Greenkeepers Blog

 August 2016

We had 76mm of rain for the month of August and had 4 days of rain recorded.

August has been a busy month with our annual green renovations carried out in the early part of the month and despite a minor setback with the weather the greens recovery has been good.

Greens

Despite the rainfall in early August that prevented us from top dressing half of the greens after renovations for an extra week, I have been happy with the overall recovery from the annual maintenance and after 5 weeks I am happy with the condition going into one of the busiest time in our golfing calendar including events such as the Minnamurra bowl, WGI tournament, Men’s club championship, Senior Pro-Am, Ladies open and Junior Masters.

Tees

 Tees are being cut once a week and the growth and recovery has been good for this time of the year.

A spring renovation will occur over the next few weeks.

Fairways

The fairways are currently cut once a week in a 50/50 pattern.

The overall condition of the fairways is excellent with complete grass coverage across the course.

The small areas affected by the winter disease are already showing good signs of recovery due to the warmer weather and increased growth, we are in great condition as we enter the growing season with forecast rain in the coming weeks.

Bunkers

The bunkers are in good condition and are raked on competition days, there is a good consistency across all bunkers on the course.

We have used a hose to remove the built up sand on the 5^th bunker, this will result in the surrounds being GUR for the next couple of weeks, this bunker has certainly changed shape over the past 16 months since the rebuild.

Machinery

We kept the new Jacobsen greens mower off the greens over the past month due to the excess sand on the surface, this sand would quickly blunt the cylinders and blades. We certainly noticed the quality of cut and appearance on the greens when we started using it again in early September.

At the moment we are still in the selection mode for the placement of a new mechanic, hopefully this position will be filled by the end of September.

Trees and Gardens

It has been a very busy month in the gardens with hedging and mulching of all the gardens on the course, this hard work will pay dividends with great weed control as we enter the full growing season, the gardens are going into full bloom and are looking great.

Spraying under the pine trees and fence lines will continue over the next month to help control the weeds.  

Pathways

The bridge on the 10^th easement will be scheduled ASAP.

No other repairs have been necessary.

Thank You Mark Yates

Course Superintendent

Superintendents Report – June 2016

We had 304mm of rain for the month of June.

Once again Kiama Golf Course has proven to be one of the best all weather courses in the Illawarra. We recorded 250mm of rainfall in a 48-hour period in the early days of June, despite this heavy rain we were fully operational within 24 hours of the rain stopping, not only did we receive heavy rain but we also had gale force winds.

My team worked extremely well to remove a lot of debris from the course in a very short time frame to get the course back up to its usual high standard.

Unfortunately, our mechanic Brett Heeley has been offered a machinist job in a high end motor dealership in Sydney, he has accepted the position and will now be working on Porsche, Ferrari and Lamborghini’s etc, a bit of a step up from Toro and Jacobsen mowers, Brett has been a fantastic employee during his time with Kiama golf club and I wish him and his family all the best for the future.

Greens

Our annual greens renovations are coming up in early August, we have them scheduled in for 1.8.2016. The renovations should take 2-3 days to complete with favorable weather.

We have recently taken soil tests from greens 1, 5 and 14, these test results showed a deficiency in Calcium and Magnesium, and a very high reading in unavailable Phosphorus brought about by high accumulated bi-carbonates (Sodium Na), we will start a fertilizer program to slowly rectify these problems, starting with the addition of gypsum during the greens renovations.

We are currently cutting four times a week and using our greens roller to remove the dew on none competition days.

The greens have been consistent throughout the month.

Tees

 Tees are being cut once a fortnight and are in good condition for this time of year.

Fairways

The fairways are currently cut once a fortnight in a 50/50 pattern.

The overall condition of the fairways is excellent with complete grass coverage across the course, however there has been some small areas affected by a fungal disease resulting in some discoloration of the grass and a reduced growth rate, these areas will be continually monitored and action will be taken if the disease persists.

Bunkers

The bunkers are in good condition and are raked on competition days, there is a good consistency across all bunkers on the course.

Machinery

We have selected the Jacobsen 322 Hybrid diesel greensmower as the next part of our machinery replacement program, this mower offers hybrid technology and ease of operation with fuel savings of around $1500/ year on this machine alone.

The new machine will be delivered in mid-July.

We have recently replaced the bottom blades on the fairway mower, this is generally completed during the winter months so that the machine in great cutting condition as we enter the growing season in October.

Trees and Gardens

The removal of several problem trees along the fence line on the 5^th has been rescheduled for late July due to a back log of work for the arborist due to the storms in early June and frequent wet weather in early July, this tree work will result in the closure of the 5^th and 13^th holes while the maintenance is carried out, the removal should take two days.

We have been busy with our own tree maintenance with the removal of seven dead/ problem trees on the course, the removal has taken place on the LHS of the 7^th fairway with four trees removed, RHS of the 12^th fairway (two trees) and one big pine from the practice tee area.

Pathways

General repairs have been made to fix washouts after the storm damage in early June.

We have cleaned out the blocked up pipe on the old foot bridge on the Eastern side of the 10^th dam, this has relieved some of the problems with the flow of urban runoff from Charles avenue.

A new pedestrian bridge will be built in the coming future.

Vandalism

No vandalism or theft has been recorded in the month of May.

Thank You

Mark Yates

Course Superintendent

GreenKeepers Blog - May 2016

We had 39.5mm of rain for the month of May with 30mm falling on the last day of the month. We recorded 6 days of rainfall.

Once again Kiama Golf Course has proven to be one of the best all weather courses in the Illawarra, we recorded 250mm of rainfall in a 48-hour period in the early days of June, despite this heavy rain we were fully operational within 24 hours of the rain stopping, not only did we receive heavy rain but we also had gale force winds.

My team worked extremely well to remove a lot of debris from the course in a very short time frame to get the course back up to a high standard. 

 Greens

 We have again had no signs of any disease or pest activity on the greens during the month of May, we continue to fix a lot of pitch marks on the greens during our hole changing and mowing practices, this is a very time consuming activity for the green staff but quality repairs are important in controlling early incidence of disease through turf injury.

We are currently cutting four times a week and using our greens roller to remove the dew on none competition days.

The chipping green renovation has not gone exactly to plan due to an ongoing irrigation fault throughout the month of May. We had a break in the irrigation pipe near the men’s 12^th tee. This leak was contributing to a consistent loss of pressure at the pump shed resulting in the pumps continually staying on, with this occurring the energy consumption increased and was too expensive to leave running, so isolation valves were used to prevent the pressure loss until the fault could be found.  The problem has now been rectified.

The storm in the early days of June has resulted in the seed being washed away or in clumps on the chipping green, the green will be seeded once again to ensure uniformity, however the re-growth will be slow due to the drop in temperature and the reduced growth activity of the new germinating seed.

It is difficult to place a time frame on the re-opening of the green at his present time.  

 Tees

 Tees are being cut once a week and are in good condition.

The tees have been treated with a selective herbicide to control the winter grass, this will result in some discoloration of the grass but will not affect play.

Fairways

The fairways are currently cut once a week in a cross cut pattern.

The overall condition of the fairways is excellent with complete grass coverage across the course, however there has been some small areas affected by a fungal disease resulting in some discoloration of the grass and a reduced growth rate, these areas will be continually monitored and action will be taken if the disease persists

Bunkers

The bunkers held up well during the storm in early June with only the back right hand bunker on the 18^th requiring additional sand due to the washouts that occurred.

Machinery

We have had a problem with the starter motor on the Toro Workman, this is currently being repaired.

We have been demoing a selection of new greens mowers to continue our ongoing machinery replacement program, the mowers include the Toro 3300, John Deere 2500 and the Jacobsen 322 hybrid. All three mowers are the leading brands in the industry.

We have recently purchased a small mobile “Root trimmer” this machine will be used primarily in the removal of exposed tree roots on fairways, this will aid in the control of problem areas for our machinery.

Trees and Gardens

The removal of several problem trees along the fence line on the 5^th will be scheduled in for late June, this tree work will result in the closure of the 5^th hole while the maintenance is carried out, the removal should take two days.

Pathways

General repairs have been made to fix washouts after the storm damage in early June.

Vandalism

No vandalism or theft has been recorded in the month of May.

Thank You

Mark Yates

Course Superintendent

We had 42.5mm of rain for the month of April and recorded 6 days of rainfall.

The heaviest day of rain was 26mm on the 17.4.2016.

The overall condition of the course is good with weather conditions still favorable for good grass growth.

We have removed the majority of the” bull rushes” from the 10^th dam surrounds, this has definitely improved the aesthetics of this area and should make finding your ball a little bit easier if you hit it in this area.  

 Greens

 As we enter the month of May and the threat of disease to the greens diminishes, we can reflect on a great season of disease management where our programs have performed well, we have basically gone through the peak season of disease with approximately 95%+ success rate.

We have had some incidence of pest activity notably the presence of the insect

“Argentine Stem Weevil” throughout the Spring, Summer and Autumn months, this pest has the potential to cause major damage if uncontrolled, we have suffered some damage during the season however our programs have limited the damage and the turf grass recovery has been good.

 Tees

 Tees are being cut twice a week and are in good condition.

We are still getting plenty of growth and recovery from divots.

We now have sand bins on all par 3 tees to aid in the recovery of player’s divots, we have noticed that the bins are not used as often as we had anticipated.

Fairways

The fairways are currently cut twice a week in a cross cut pattern, this frequency will continue until after the men’s foursome championships in late May.

The overall condition of the fairways is excellent with complete grass coverage across the course, however there has been some small areas affected by a fungal disease resulting in some discoloration of the grass and a reduced growth rate, these areas will be continually monitored and action will be taken if the disease persists

 Bunkers

Throughout the first two weeks of May, the bunkers will be raked at least 4-5 times a week due to the ladies Championships and the veterans golf day.

Bunkers have held up well and have been very consistent throughout the month.

Machinery

The problem with the charging system on the greens mower has been rectified with a replaceable wiring relay.

The wood chipper will be served in preparation for the winter months as we will be removing several problem trees ASAP.

 Trees and Gardens

Helen has recently planted 20+ “New Guinea Impatiens” around the practice putting green, this should provide a bit of color for this area.

We have removed a dead pine tree from the new mound on the 10^th as well as a dead pine from the left hand side of the first green.

Two melaleuca’s have been removed from the beginning of the first fairway and near the seventh green.

Pathways

We have recently rebuilt the walkway bridge on the 8^th with all associated cost paid for by the Kiama Golf Club Veterans with a kind donation of $600.

Five members of the garden party used their expertise to stain the bridge and the log wall in front of the 8^th green.

Thank you for the ongoing contributions of both the Veterans and the garden party.

Vandalism

Two flags sticks have been stolen from the 10^th green during the month of April, these sticks have not been recovered.

Other projects

     -  Western car park retaining wall

-        Tree maintenance.

-        Pathway repairs.

-        3^rd tee pathway.

-        Soil mounding on the 10^th.

-        Chipping green renovations and re seeding.

Thank You

Mark Yates

Course Superintendent

Superintendents Blog – February 2016

We had just 22mm of rain for the month of February and recorded 3 days of rainfall.

The heaviest day of rain was 12mm on the 1.2.2016; so we only had 10mm for the rest of the month.

Overall the course has held up well during this above average temperatures and prolonged dry spell.

Please remember that irrigation is only a substitute to quality rainfall and that there will always be some areas that suffer more during

 Greens

 We have prioritised our watering program to concentrate on the health of the greens. With the consistent high temperatures and the constant threat of dry winds our main aim was to keep the greens healthy.

Unfortunately there is a down side of the healthy greens is that they become a bit slower although the consistency has been good.

We are currently disease free and our pest control program is running perfectly.

Greens have been cut daily including Sundays during the pennant season.

 Tees

 Tees are being cut twice a week and are in good condition.

We were unable to schedule in the second application of the selective herbicide to control the crab grass in some tee and tee walk off areas, this is mainly due to the overall health of the turf grass due to the lack of rainfall, I believe if we applied the chemical there was a possibility of and adverse effect on the desired turf grass whilst controlling the weed.

Fairways

We have gone from very dry fairways in December 2015 to lush green healthy fairways in January due to the consistent rainfall and back to dry again in February, but considering the consistent dry hot weather the fairways have held up very well.

The localized dry areas on fairways are due to under performing sprinklers and low pressure in some areas. We continue to monitor these areas on a daily basis and often selectively water these areas in the early mornings.

We are currently cutting twice a week.

 Bunkers

Throughout February bunkers have been raked at least 4-5 times a week due to the increase in social days and we have raked bunkers for every pennant match on Sundays.

Bunkers have held up well and have been very consistent throughout the month.

Despite the lack of rain it has been good to not have to have major repair work due to extreme thunderstorm damage as was the case last year.

Machinery

We are have some problems with the alternator charging system on our number 1 greens mower, this problem will be resolved ASAP.

Trees and Gardens

Helen has been very busy keeping up with the gardens over the past month with hedging being a large part of her schedule.

Hand watering has been extremely important once again due to the hot dry weather.

Pathways

No major repairs have been required

Vandalism

No theft or vandalism has been recorded for the month of February, although there has been some bird damage on the 9^th, 10^th and 18^th greens.

Other projects

     -  Western car park retaining wall

-        Tree maintenance.

-        Pathway repairs.

-        3^rd tee pathway.

-        Soil mounding on the 10^th.

-        Chipping green renovations and re seeding.

Thank You Mark Yates

Course Superintendent

Superintendents Blog – January 2016

We had 148.5mm of rain for the month of January and recorded 13 days of rainfall.

The heaviest day of rain was 36mm on the 15.1.2016; the overall rainfall was consistent throughout the month

On Friday 29.1.2016 the course suffered a lightning strike on the telegraph pole behind the 18^th green, this has resulted in fuse and appliance damage to the green shed and some problems with the running of the automatic irrigation system, this has led to some areas not being irrigated correctly and some heat stress has been evident.

 Greens

 Throughout January the greens have been in great shape considering the time of year and the general problems associated with this season, so far we are currently disease and pest free.

Greens are being cut everyday due to the favourable growing conditions.

The only real problem with the greens is the amount of unrepaired or poorly repaired pitch marks.

 Tees

 Tees are being cut twice a week and are in good condition.

A second application of the selective herbicide to control crab grass in the tees is due in mid February.

Fairways

The fairways are in great condition due to the high frequency of rainfall throughout January. We are cutting twice a week and we recently applied the growth regulator “primo” to suppress the growth of the Kikuyu.

Bunkers

All bunkers have been trimmed with the assistance of the garden party and the bunkers are looking and playing great.

Machinery

All machinery is working well at the moment.

Trees and Gardens

We have removed several large branches from two coral trees on the 15^th and 16^th holes.

Two dead pine trees have been removed from the left hand side of the 16^th fairway and the left hand side of the 18^th tee.

 Pathways

No major repairs have been required

 Vandalism

Several flagsticks have been stolen during the school holidays, a couple of the sticks have been recovered near the Minnamurra Bridge. 

This theft has cost around $300 in replacements.

Other projects

     -  Western car park retaining wall

-          Tree maintenance.

-          Pathway repairs.

-          3^rd tee pathway.

-          Soil mounding on the 10^th.

-          Chipping green renovations and re seeding.

Thank You     Mark Yates

Course Superintendent

Superintendents Blog – December 2015

 We had 117mm of rain for the month of December and recorded 5 days of rainfall.

The total rainfall for 2015 was 1475mm although half of this rainfall was received in the 3 months of January, April and August.

We recorded 93 days of rainfall for the year.

The overall condition of the course is great and continues to improve with favourable weather conditions.

During the December holiday period the course was very busy with an influx of social golfers.

 Greens

 The greens are very healthy at the moment and we currently have no pest or disease problems.

The greens are usually a bit slower at this time of year due to the increased irrigation to keep them healthy however all the greens are consistent in their playability.

Whilst the greens are softer at the moment this has resulted in an increase in unrepaired pitch marks and this seems to be the only irregularities on the putting green surface.

  Tees

We have had the weed “crab grass’ germinate in the tees and surrounding walk offs, this is not uncommon for this time of year and each year we are reducing the amount of weeds through our treatment program, a selective herbicide will be applied in mid January to control the weeds, this may result in slight yellowing of the kikuyu and couch grasses.

 Fairways

The fairways suffered from heat stress throughout the later part of November and up until the 22^nd of December when we had a decent period of rainfall.

During the dry spell we had only 1mm of rain during a 31 day period.

Bunkers

On the 17.12.15 the course was hit by 2 severe thunder storms on the same day resulting in 73mm of rain in a very short period of time, although the 31 day drought was broken so were the 33 bunkers on the course, the repair work was carried out over the next 2 days with 4-5 staff each day involved.

The greenside bunkers on the 3^rd and 11^th greens needed significant repairs and these repairs were carried out on a later date due to the hectic work load over the Christmas break.

Machinery

We were without one of our on course utility vehicles for about 4 weeks while we were awaiting a spare part from the US. This was repaired in late December and currently all other machines are working well.

Trees and Gardens

We removed a large coral tree branch from the right hand side of the 8^th fairway.

We will intend to remove several dead pine trees along the 5^th and 13^th fairways in the near future.

Pathways

Minor pathway repairs were required after the storm on the 17.12.15 mainly the 3^rd top tee.

 Vandalism

 We have recorded no vandalism or theft during the month of September. 

Other projects

     -  Western car park retaining wall

-          Tree maintenance.

-          Pathway repairs.

-          3^rd tee pathway.

-          Soil mounding on the 10^th.

Thank You    Mark Yates

Course Superintendent

Superintendents Report – November 2015

We had 56.5mm of rain for the month of November and recorded 9 days of rainfall. Our last recorded rainfall was on the 23rd November. It’s now been 16 days with out any substantial rain. The forecast is for the possibility of a late shower/thunderstorm throughout this week…. Fingers crossed!

The overall condition of the course is still good but showing signs of dryness in some fairway areas. At the moment there are some minor issues re a break down at the Bombo Treatment Works which they hope to have rectified before the weekend. (12-13 Dec) So our current supply of treated water is limited to zero.

We are now into the busy time of the year with the grass starting to grow and with favourable weather condition for weeds, pests and disease. We have a good management strategy in place to eliminate any outbreaks.   

 Greens

 The greens are still playing well with a lot of positive member feed back.  We are continuing our wintergrass program with yet another application of the product “shortstop” and we have increase the rate of the product “primo” to reduce the growth rate with regular fertilization for plant recovery.

We have also now introduced the rolling of greens hopefully twice a week. This should improve green speed and smoothness of ball roll.

Tees

Tees are still being cut once a week but starting to show signs of wear mainly from lack of rainfall. Otherwise we will continue to manage these areas to a good standard.

Fairways

The fairways were being cut twice a week through November but with the lack of recent rainfall we have pushed this back to once a week usually Thursday / Friday ready for weekend play.

The recent application of ‘primo’ has really kicked now so we now have controlled growth. We will continue this scheduled program of application to maintain their high quality.

 Bunkers

We are still trimming  bunkers every 3 weeks.

Most of the larger sands chunks have been removed from the bunkers following the addition of the new sand in mid September.

Bunkers are being raked a minimum of 3 times a week and are playing well. 

Machinery

At this stage all machinery is operating well with no major problems.

Trees and Gardens

We still plan on removing several more problem trees over the coming months. Overall the garden areas are good with the ongoing maintenance of these areas.

Pathways

The overall condition of the pathways is good and no repairs have been required.

Vandalism

 Unfortunately we had our back flow prevention valve stolen off the main water meter near the 12 green. This had to be replaced at an expense.

Other projects

     -  Western car park retaining wall

-        Tree maintenance.

-        Pathway repairs.

-        3^rd tee pathway.

-        Soil mounding on the 10^th.

Thank You

Mark Yates / Course Superintendent  

Stuart Miller /  Assistant Superintendent.