Not frozen yet

We have been able to get done bonus projects done this past week with the ground not being frozen. We have added some drainage to bunkers on Devlin that hold water, edged and cleaned up the clubhouse landscape and also opened up the corner of #7 Devlin. Below is a picture of Jeff clearing that corner. We are going to keep that area mowed down this year to speed up play and open up a better view from the left side of the fairway.

#7 Devlin hillside

Tree work

Over the summer months, we are able to observe which trees on the property need to be taken down. We look at safety, health of the tree, health of trees around them, health of the Turfgrass, playability and other factors. We mark trees that are dead while leaves are still around and also mark trees that are safety hazards. We had a big storm this summer that exposed trees that were still alive, but had become dangerous and prone to fall. We look closely for those trees so we don't put ourselves in a situation where we have to affect play with trees that fall across playable areas in the golfing months. Here are some pictures of some trees we have already removed for those factors.

#11 Weiskopf (3 dead trees removed in front of tees)

Rotted out

Up through #2/3 Devlin

More in front of #2 Devlin tee

Winter golf

During the winter, we have put temporary flagsticks out in the fairway on the Devlin course. They are on holes 1-5, 10,12-14,16-18. When the ground is frozen or in a freeze/thaw we will use the temporary flags to protect the regulation greens. Please stay off the greens during this time. Please skip holes 11,15 on the back as there is no where to put a temporary flag. 

On days where we are not frozen over the next few weeks, the Weiskopf course will be open for play and the entire course including the greens will be available. Please check with the pro shop each day to see if we are on temps or if the Weiskopf is open. Today we are on the temporary flags on the Devlin course.  Thank you for your understanding.  

Snow, Equipment maintenance and Tee Markers

Winter work started a little early this year and so did the questions, "What do you do all winter?"  Well, snow plowing is our everyday #1 priority to keep the walks and parking lots clear. Other tasks include cleaning and painting all amenities such as ball washers, trash cans, tee markers, benches, signs and anything else that needs refreshed. Tree worked is performed as well as any drainage work we can accomplish once the ground freezes. All maintenance on equipment takes place and 2 employees tackle that from mid November to mid March. We have six full time employees including myself that are constantly busy in the "off-season". Please stop down at the maintenance area to see all we have going on in the winter. Below are some pictures of today's work.

All walking greensmowers cleaned and ready to be serviced and reels ground and sharpened

Tommy Wetmore cleaning reels

Kenny changing gear oil in one of the sprayers and winterizing

Mike Baglia paiting the black body on 1 of the 360 tee markers that need painted

The difference of a fresh coat of paint on the bodies(was done last winter as well).  After all the black bodies are done, the colors are painted on and are ready to go in the spring.

DryJect demo on #5 Weiskopf

We did a demo of a different kind of aeration last Thursday on #5 Weiskopf. The machine uses water pressure to create channels in the greens to then fill with sand. This may be an option in the future at Quail Hollow.

The Green sand shows how deep and how well the sand gets in compared to regular aeration

You can see the new white roots from the aeration hole from 3 weeks ago

Our recent aeration has been great for creating channels for air and water to get into the soil

#17 Devlin fairway

You will see #17 Devlin fairway with a roped off area for the next few days. We had a 6" mainline blowout occur sometime Thursday night or Friday morning. It looks like it was an old fix that was done in the past. We have valved down the Devlin irrigation and will fix the break sometime next week as the weather permits.

not good

after water was shut off

Weiskopf aeration

Today we finished up our fall aeration on the Weiskopf course. We aerated the greens with 3/8" cores. On Devlin we used 5/8" so these are significantly smaller and should heal faster. We pulled cores on the tees and approaches and spiked all the fairways. The course will be open tomorrow depending on the forecasted rain.

Jeff Austin aerating the cart barn putting green today

Up close view of green before the sand