Culvert Collapse

You may have noticed the gaping hole in the cart path on hole 1 for the first half of the season. At some point the 24" x 20' plastic culvert collapsed allowing the soil to fall in and wash down stream. Luckily the sink-hole was to the one side so golfers and carts could still gain access to the first fairway.

Oddly enough a 3" irrigation line crossed right over collapsed part of the culvert so our opinion is the irrigation crew damaged the pipe during installation and covered up the incident. That lasted 17 years until the area collapsed. Luckily it was over winter and not while a customer or employee was crossing the creek.

One challenge to the job was to stop the water flow so we could install the new culvert. We did this by building a dam upstream and pump downstream to provide as dry as workplace as possible.

It took three of us a full day to remove the old culvert, prep the area and install the new culvert. We have no doubt the new culvert will last 50 years of more without issue.

As you play the hole you may notice the creek is holding water. We did change the grade to get the new culvert under the irrigation pipe and after things firm up we will need to work downstream to improve water flow and clean out debris.

In case you have not noticed there is always work to do on the golf course!

Almost Showroom New

Each off-season we pick one special project that might not need to be done but could be done to make something work better or look better. This year we choose to paint a classic golf course tractor, our 1972 Jacobsen G-10.

The G-10 has a three point lift, belt drive PTO and 3 speeds. This tractor will never pull a plow but is a great unit for pulling trailers or a gang reel mower through the rough. Comfortable to drive the G-10's gasoline engine is quite for a 50HP power unit.

The decals were no longer available from the manufacture but we had some custom made by the Graphic Center in Fond du Lac at a great price.

The finished unit looks great thanks to James hard work and efforts to bring back that showroom shine.

Don't throw that tank away!

We have purchased a new sprayer for the golf course.  The old one was from 1997 and served us well with only a few parts and a new pump every few years.  Now what to do with the old one?  Some of the parts we took off to save for when we need them and others were taken to the scrapyard for a few bucks in the brat fund.

The 200 gallon tank was plastic so it could not be scrapped for metal but it was in good condition.  We decided to make it into the water tank for trees and flowers.  After we removed most of the parts we mounted it to a homemade skid so it would sit in the back of a cushman truckster without taking the box off.  Then a simple length of 1 1/4" hose with a valve at the end and off we went.

It worked great for planting last weeks trees and much faster then the old 35 gallon drum we had.  By using the skid we elevated the outlet to increase the gravitational push on the water so we can apply a large amount of water in a hurry if we want.

The tank should last 15 years until it is time for the next sprayer and we can do the job over again.

Shown is the 200 gallon water tank next to a new Cherry Tree.

Tree Planting

Stuarts Nursery in Fond du Lac had a stock reduction sale to sell their 2.5" and above nursery stock with great trees for only $90.   Considering these trees often cost $250 to $320 this was too good to pass up and we purchased a variety of oak, maple, cherry, beech, ironwood and coffeetree's for the golf course.

46% of our trees are ash and will expected to die in the next 10 years both due to age and the emerald ash borer, so it is important we keep planting trees.  Our goal is not to have tree lines fairways as that is not the type of course we have but to use trees as back drops and to provide definition to holes.

We took delivery of 16 nice specimens and planted them behind the greens on holes 5,7,8 and 20 to make up for ash and maples that in decline.  The current trees are too close to the greens causing problems with airflow, shade and roots encroaching under the green.  So although these trees are not close to the green they will be visually appealing for years to come.  Other trees were placed right of hole 8 to replace three pines that died and one oak left of 22 fairway to separate it from hole 16.  The last tree is a cherry and will be planted near the clubhouse area for aesthetics. 

On the subject of trees we have quite a few of memorial trees throughout the golf course and a plaque in the clubhouse stating the person the tree is for, the year, the type and location of the tree.

Mike Nelson steadies the tree while it is being backfilled.

What a stretch of weather!!!!

We must thank Mother Nature for this just incredible stretch of weather that not only took us from snow to open in 5 days but has provided some of the best March turf conditions ever.  The crazy thing is not only are the days summerlike the nights are summer like with lows in the mid 50's or higher.  Greens are being mowed daily while we are nearing summer schedule on tees and fairways. 

We have not mowed rough yet but just like your lawns it is time.  The bad thing is once we start mowing it encourages growth so the more we need to mow, the same will happen at home so get that lawnmower tuned up.

Trees are starting to bud and should be hardy through any cold snaps but if you have fruit trees you really need to hope for some cooler nights to slow the process.  If it freezes after they go to far you will lose your crop for the year.

Due to the early opening we are going the first few weeks with the tees open but no tee markers allowing players to tee off wherever they want.  The golfers seem to enjoy it and the staff mowing tees do not mind not having to pick up 90 rocks per 9 holes.

If you have played the front 9 you may have noticed the sink hole on the path between hole 1 white and silver tee.  We will not know how or why until we dig it up but the 24" plastic culvert but it seems to have been crushed and moved underground by some force of nature.  The new pipe is ordered and will be here next week. 

Enjoy your time out on the course during these bonus days!

Not open yet, but soon.

Wow what an amazing change in the weather!  We were able to open the driving range on Friday March 9th and will open 18 holes on the golf course on Tuesday March 12th.  Last weeks 8" snow melted fast but left the ground pretty soft and then Thursday night the low was 22 and Friday never got over 34 so that slowed our progress and prevented a weekend opening.

I took a long walk on the course Saturday and while the turf is still quite dormant everything looks healthy with little damage from ice, voles or snow molds.  The ground was still frozen solid in most places from Fridays cold temps but is thawed now.  We do have quite a bit of snow between hole 5 and 6 and 7 and 8 while 15 green has at least 10" on the left half.

You can see only the front right corner is clear of snow.  I expect that to be gone by the end of this week.

We will be walking only on Tuesday but without rain we should be able to allow carts soon.  We are going to start without formal tee markers and just have a sign asking players to tee off wherever they want for the first few days.

I hope to see you on the links!

When will we open?

This is a common question I hear every year from customers and co-workers when the days get longer and the snow starts to melt but even more so this year with the very mild weather we are having.  I can pretend and give a great answer based on science, weather facts etc etc but the truth is I have no idea.  Yep! That's right I really have no idea this far out when we might open.

I assume it will be earlier rather than later because it has been a mild winter with little snow to melt or frost in the ground but weather patterns can change overnight and a cold spell or a heavy snow will change everything. 

I really would need to know the high and low temperatures and amount of sunshine we will have for the next few weeks in order to give any kind of educated guess on when we could open.  Given the weather forecasters have trouble forecasting later today it is unlikely they can forecast the next three weeks.

I will say what is most important to thawing the soil, melting the snow and getting the course firmed up for play is the low temperature and sunshine.  Sure 50 degree afternoons help but if we can go a couple nights without freezing so the thaw extends 24 hours we make greater progress than with warm days and cold nights.

I can say as of today (Feb 21) all it will take is 4 or 5 days of good weather to get ready to go.  But the forecast is not looking like that is going to happen at least in the next ten days.

Due in part to the heavy soils we have and to avoid any potential damage or footprinting on the soft greens we open the course the first possible day after the frost leaves the top foot of soil through most of the golf course.

This is a change from just a few years ago when most courses waited for the ground to firm up, then they would mow greens, tees and fairways one or two times over a three or five day period to encourage growth and some greening of the plants. During that time they would put out all the newly painted benches, tee markers, ball washers and hazard stakes.

Now the first day we can change 9 cups and roll or mow 9 greens without damage we are open for play.  Benches, ballwashers and other features can wait until the paths firm up and we can travel the course without damage.  Those first couple rounds of the year the golfers do not seem to mind the lack of features.

So if you are dreaming of hitting the links in March, pray for sunny days and warm nights and before you know it your dreams will come true!