Fairway Repair Update

Course conditions continue to improve following the warm temperatures and rain which we have received over the last two weeks. The recent warm tempuratures and rainfall have allowed us to begin to see the product of the many long hours the maintenance staff has logged while repairing areas damaged over the harsh winter. To date, we have seen many damaged areas respond well to the vertical mowing, fertilization, and seeding completed by the golf course maintenance staff. Areas which looked bleak only weeks ago have begun to show signs of improvement. The most severely damaged areas, those located under the covers, especially display promising signs of recovery. As you can see in the picture, the covers are serving their purpose by retaining adequate heat and moisture to foster seed germination.Areas of damaged turf without covers have seen improvement through lateral turf growth and the recovery of existing turf plants, but we have yet to see sufficient germination of the newly sewn seed. Your patience is appreciated while playing a course which contains significant portions of fairways under cover. These covers will allow us to return the course to top shape in the shortest amount of time. Once the turf has sufficiently matured and the night time temperatures are consistently over freezing, the covers will be removed.

To date the maintenance staff has focused its attention on repairing the fairways on the Red and the White nines. The overwhelming majority of initial repair work has been completed on these nines at this time. As time progresses and conditions improve, the maintenance staff will continue to revisit damaged areas for fine tuning.

In addition to our normal early-season maintenance on the golf course, the maintenance staff continues to repair the winter damage on the fairways of the Blue nine. Because these fairways are flatter, have poorer drainage, and are the lowest-lying, they have received the greatest amount of damage. This is especially true on the fairways on the 4th, 6th, and seventh holes. Significant areas of these fairways will require vertical mowing, seeding, a fertilizing, topdressing, and covering. The extent of repair is illustrated in the picture of 4 Blue. The foreground of the picture depicts areas which have been verti-cut, seeded, fertilized, and topdressed, while the background depicts the installation of the covers. Through some long days of hard work by the maintenance staff, the Blue nine will be completed by the end of the week. Our goal is to get the repair work done so that the Blue nine will be ready to play as soon as possible.

Mounds East Of 7 Red

As play resumes this Spring, you will notice the new and subtle mounding to the East of 7 Red fairway. The mounds, created last fall, were constructed with the excess fill generated while installing the cart path from 3 White green to 4 White tee, the drainage spoils on the White fairways, and aerification cores from our fall green and tee aerifaction. The dry conditions in early Spring have allowed the golf course maintenance staff to grade, seed, and mulch the mounds. The mounds were seeded with a mix of native grasses and will blend into the existing naturalized areas on the course when they fill in. Once mature, these mounds will provide a natural separation from the tee box on 2 Red and the fairway on 7 Red. As the dogwoods, which currently separate the two holes, reach the end of their useful lifespan and are removed, we will be prepared for a seamless transition.

Growth Regulators

Growth regulators are frequently applied to NSCC's turf throughout the growing season. As their name implies, these compounds are designed to slow the growth rate of the turf. In addition to reducing inputs such as labor and fuel, which are required in mowing, growth regulators also are a major component in our overall turf management program. On putting greens, growth regulators help to keep the grass "under control" providing for smoother ball roll and consistent green speeds. On fairways and tees, growth regulators promote the lateral growth of turf which promotes quicker recovery from damage such as divots. One of the most important assets growth regulators afford golf course managers is their ability to reduce the amount of seedheads which grasses, especially annual bluegrass (Poa annua), produce in the spring. Not only are the white seedheads unsightly, they also provide a very bumpy and inconsistent putting surface. By applying two different growth regulators at the same time, a synergistic affect is realized which can successfully suppress seedhead development. The lack of seedhead development promotes a true putting surface, as well as a healthy turf plant. Seedhead production requires a tremendous amount of energy by the turf plant which is already susceptible to many biotic and abiotic stresses. By suppressing seedhead development, we can lessen the workload of the plant. This energy savings translates into a healthier plant. The timing of this application is critical. We base our application timing on a computer generated model from Michigan State University together with our own site specific knowledge. Our first growth regulator application was made on Monday. We will follow with another application in three weeks to supplement the initial application.

Why Do You Use Covers?

Turf covers are one of the key elements the NSCC golf course maintenance staff is utilizing to remediate the winter damage which can be found throughout the golf course. While the temporary covers are certainly neither aesthetically pleasing nor conducive to play, they are a great tool when combatting cool spring weather. In the Spring, especially at NSCC with its close proximity to Lake Michigan, cool temperatures are prevalent and can severely hinder turfgrass establishment. Most cool season turf grasses germinate when soil temperatures are a minimum of 55 degrees for 7 to 10 days. By using the turf covers, we are able to maintain warmer soil temperatures by trapping the heat underneath the covers. In addition to insulating the turf, the covers also aid in retaining soil moisture which is also required for turfgrass establishment. The covers provide an excellent microenvironmet for seed germination and seedling growth. The use of the covers provides an average 90-95% seed germination as apposed to 60-65% when left uncovered. Once the juvenile plants have matured and the frosty nights have ended, the covers will be removed. Please avoid walking on any covered areas. Walking on these areas with golf shoes can cause the covers to tear. Ball retrievers will be placed at the largest covered areas to allow for golfers to recover their balls. Thank you for your cooperation in this matter.

Winter Damage Repair Report

Thanks to the wonderful weather, the golf course maintenance staff has had a very productive week. In addition to typical spring maintenance associated with preparing the course for opening, such as debris clean-up, bunker repair and raking, and stationing golf course furnishings, the maintenance team was able to complete a number of essential projects which will help to foster turf recovery from the winter damage the course received.

• Greens: While the putting greens survived the winter conditions relatively well, work continued in earnest to prepare the greens for play. The putting greens have been agressively vericut in multiple directions. This vertical mowing will help to initiate new growth which will serve to both aid in recovery from the modest amount of winter damage they received, as well as to increase the rate in which last fall's aerification holes will fill in. Additionally, the greens were treated with a foliar fertilizer application and wetting agent. the combination of these products will assist the greens in retaining moisture and stimulate additional growth helping to foster an evironment conducive for recovery. Two greens , 2W and 9W, received additional work. Portions of both greens exhibited very little ability to recover without seeding. The weak portions of both these greens were seeded, sand topdressed, fertilized and covered. Once the seed germinates and the turf has adequately established to sustain the cold night temperatures, the covers will be removed.

• Fairways: As mentioned in a previous blog entry and evident to anyone who was able to play the golf course over the last week, NSCC's fairways suffered extensive winter damage. The damage in fairways is the worst that I have seen in my tenure at NSSCC. The favorable weather of last week has allowed the NSCC maintenance staff to make great strides toward repairing the damage. On Monday, all fairways were fertilized in order to stimulate new growth. All damaged areas on the Red and White Nines have been agressively verticut with a tractor-mounted machince. The benefits of this practice are twofold. By creating slits in the soil, the allows for adequate seed/soil contact which is essential for establishment. Secondly the organic matter which cast to the surface aids in maintaining adequate soil moisture and warmth. While temporarily disruptive to play, this perceived mess will aid in turfgrass recovery. Following the vertical mowing, all damaged areas have been seeded by hand. Once seeded, the areas have been lightly topdressed with a custom sand/soil mix and treated with an additional starter fertlizer. Lastly, the most severely damaged areas, as well as the areas located in landing areas and around greens have been covered. Last week's wonderful weather has helped us in two ways. First, the warm and dry conditions have allowed the golf course staff to venture on the course with heavy equipment in order to complete the work. Secondly, the warm, sunny days have warmed the soil enough that we may see some seed germination soon. The quicker the seed germinates, the quicker the turf will establish, which will allow us to remove the covers and return the affected areas to play.


• AN IMPORTANT NOTE ABOUT FAIRWAY FIRMNESS Since we are in the process of establishing turfgrass throughout the golf course, we will be required to water more frequently than normal in Spring. Without adequate moisture, we will be unable to successfully establish the turf. Also, once the seed germinates, the juvenile plants will require adequate moisture in order to mature. Due to the turfgrass establishment process, expect the fairways to play softer than normal. Thank you for your patience in this matter.

Course Opening Schedule

Below are listed the opening dates for golf holes and practice areas:

• Red Nine--April 1


• North Practice Tee--April 3


• White Nine--April 8


• Short Game Area--April 10


• South Practice Tee (Grass Surface)--May 1


• Practice Green--TBD


• Blue Nine--TBD

NOTE: The opening date of both the Practice Green and the Blue Nine are dependent upon course conditions and turf development. The practice green receives extremely heavy traffic throughout the golfing season. Prior to opening, the putting surface must adequately recover from any lingering winter damage and be able to sustain the heavy amount of foot traffic it receives. As previously mentioned, the Blue Nine fairways sustained the greatest amount of winter damage. Large portions of many fairways must be seeded and established prior to opening.

Golf Course Condition and Opening

The snow has melted and the golf season is soon approaching. At this time of the year I am frequently asked two questions: "How's the course?" and "When will we open?". As one would expect these two questions are linked together as the decision of opening the course is dependent upon the condition of the turf and soil. I will give a brief answer to the questions below.

How's the course?

• Greens--Overall the greens survived the winter well, exhibiting no signs of fungal activity and minimal winter damage. Snow was removed from the greens which contained extensive ice cover (8W,9W,6B,7B,8B,9B,PG) on March 3 and 4. A few areas on these greens have exhibit signs of injury, but not to the extent that we have witnessed in the past. We will continue with our usual spring cultural practices, such as aggressive vertical mowing, and supplement with additional fertilizer in order to foster growth and recovery.
• Tees--The tees are in outstanding condition following winter. I have yet to see a tee that exhibits any sign of winter damage or fungal activity.
• Fairways--As is usually the case, the fairways at NSCC are most susceptible to winter damage. Because NSCC's topography is relatively flat, the potential exists that any snow melt or rain can accumulate and refreeze on low-lying fairway areas. This winter proved to be no exception. During a warm stretch in mid-January, we received .75" of rain which melted and additional 8" of snow cover. The unfrozen, standing water conditions lasted for two days before lower temperatures created sheets of ice. Over this time the water penetrated the crowns, or growing points, of the turfgrass plants. The rapid freezing damaged plant cells in the crowns. The ice cover that followed put additional stress on the damaged turfgrass plants. The amount of damage varies throughout the golf course, with the Blue nine sustaining the greatest amount of damage. The NSCC golf course maintenance staff will be repairing these areas as soon as the course dries sufficiently to allow for equipment access. Damaged areas will be seeded, fertilized, and covered to facilitate recovery. Be sure to visit to blog in the near future for an update on the repair work.

When will the golf course open?

In order to open frost must leave the ground, the soil in fairways, tees, and green must dry enough to support foot traffic without causing damage, and the greens must be growing sufficiently to survive the wear which it receives from play. Opening prematurely, can negatively impact course conditions for the remainder of the season. Due to NSCC's close proximity to Lake Michigan, the above mentioned criteria for opening will often be met at a later date than our inland neighbors. Historically, NSCC has opened around April 1.

What is the opening schedule?

• The Red nine will open first.
• The White nine will open second. Originally, the White nine was scheduled to open on May 1 in order to give the golf course maintenance staff the ability to fine tune last fall's reconstruction work. Fairway conditions on the Blue nine will force us to open the White nine second. All course work, including stump hole filling and seeding will be completed as soon as possible.
• The Blue nine will open last. The extensive repair work required on the Blue nine will limit the playability of the fairways. Large areas of delicate seedlings that are protected by insulating covers will not be conducive for play. The opening date for the Blue nine is dependent upon the spring weather and the progressive of the repair work.
• The practice range is currently open. Be sure to check with pro shop to verify this should we receive any rain.