking care of that for us.

New green complex after sod installation

The first mowing of the new green took place on October 29th.  The first top dressing took place on November 20th.

New green after 1st mowing (nowhere near playing height yet)

We have been mowing the green surrounds as needed.  We have started to drop the height of the low mow portion of the green surrounds slowly.  Eventually the low mow portion will be mowed at approach height.

View from behind 7 new green looking toward the tees

At this point the green has been top dressed 5 times.  We are slowly bringing the mowing height down.  It is currently being mowed at 0.375" which is a little lower than our collar height.  It is progressing well.  We don't have a target date for opening the new green.  Our goal is improve the smoothness with top dressing and slowly lower the cutting height down to greens height.

My daughter Lilly helping take soil samples

Last week, my daughter joined me for some soil sampling.  We took samples from 6 areas.  Four of which were greens, and one from a tee area, and one from a fairway.  In order to get a good sampling of the area being sampled, it is important to sample various locations within that area.  We used a soil probe and took about 15 samples from each green, tee, and fairway being sampled.  It also important to use a uniform sampling depth.  The sampling depth should be determined by root depth.  Our roots are at least four inches long, so we used a four inch sampling depth.  Once sampling was complete, we let the samples dry over the weekend and sent them off to the lab.  We should get the results back soon.  The results will help guide any pH adjustments or nutrient deficiencies that need to be addressed.

Wine barrel planter on hole 7

A couple of months ago, we added some wine barrel planters with flowers on the golf course.  They have really taken off and are looking good.  Next year, we hope to get a little earlier start with our flower planting.  We also have a little better idea of what flowers do well and what flowers don't do as well.  The flowers definitely added to the ambiance.

Wine barrel planter on hole 15

Once upon a time, I posted a driving range hitting technique that helps to maximize the amount of  available hitting space on the driving range tee.  I originally got this technique from David Phipps when he was superintendent at Stone Creek (I believe he got it from Dan Meersman).  Essentially, once you hit a shot, you place the next ball just on the turf at the back of the divot.  Repeat for the next shot.

The following video was made by Dan Meersman from Phily Cricket Club.  In the video Dan does a great job comparing the impact of three different driving range hitting techniques.  Please check it out and implement the preferred technique next time you use the driving range.

View from behind 14 green

The golf course is in great shape and playing well.  I have received numerous compliments on the condition of the golf course recently.  I am lucky to have a great agronomy team.  They have been working hard and it definitely shows.

New steps on #8 left greenside bunker

A couple of weeks ago we had a bit of rain and did not have to irrigate.  We had been waiting for such an opportunity to free up Jerry to complete the new steps on the hole 8 left greenside bunker.  Jerry does great work, and the steps on hole 8 are no exception.  The new steps make getting in and out of this bunker a much easier process.

Equipment upgrade!

Thanks to our new ownership, we were able to acquire the sprayer pictured above.  Our previous sprayer was getting pretty tired and had over 4,000 hours.  It served us well, but it was definitely time for something more reliable.  I have used it a few times and it does a great job.  It should serve us well for years to come.

Irrigation break near 5 approach

The irrigation system has been a challenge at times so far this irrigation season.  Jerry has been busy with the irrigation system to say the least.  This picture was taken about 2 hours after he was scheduled to leave for the day.  He has shown outstanding dedication to the golf course during his long tenure here.

New flags

The name of the golf course has changed from Sandpines Golf Links to Florence Golf Links.  There is quite a bit that goes on behind the scenes for a name change.  We have new flags, course signage, score cards, merchandise, website, email addresses, blog, and uniforms.  Those are just the things that come to mind, I am sure I forgot a few.  Florence Golf Links has 2 logos (the one on the flag above, and the one on the sign below). 

The clubhouse is also in the process of being painted.  I will add some pictures upon completion.

New hole signs

Come play a round of golf and see for yourself what is going at Florence Golf Links.  Hope to see you soon.

Hole 9 basking in the sun

One of our latest improvements was adding steps to the greenside bunker on hole 1. We have had some good feedback so far regarding the new steps. Hopefully, you will see them, but won't have to use them during your next round. 

New steps in hole 1 greenside bunker

Jerry designed and installed them. He did a great job. It should be a bit easier to get in and out of the bunker now.

Jerry installing the steps

Completed steps

In other news, we got a couple new pieces of equipment! The first is a Branson 4720H tractor. We haven't had it long, but it has been great so far. It has definitely helped our productivity to use a reliable tractor for loading sand.

The second piece of equipment is Toro Workman MDX utility vehicle. We use utility vehicles for a variety of tasks throughout the golf course. With more staff for the golf season, it is really important to have enough vehicles for them to be productive.  We did not have enough vehicles at times until this new one arrived.  It has been a great addition.

Our new tractor!

Our new utility vehicle!

Number 3 green soaking up the sun

The agronomy staff has been busy since my last post.  Sandpines had a nice stretch of warm sunny weather in early February.  At that time, we were able to mow fairways and most of the rough.  Typically this time of year, mowing is limited to greens, collars, tees, and approaches.  These mowing decisions are based on growth, conditions, and weather.  We were also able to make some foliar fertilizer applications on greens, tees, approaches, and fairways.

Chuck mowing number 12 fairway

Tee markers have recently been refurbished and are looking good.  It always makes a big difference when the freshly painted tee markers are put back out on the course.

The process of reel rebuilding and grinding is in progress.  One set of triplex reels have been completed.  The first set of fairway reels is currently in progress.

Freshly refurbished tee markers

Most recently, we started a bunker project that is transforming our bunker edges from the rough and natural look to more of a traditional smooth and groomed look.  The process is pretty time consuming and labor intensive.  So far it has taken 149 man hours to complete 15 bunkers.

Hole 1 green side bunker before the project

Hole 1 green side bunker after the project

First, the bunker edges are painted.  Next, the edges are cut and hauled away.  Then, sand is added as necessary.  Finally, sand is redistributed and raked.

Cutting the painted bunker edge

Removing the sod edge

Adding sand

Sand redistribution

We recently hired Joe Watson as our new mechanic.  Joe is a great guy and is fitting in well with the rest of the staff.  We are excited to have him.  If you happen to see him around, be sure and say hello.

Our new mechanic, Joe Watson

5th hole on a gorgeous December day

December 2017 was a gorgeous month at Sandpines.  We had quite a bit of play, which was a nice change from December 2016. Consequently, the agronomy staff spent the majority of the time preparing the golf course for daily play.  Typically, we have a few more slow days in December and there is more time for projects.  It was a welcomed change to say the least.

Jerry hand watering the clubhouse putting green

Believe it or not, we actually had to hand water greens in Decemeber.  This was a first ever at Sandpines.  There were enough dry spots on greens with no rain in the forecast that we felt it best to play it safe and give them a little water.  Sandpines received less than 5 inches of rain for the month of December.  You can check out Sandpines monthly rainfall by clicking on the precipitation history page if you are into that sort of thing.

Dylan, Lilly, and I playing short sleeve golf on Black Friday

The picture above is from late November.  Black Friday to be exact.  It's not to often you can play golf in short sleeves the day after Thanksgiving in Florence.  I would love to make it an annual tradition.  Hopefully the weather will cooperate next year.

Jerry repairing an irrigation leak on hole 6

January's weather hasn't been quite as good, although there have been some beautiful days.  However, we were able to get a few of the projects done that we started in December. 

Cart path edging was recently completed.  Chuck and Thaddeus did the lions share of the edging, with Aaron and Mark contributing as well.  The finished product looks really nice. 

Quite a bit of brush and salal mowing was completed as well.  The dry days allowed us to get more mowing done than usual.  The mower we use doesn't work very well in wet conditions, needless to say we didn't get much brush and salal mowed last year.

We have been dealing with a few irrigation challenges.  A few leaks and broken valves have been repaired.  Some weren't very fun to deal with.  As always, Jerry did a nice job heading up those projects and getting them completed.

We also put out different rakes that were acquired from Oswego Lake Country Club.  The rakes are used, but they provide a much better playing surface than our old rakes. 

7 green on a cool January day

We are still in the process of looking for a mechanic.  Dennis has been doing a nice job keeping us up and running in the interim.  Thaddeus and Chuck have also helped out in the shop from time to time.