View from the clubhouse putting green

Our main focus this week was fairway aeration. We were able to get 6 fairways (1, 2, 4, 6, 13, and 15) completed this week, which is a pretty good start. The fairway aeration will continue next week, and should be completed sometime during the week of September 24th is all goes well.

Jerry aerating 13 fairway

We are using the majority of the cores from fairway aeration to improve outer lying areas on the golf course. Many of the cores are being stockpiled on the edges of holes, and will be spread out in the near future. If you happen to hit your ball in an area where there are cores, play it as ground under repair.

Stockpiled aeration cores will be spread in the near future

View from 16 approach

This week, we have been getting the golf course ready for the Sandpines Club Championship, which is being held this weekend. The greens were groomed in multiple directions, top dressed, and brushed.  The greens and approaches were also fertilized. The greens are rolling great for the tournament. To those playing, have fun and good luck!

Fairway aeration begins next week

Peterson has been working hard getting the aeration equipment ready for fairway aeration. The core harvesters were in need of quite a bit of work. Here is the list of work Peterson has performed so far on the core harvesters: hydraulic motors rebuilt, new chains, new sprockets, new rail boards fabricated, wear strips, all new bearings, re-machined rollers (Florence Welding), rebuilt shoes, fabricated adjuster brackets, and A-frames reinforced. He has put in a lot of  long hours to get it all accomplished, and it was all done in addition to the normal maintenance and repairs required to keep all the other equipment operational. Thanks Peterson, I really appreciate all the hard work.

11 green basking in the sun

The greens, tees, and fairways were fertilized this week. The greens were also spiked and rolled. Other tasks completed this week included: mowing all turf areas, changing hole locations, bunker preparation, bunker edge trimming, tee divot filling, equipment servicing and repair, brush clearing, hand aeration of wet spots, hand watering, and golf cart repairs.

I am continuing to receive numerous compliments on the condition of the golf course. Come play a round and check it out for yourself. There is a great labor day special going on right now. If you don't have a tee time yet, get one quick, they are going fast. I copied the following from the Sandpines Facebook page:

DONT MISS OUT ON OUR LABOR DAY SPECIAL!
MONDAY SEPTEMBER 3RD. 
PLAY 18 OR 36 HOLES FOR ONLY $49.00 WITH CART INCLUDED. YES THATS 36 HOLES FOR $49.00!!!! (OREGON and WASHINGTON RESIDENTS ONLY)
CALL 541-997-1940 FOR YOUR TEE TIME OR ONLINE AT SANDPINES.COM OR GOLFNOW.COM

Jerry mowing with the rotary cutter

Jerry has been making quick work of the brush and tall grass in the areas outside the primary rough. Last year was our first year using the rotary cutter on these areas, and some of the areas were really overgrown. With only a years worth of growth, the amount of brush to mow down this year is substantially less than last year.

Clinton mowing 8 green

On Monday, the greens were groomed and verticut. Tuesday, the greens were groomed and top dressed. These processes are performed to firm and smooth the putting surface. Another benefit is the removal of organic matter, which improves infiltration and reduces the incidence of disease outbreaks.

Jim mowing between holes 3 & 4

This week, we started mowing down the brush adjacent to the primary rough. It will be an ongoing process. It usually takes a few months to get to all the areas mowed down due to the nature of the work. Our focus remains "down the middle" from tee to green. Outer lying areas are way down the priority list.

7 green with dune in the background

It has been another great week for golf at Sandpines. The high temperatures in Florence have been in the low to mid 70's, which is perfect for golf. We are continuing to receive numerous compliments about the condition of the golf course. If you are ready to escape the heat, it is a great time to come out and play a round at Sandpines.

12 green basking in the sun

This week, the agronomy staff primarily focused on routine golf course maintenance tasks, such as setting up the golf course (changing hole locations and moving tee markers), bunker maintenance (raking and redistributing sand), mowing (all turf areas were mowed at the typical frequency for peak season based on growth), hand watering localized dry spots, edging sprinkler heads and tee yardage markers, and filling tee divots. The greens were also spiked and rolled.

View from behind 5 green

Peterson got the steam cleaner up and running this week, which had been inoperable for quite some time. He has also been working diligently to get the core harvesters ready for fairway aeration, which will begin next month. This is in addition to the preparations and adjustments that are made to keep daily maintenance tasks running smoothly. He has been a real breath of fresh air in the maintenance shop. Peterson keeps the mechanic shop neat and tidy, and repairs are completed properly, and in a timely fashion.

Buck hanging out around the pump station

This week the greens, approaches, fairways, and tees were fertilized. The greens were top dressed and brushed. The sprinkler heads in the fairways were edged. The grass around the bunkers was trimmed. Additionally, all turf areas were mowed at there normal frequency for the time of year.

Buck near 18 tees with an egret flying over head

You may have to zoom in on the picture above to see the subject matter I was attempting to capture. The shot is from the tee area on hole 16. If you look just above the flag stick on 17 green, you can see the same buck from the picture at the top of this post. To the right of the buck is an egret (white heron).

The aeration holes in the greens have healed beautifully. Except for the ones that cutworms have made their homes. The video above shows a cutworm out of its hole munching on some grass blades on hole 16. Once the cutworm in the video noticed I was there it went back into its hole pretty quickly. It is not a huge problem, but there are a few cutworms on each green. We are taking care of this problem, and holes should be healing up soon.

Quad tine aeration on the chipping green

This week the greens were aerated with hollow core quad tines. These are the same tines that were used in the spring. This type of greens aeration has a minimal impact on play due to the small holes that are created. The smaller holes should be completely healed within 7 days from the time the aeration was performed. Check out the video below to see how the greens aeration was accomplished. The greens are rolling pretty well (see the clip at the end of the video). In fact, all the feedback I have received about the condition of the greens this week has been positive.

The high temperature in the valley is supposed to be around 100 degrees tomorrow. It's only supposed to reach the mid 70's in Florence, so it is a great time to beat the heat and enjoy a round of golf at Sandpines. We look forward to seeing you.

On Thursday, there were 3 bucks roaming around the course. I thought you might enjoy checking them out, so I captured the short video below.