Repairing Divots

Just a reminder to all of our guests, we ask that all divots be replaced with the original turf whenever possible.  In the event that the divot isn't fixable, only then should sand and seed mixture be used to fill the divot completely.  Here is a short video from the USGA on replacing divots:

As always, thank you for your cooperation with this matter.  We spend many man-hours every week filling divots that had a player taken a few seconds to pick and replace their divot, would be all but healed by the time we fill them with sand.  Our entire cart fleet is equipped with two jars of divot mix on each cart, if for some reason you find your jars empty, please ask a member of the golf staff and they will quickly fill them up for you.  Thanks again.   

Ballmarks

Since we are well into the golf season, it is fitting to touch on a very, if not the most important piece of golf etiquette in our minds, repairing ball marks.  Every golfer at some point has experienced the frustration of numerous unrepaired ball marks in their line as they prepare to make a putt.  Their frustration is shared by our staff as well, primarily because it shows a lack of respect for the golf course and other players.
 
The turf staff spends on average about 2-3 minutes per green each day repairing ball marks that were either repaired incorrectly, or not repaired at all.  This is part of preparing the course every morning for play, but from that time until the next morning it is the responsibility of our guests.  We would prefer to spend that time fixing ball marks where an attempt was made, as opposed to unrepaired ball marks.

It is important to repair them before we mow so that they heal properly and to prevent any of the severe ball marks from being scalped.  When you add up the time spent repairing ball marks in a given week it adds up to over 6 hours spent just repairing ball marks, per week!!  Please don't think of the turf staff when repairing ball marks, but the players who come after you, as their round is better thanks to your efforts.  Here is a video the USGA created on this topic.

The video may seem cheesy, but the points illustrated are very important in maintaining a high quality putting surface. Thank you very much for your cooperation.



    

Just about ready

The driving range tee is coming along nicely and should be all ready to go in time for May 1st, which is our target for moving off of the mat and onto the grass tee.

Although the tee has been mowed a couple times and appears green and ready to go, the grass plants need the next week and a half to continue growing and filling in.  Once the tee is open, we constantly rotate the location of hitting stations to ensure that we utilize as much of the tee as possible before we inch closer to the front of the tee.  This buys us just enough time to reseed and establish new turf in worn areas before we need to start all over again.

We ask that all of our patrons try to keep a tight divot pattern in their hitting station whenever possible.  A consistent patch like this is much easier to reestablish and is a much better use of the tee surface than the sporadic, inconsistent one pictured below.  Though it appears to be picked clean, it is far more efficient to reseed, topdress and smooth this type of divot pattern than the latter. 

 

In addition, the next person who practices from this station will have to constantly search for a good patch of turf to use, instead of focusing on their practice session.  Your cooperation will be greatly appreciated by all.  Proper course etiquette is not just for the sake of the turf staff, but also for fellow golfers who abide by rules of the course as well. We will discuss more on the finer points of course etiquette in later posts.