Course Update 12.7.13

I hope that all of you enjoyed the Thanksgiving holiday and are staying warm during this exceptionally cold weather. We had a very busy November, and I will use today's post to give an update on course conditions and on a few of the areas that we have been working on.

Maintenance Facility Work

Our Mechanic, Tom Reisinger (center) and Asst. Supt. Duane Kemp (right) pose for picture on our newly installed Golf Lift. This lift provides a safer and more efficient way to complete equipment repairs. Thank you for providing the funds for this much needed improvement. 

The cold weather definitely limits out ability to work on the course, however there is still plenty to be done, especially around our maintenance facility. Currently we are in the process of cleaning up the accumulation of years of old equipment, flood debris, construction materials, old parts, and more. We have been slowly working on this task throughout the summer, but look forward to accomplishing a great deal more over the winter months. In addition to cleaning up the outside, we have been busy working inside the shop to make it cleaner and more organized.

Pepe, Jaime, and Sean paint lines on the shop floor. The lines will help keep our equipment organized.

Ranulfo and Jacob work on cleaning up our shop yard.

Crewmembers Jacob and Sean, work with 2nd Asst. Randy Stewart to give the pump station a thorough cleaning

Mechanic, Tom Reisinger has been busy organizing his work area. Tom has years of old parts that must be identified, labeled, and placed into new container bins. 

Finally, we have been busy planning for potential major renovations to our maintenance facility. Currently the club is working with Eagle Design Build to develop a Master Plan for our facility. This company has built or renovated over seventy maintenance facilities, and we look forward to working with them to accomplish our goal of creating a safer, cleaner, and more efficient work place. Please check back for more information. 

Course Update

Greens:

• Overall the greens are doing very well. We are striving to keep green speeds as consistent as possible. The extreme fluctuations in weather make this challenge difficult at times. For example, this past week we reached temperatures above 80 degrees on Wednesday afternoon - resulting in a flush of growth on the greens, and ultimately slower putting speeds. However over the next 48 hours temperatures dropped more than 50 degrees resulting in little to no growth. We use several practices to help compensate for the changes in putting speed due to weather including: adjusting mowing height, mowing frequency, rolling, irrigation, fertility, and more. Our ultimate goal is to provide smooth, consistent putting surfaces, without jeopardizing plant health. 
• The sod installed on the putting green has rooted nicely, and we will soon be lowering the height to match that of the rest of the green. 

Tees and Fairways:

• We have been spraying the the tees and fairways with ferrous sulfate (iron) and green dye. This combination of iron and dye helps maintain color and definition over the winter months. We will continue this process throughout December, and are considering trying turf paints in the future. 
• The damage to fairways from skunks has decreased substantially with the cold weather. We will continue to monitor this problem, and have plans to better control this problem in the spring. For more information please send me an email - tmoore@ridgewoodwaco.com

Other Areas:

• Sod and Seed - The zozysia sod and tall fescue seed planted on holes 15, 16, and 17 is doing very well. Please remember to keep carts out of these areas when possible
• Bunkers - we have spent the last two weeks checking all of the greenside bunker sand depths. We moved sand around and added sand to several bunkers. If you ever notice an area in any of the bunkers that needs attention please let me know asap. 
• Water Cooler Stands - Construction will be begin next week on the new water cooler stands. The stands will be built using the same rock used on the clubhouse, and will be a nice improvement to the course.
• Irrigation- We have experienced a number of irrigation leaks over the last few weeks. The changes in temperature and soil moisture cause our clay soils to swell and contract significantly, resulting in pipe breaks.
• Marina- We recently re-routed the water supply line and moved a large live oak tree located at the south end of the marina in conjunction with the parking lot improvements. Currently, we are working on a plan to grass the large slope created as part of this project.