Dear Members,

Again last night we received quite a bit of rain (1.5”) bringing our rain total to 6.5” over the past week. As many of you are well aware, the Country Club of Orlando is considered a very wet golf course due to drainage and soil issues. After having a very successful Summer of strong maintenance practices our strong and healthy turf is now being compromised by large areas of standing water and excessively wet areas which are not able to be mowed. One of the biggest issues we are currently evaluating with a civil is engineer is getting water “off campus”. Let me explain, even if the golf course had drainage which operated efficiently through siphons and pumps, which we currently rely mainly just on surface drainage, once the water is drained into the out-falls or ponds, where does it go? As stated before, we are working on solving one of these pieces of our drainage problem puzzle as water currently does not efficiently leave our property.

Members,

The following photos display just how terrible our bunkers truly are not just aesthetically, play-ability wise, design wise, but also drainage wise, as well. These bunkers are in desperate need of a renovation to minimize labor expenses and make the golf course not just more appropriately designed but also more playable and aesthetically pleasing. A few of these photos also display why we need drainage throughout the golf course,as well.

Members,

We have been very busy following our last scheduled closing. Our maintenance team has aerified greens with 3/8" tines, trimmed all of the palm trees along with the oaks behind #11 green to allow more filtered sunlight to get through, prepped and sodded the driving range tee with Celebration sod, added sand to all of the bunkers to maintain adequate depth, and we will be adding coquina to all of the cartpaths to "sweeten" them up for the coming season. All we are currently looking at purchasing artificial mats to be used on the back of the driving range starting in September and going throughout the winter months to March.

Also members in regards to our greens cleanup:

1) Question:  Josh mows the cleanup pattern around the greens twice weekly.  Would this practice not shrink the greens by encouraging surrounding turf to encroach?

Answer:  This practice has the opposite impact.  The more you mow the cleanup pattern the weaker the green turf along the edges, which in turn allows the surrounding turf to encroach.  What Josh is doing is ideal to minimize shrinkage and fringe turf encroachment.  He is minimizing wear and tear on the most sensitive portion of any putting surface.  This area receives several times the wear due to entry and exit of mowers on each mowing stripe.  There is also more friction (and wear) on the turf when mowing the cleanup pattern.

Dear Member,

The following blog posts for the next few weeks will consist of the most commonly asked questions from the membership in regards to the Master Plan and Renovation process. These answers are from Billy Fuller (Golf Course Consultant and Architect), as well as additional input from Josh Dunaway (Golf Course Superintendent). 

8.      Question:  What is the general scope of work?  In general terms, see below.

Answer:

Ø  Greens:  Some greens will require completely new strategy (i.e. 11, 12, 16).  Turf will be stripped off all greens, and all greens will be returned to their original size (shrunk due to encroachment from surrounding fairway turf…amount of encroachment varies from 3 feet to 12 plus feet);  Some greens will be slightly enlarged on one side or the other to offer more strategic pin locations since a number of greens have only three key pin areas.  The rootzone will have to be regraded and modified as our current Green infrastructure is inconsistent with depths varying from 8” to 24” which needs to be uniformly 12”. Greens will be re-grassed with new Ultra Dwarf Turf;

Ø  Tees:  Tees will be stripped, leveled and grassed with new Celebration Bermudagrass turf; the plan will call for many new forward tees and enlarging some existing trees;

Ø  Bunkers:  Bunkers will be re-shaped and new drainage installed.  Some strategic modifications will be recommended on a few bunkers (to be explained in hole-by-hole narrative as plan evolves);

Ø  Fairways and Rough:  Address drainage issues on flat holes where water stands after rain events; plant new Celebration Bermudagrass;

Ø  Trees:  There are areas on the course where trees are over populated, creating a very unhealthy environment for certain trees within any given clump.  In such instances we need to thin trees based on Certified Arborist recommendations to preserve healthy trees for a more prolonged life expectancy.  There are some trees that are shading key features on the course that should be removed.  There will be areas where we recommend planting some trees as well;

Ø  Maintenance Facilities:  Upgrade, solve environmental issues and improve the facilities to enhance employee productivity and prolong equipment life expectancy; this facility is the nucleus of the course- conditioning program.  It has been neglected for too many years;

Ø  Driving Range Tee and Practice Area – The driving range tee will be expanded and the back podocarpus hedge will be removed for the installation of a row of solid synthetic hitting turf. The driving range net will be replaced. The practice area greens will be rebuilt properly and sprigged with an Ultra-Dwarf Bermuda-grass and drainage will be put in wet areas. 

Dear Member,

The following blog posts for the next few weeks will consist of the most commonly asked questions from the membership in regards to the Master Plan and Renovation process. These answers are from Billy Fuller (Golf Course Consultant and Architect), as well as additional input from Josh Dunaway (Golf Course Superintendent). 

6.      Question:  How long will the golf course be closed for the renovation?

Answer:  Assuming normal weather we would estimate 6 months.  It is recommended that we close as near mid April as possible to allow as much renovation activity to be accomplished as possible before the rainy season.  The sooner we plant grass, establish roots, and fine tune the turf, the better the conditions at grand opening.  Our goal is to plant most of the grass between June 15 and July 15, which leaves us plenty of growing season weather before cooler temps commence.

Dear Member,

The following blog posts for the next few weeks will consist of the most commonly asked questions from the membership in regards to the Master Plan and Renovation process. These answers are from Billy Fuller (Golf Course Consultant and Architect), as well as additional input from Josh Dunaway (Golf Course Superintendent). 

5. Question:  If we go forward with renovating the course per the master plan, what would the Club gain / benefit?

Answer: 

Ø  The primary benefit of the renovation would be to restore the Club’s mission to offer the best possible golf course amenity to every caliber player, regardless of handicap; to create more friendly tees (yardages) for seniors and ladies.  We are addressing the game of golf for all generations of players.

Ø  Putting surfaces would offer up-to-date Ultra Dwarf Bermudagrass that provides smoother and faster greens that players throughout the southern states have grown accustomed to playing.  Overseeding would never be required.  Playing conditions would greatly improve throughout the year.

Ø  Playability of bunkers would be greatly improved and drainage issues resolved.

Ø  Drainage efficiency would be greatly improved throughout the fairways.  Players would be back on the course much sooner following rainstorm events.

Ø  Maintenance efficiencies and dollars will be greatly enhanced post renovation since monies would not be wasted on shoveling mud and sand in bunkers, and sodding greens due to aged turf, etc.  Instead, maintenance hours will be redistributed to fine-tuning key playing surfaces (greens, tees and fairways) to provide best conditions possible throughout the year.

Ø  Finally, our course has lost the look and feel of Donald Ross design.  While we fix the above issues we have the perfect opportunity to reinstate Donald Ross in our greens, bunkers, and related strategic features.  Our marketing strategies should be greatly enhanced if we take these measures to upgrade the agronomic issues, playability, and strategic design elements of Donald Ross.

Members,

After a great three days of being closed we were able to accomplish a great deal of work. Over the past three days we were able to aerify greens (1/2" tines), topdress all shortgrass after last week's verticut, verticut the Jones Chipping green which was severely thatchy, verticut (1/8") and scalp the rough, aerify around the bunkers and fertilize. We will quickly see the results of this cultural program and thank you again for your patience!

Dear Member,

The following blog posts for the next few weeks will consist of the most commonly asked questions from the membership in regards to the Master Plan and Renovation process. These answers are from Billy Fuller (Golf Course Consultant and Architect), as well as additional input from Josh Dunaway (Golf Course Superintendent). 

  4. Question:  The golf course is in great shape now, why would we need to renovate?

Answer: 

Ø  Josh is saddled with a 60 year old turf on greens (TifDwarf Bermudagrass) that continuously needs special attention and is forced to sod and plug throughout the winter and spring to maintain coverage.

Ø  It has exceeded its useful life! If we were comparing every blade of turf on the golf course to golf clubs, your agronomic program is relying on a hickory shaft attached to a R15 club head!

Ø  Ideally TifDwarf would be overseeded for the fall, winter and spring; however, that means soft greens and slow putting surfaces for most of that period as the overseed varieties require a great deal of moisture and cannot be mowed too closely.  That means slower greens speed, which is not favorable to most players.  Your highest months of play are March and April, when overseeding is dying.

Ø  As you witnessed this winter TifDwarf does not perform well in cool winter temps.  You are in a no win situation!  The bottom line is the combination of TifDwarf and overseeding has too many turf quality issues and will never offer consistent high quality playing conditions.

Ø  The greens mix depth is another critical issue that greatly challenges agronomic management.  The mix varies in depth from 8 to 24 inches.  Water management is very challenging since the shallow mix tends to hold too much water and the deeper areas of mix become hydro-phobic and severely dry.  During dry weather periods staff is constantly hand watering the deeper mix areas, and during wet periods the shallow mix areas become infested with algae, resulting in thin turf.

Ø  The bunkers have severe drainage issues as well as playability issues.  The only fix is to reshape them and install a new drainage system.

Ø  Nine of the eighteen holes have severe fairway drainage issues that make the course nearly unplayable during rainy periods.

Ø  CCO is all about southern traditions, great heritage, family values, a culture that has flourished for more than 100 years.  To maintain this culture we must reinvest in our golf course to build more operational efficiencies and maximize playability, which in turn will maximize revenues.  We are investing in current and future generations!

*Also please note, the Golf Course will be closed this coming week Monday (7/6) through Wednesday (7/8) for maintenance. Thank you for your understanding! 

Dear Member,

The following blog posts for the next few weeks will consist of the most commonly asked questions from the membership in regards to the Master Plan and Renovation process. These answers are from Billy Fuller (Golf Course Consultant and Architect), as well as additional input from Josh Dunaway (Golf Course Superintendent). 

3.     Question:  Will the master plan include resolving drainage issues on the course?

Answer:  Yes, we are working with a company (Turf Drain America) that specializes in flat property drainage issues such as those at CCO.  They have spent several days on the property reviewing the primary drainage issues and will be providing a budget (cost) to resolve them.  Their specifications are based on a combination of syphon drainage and a series of basin inlets and pumps to move water off the critical areas.

Dear Member,

The following blog posts for the next few weeks will consist of the most commonly asked questions from the membership in regards to the Master Plan and Renovation process. These answers are from Billy Fuller (Golf Course Consultant and Architect), as well as additional input from Josh Dunaway (Golf Course Superintendent). 

2.  Question:  Will the golf course be more difficult or easier when the plan is implemented?

Answer:  Before offering an opinion let’s consider the existing conditions.  See below.

Ø  The current grass type on greens is TifDwarf Bermudagrass, a 65-year old turf that has practically disappeared from production.  It has been replaced with the Ultra Dwarf Bermudagrass varieties that offer finer texture, tolerance for much lower cutting height, and offers firmer surfaces than TifDwarf.

Ø  Because TifDwarf has limitations on green speed, slopes for pin locations can be steeper than with the faster more competitive Ultra Dwarf varieties.  Even with TifDwarf a number of your greens today are limited to three to four sections for pin placement.  This greatly limits pin placement strategy and shot making options.  Examples are holes 2, 5, 8, 11, 12 and 16.  If we were to install an Ultra Dwarf variety on these greens today pin locations would be further limited, with more putting surface becoming unplayable.

Ø  Many of the greens at CCO have shrunk due to (1) encroachment from surrounding turf, a normal occurrence over time, and (2) shade issues that have forced maintenance to sod fairway turf over what was intended to be putting surface.  The amount of loss of actual putting surface varies from 500 square feet to 1,500 square feet on various greens.

Ø  Bunkers at CCO have taken on a very harsh shape that is unfair to 95 plus percent of players if (a) your ball lands on a downhill slope to an uphill green surface, or (b) your balls comes to rest against a high lip in a fairway bunker.  The current shape evolved over time from maintenance practices and weathering.  The design intent is to shape the bunkers in Donald Ross motif, which means a more fair lie in both above-mentioned cases.  In my opinion fair has nothing to do with hard or easy.  The easiest thing in golf design for any architect is to make a golf hole or feature really difficult. That does not mean it is a good hole.  The objective is to create challenging and fair strategy.  I have played with numerous single digit players who have hit very poor shots from both fairway and greenside bunkers because they had nearly impossible lies that required exceptional luck.  Yes, luck is part of the game, but should not be required in majority of bunker shots!

It is my recommendation that we expand the greens back to their original size to recapture lost pin locations, all very strategic as they reside along green perimeters.  These pins are some of the most challenging on any green.  Another significant issue is the amount of steep slope on front of numerous greens.  I have no issue with five to ten feet being used to reach the first pin location, but many greens have twenty to twenty-five feet before slopes are proper for pin location.  Front pins are always very challenging to reach and putt back to when overshot.  Note that everything I have said about recapturing pins adds challenge to the round of golf.  It does not make the course play easier!  However, the plan includes new forward tees that would enhance options for ladies and seniors, offering increased enjoyment in their games.

Dear Member, The following blog posts for the next few weeks will consist of the most commonly asked questions from the membership in regards to the Master Plan and Renovation process. These answers are from Billy Fuller (Golf Course Consultant and Architect), as well as additional input from Josh Dunaway (Golf Course Superintendent).  1. Question:  How long does the Master Plan Process take?  When will we know how much the recommended scope of work will cost? Answer:  As many of you know I have been playing golf with various members over the last two months.  My purpose is two-fold.  Each time I play the course I become more familiar with the intricacies of the current strategy and what I consider to be its strengths and weaknesses.  Secondly, it gives me the opportunity to hear what you (the members) think (like and dislike) about the course. I have begun developing a written narrative about each golf hole, and have now started to work on sketch plans on a hole-by-hole basis.  This is based on my findings to date for each hole.  This process will continue over the next few months.  As the plan comes together a scope of work will be created along with specifications for various features throughout the course.  From this we will create a Bid for Contract and invite approved golf course contractors to visit the course, review the plan and scope, and provide prices for the work in today’s dollars.  Our goal is to have the bids in hand by mid to late September.  We need this time to create the most ideal plan possible for the CCO.  Rushing the process is not an option! Thank you!

Members, this past week, we were able accomplish a lot of goals throughout our aerification closing of June 1 through June 3. Over that period we were able to aerify the entire golf course with 5/8" tines which included the rough, tees, fwys, approaches and collars. We were able to accomplish a substantial amount of tree work on #9, 15 and the Nutall Oaks by the fitness center (which were removed due to a safety hazards with the roots lifting up the pavers and people falling) and we were able to increase the short-grass bail out area around #14 approach and tie into #15 and #17 tee. We pre-emerged the entire golf course yesterday and today with 20-0-20 Ronstar which followed our aerification.

5/8" Tine Aerification on entire golf course 

Tree Work and "Wall to Wall" Root Prune 

#14 Bailout tying short grass from Approach to #15 and #17 Tee Box 

Paver Project by Fitness Center 

Pond Ornamentals Trimmed

Members,

Just a friendly reminder next week we will be closed Monday (June 1) through Wednesday (June 3) for aerification. Please note, these dates are subject to weather. Aerification is an extremely important cultural practice that allows oxygen and nutrients to readily get into the root-zone and also aids in the control of thatch build up. This process will be done three times this Summer to ensure the Country Club of Orlando maintains a healthy golf course. Thank you! 

Members, This coming Tuesday through Thursday (5/26 - 5/28) we will be contracting Southeastern Turfgrass to root prune our golf course property. Root pruning is a healthy maintenance technique that relieves stress of an over-grown tree root system back cutting back the root system which promotes more nutrient availability, less competition with turfgrass and an overall healthy tree root system. This process will be minimally invasive and will help to maintain an overall healthier golf course and tree program. The following website demonstrates a video and a brief explanation of the root pruning process.

http://www.setgs.com/category/services/root-pruning/

Members, This past Monday we verticut the fairways and approaches and we will be verticutting the driving range fairway, tees, walkouts and 11 1/2 on June 1. Verticutting is a very important cultural practice that is done to reduce thatch and create a denser and healthier turf-grass canopy. This practice will be done throughout the Summer which is considered the "growing" season for our Bermuda grass turf-types. The following web address provides a detailed insight on the practice of verticutting. http://klinkhammersturfgrassadventures.blogspot.com/2011/04/verticutting-for-firm-fast-and-true.html

Green’s Assessment by Billy Fuller - As a general statement, greens at the CCO are small on average and some are quite heavily contoured.  This was normal for grasses that were maintained at a speed of 9.0 to 9.5 on average, which is fairly typical for TifDwarf Bermudagrass greens.  As speeds increase many of the hole locations within some greens become very limited.  My definition of hole locations within a green is when no two locations are closer than fifteen feet.  We noted a number of greens today that had a maximum of three to four hole locations.  If an ultra dwarf bermudagrass such as Champion, TifGreen or Mini Verde were to be planted, it would be critical to soften the slopes and in some instances add square footage for adequate pin locations.  Regarding No-Till planting an ultra dwarf, in my opinion, your greens are not a candidate.  In order to be a candidate means your slope designs and pin locations must be proper for speeds of 10.5 or higher on a daily basis. Green’s Assessment by Josh Dunaway  - Due to the fact of having TifDwarf which is a very outdated form of Bermuda grass (began being installed in the 1950’s) green speeds above 10.5 are difficult to achieve without; 1) severely stressing the turf and 2) rigorous maintenance (i.e. double – cutting and rolling daily). It is also apparent that shade plays a big impact on several green complexes, as well. We measured and mapped our green's mix root-zone depth and they appear to be not uniform to United States Golf Association green building specifications. Our depths range from 10" to 24" which is unusually deep and inconsistent. The following website gives a complete description of the specifications of a USGA putting green.  http://www.usga.org/Content.aspx?id=26124

Billy Fuller Donald Ross work experience:

Alamance Country Club, Burlington, NC (see below);

Highlands Country Club, Highlands, NC (I have been working with this club since 1996, both consulting and design work); most recent work has included new 10th green complex, extension to #11 green, and new putting and chipping green complex;

Hinsdale Golf Club, Clarendon Hills, IL (western suburb of Chicago)…BFGD established a Restoration / Preservation Master Plan for this Donald Ross design in 2005-2006;

Augusta Country Club, Augusta, GA (While working at Augusta National I played most of my golf at Augusta C.C.  After leaving ANGC I worked with Cupp in a Ross renovation of Augusta C.C.)

Rosedale Golf Club in Toronto, Canada

East Lake Golf Club, Atlanta, GA (When Rees Jones was hired to restore the golf course, I was hired as consultant to watch over the project with the golf course superintendent)

Charlotte Country Club, Charlotte, NC (consultant)

Palm Beach Country Club, Palm Beach, FL (consultant)

Jekyll Island Golf Club, Georgia (consultant)

Benvenue Country Club, Rocky Mount, NC (consultant)

Hyde Park Golf & C.C., Cincinnati, OH (consultant)

Belle Meade, Nashville, TN (consultant)

Shelby Golf Course, Nashville, TN (First Tee program)

Pine Needles Golf Club, Southern Pines, NC (I was assistant golf course superintendent at Pine Needles in 1973.  I spent months studying Donald Ross’s history while living and working there, including Mid Pines and Pinehurst #2.  I lived in a garage apartment on #2 and spent many hours after work walking the course and studying archives.

Alamance C.C. was the last set of plans Donald Ross drew.  He died before the course was constructed.  A golf pro then took Ross’s plans, cleared the routing per his plan, then put his own strategy into the golf course.  The Club eventually discovered the plans and hired Cupp and I to put Ross’s strategy into the course.

Chicago, IL (While master planning and renovating Hinsdale Golf Club in Chicago ( Ross design), I had the good fortune of studying numerous Donald Ross courses, including Beverly Country Club, Evanston Golf Club, Old Elm Club and Oak Park Country Club)

I am a huge fan of Golden Era Period (late 1800’s to 1950).  I have worked on as many Seth Raynor courses as Donald Ross, and a few William “Billy” Bell and Perry Maxwell.  I have played Chicago Golf Club (C.B. MacDonald and Seth Raynor) several times as well as Shore Acres (Raynor).  I consulted extensively at Country Club of Charleston, SC (Seth Raynor) and Yeaman’s Hall Golf Club (Seth Raynor).

The key to any Golden Era designer is understanding his style.  They all had great strategic design and taught us modern designers how to design strong and proper strategy from tee to green.

Please join author Bradley S. Klein on Tuesday, April 28th at 6:00 p.m. in the Ballroom. Bradley Klein’s award winning book, “Discovering Donald Ross” describes a man’s career that lasted from the early 1900s to the late 1940s and no other golf course architect is credited with more fine layouts – or is more revered – than Donald J. Ross. This lecture is a wonderful way to uncover the life and work of a true artist. In the decade since the book’s publication, regards for Ross restoration and for the beauty and charm of classic-era golf course design have become central to the golf scene. Our very own Golf Course Architect, Billy Fuller, will also be present to begin a discussion on the golf course master planning process. RSVP to 407-849-0990. This lecture is complimentary. Bradley Klein will have books available for purchase and/or signing.

Members, we have been continuing to clean, detail and shine up the golf course. The weather has been great recently and we are continuing to fine tune our practices to continue to improve the golf course day by day.

Bunkers edged, depths measured and relocated. We will be re-sodding all of the bunker edges and digging out the pulled sand from the sand-pro edges this summer with Celebration Bermuda. 

We will continue to monthly or as needed edge the coquina cart paths with the sod cutter to refine the detail of the paths. 

We are very fortunate, as a club, to be able to do a "dry-cut" on Mondays when we are closed. We have slowed our reel mowers down to 5mph and have increased the clip frequency which will in turn make the turf denser. 

I'm sure many of you have yearly seen the weak areas due to consistent winter shade on green's #11 and #12. This past Monday we sod cut these areas and put down Tif-Grande which is the same turf located around the Clock Green. This Tif-Grande will be mowed at a height in between our approach height and our green's height. Although no Bermuda grass is shade tolerant, Tif-Grande is considered to be more shade tolerant than other cultivars.

After stripping these areas on #11 and #12 a very thick sod layer was revealed which in turn we aerified twice with 5/8" tines before laying the new Tif-Grande sod. 

After aerifying, the Tif-Grande was layed and once established will be rolled multiple times and eventually cut with a walk-mower at the height of .300.

\

This past Monday we applied our first mole cricket application of Talstar and Merit wall to wall which will cover our first cricket mole cricket hatching. In June we will be applying Talstar and Lamda -Cy and then in August we will be applying Talstar and Dursban for our third and final application. Next year we will applying Topchoice and each year we will continue to rotate between different chemicals and routes of control. 

We decided to go a different route with this pine straw application in all the beds for the upcoming 1911 Tournament. We decided to go with a company to bring in and spread 1,500 bails which turned out to be a great operation and the company was able to finish the whole golf course in a day.

 

Please join author Bradley S. Klein on Tuesday, April 28th at 6:00 p.m. in the Ballroom. Bradley Klein’s award winning book, “Discovering Donald Ross” describes a man’s career that lasted from the early 1900s to the late 1940s and no other golf course architect is credited with more fine layouts – or is more revered – than Donald J. Ross. This lecture is a wonderful way to uncover the life and work of a true artist. In the decade since the book’s publication, regards for Ross restoration and for the beauty and charm of classic-era golf course design have become central to the golf scene. Our very own Golf Course Architect, Billy Fuller, will also be present to begin a discussion on the golf course master planning process. RSVP to 407-849-0990. This lecture is complimentary. Bradley Klein will have books available for purchase and/or signing.

Our maintenance team is beginning to chip away at the vines and hedges around the maintenance shop detailing and cleaning the area. We understand that this is used as a buffer to "hide" the maintenance shop and our goal is to create a well-manicured and trimmed hedge buffer that is free of vines and aesthetically pleasing. We will also be planting Bougainvillea on some of the fence areas that are currently exposed with ill managed vines. Our team will be continually be working on this second-job daily project as time permits. Thank you again for your understanding.

There has recently been a lot of questions regarding the Master-Plan which began it's initial stage this past Monday and Tuesday with our master-plan consultant Billy Fuller making his initial visit to the club and playing with groups of golfers to begin to evaluate the Country Club. To clarify a “golf course master plan” is simply the common term for a renovation or improvement program at an existing golf course.  At a private club, it is typically the culmination of a series of exchanges of information between the membership, the governing board, a long-range planning committee or green committee, and the golf course architect. This Master-Plan is comprehensive in the fact that it not only covers new design techniques when a renovation occurs but also encompasses operational costs on a daily basis and allows the club to set consistent and sustainable conditioning standards. The following website goes into great deal the importance and components of a golf course Master-Plan. http://www.asgca.org/articles/200-golf-course-renovations-and-master-plans-why-and-when

Our maintenance team began yesterday pressure washing and cleaning all of the wooden bridges located on property to give them a fresher appearance. This process will take a week or two to complete, as we are currently a little low on staff. Thank you for your patience if you happen to drive over wet areas or hear some noise from our pressure washing crew!

Before 

During 

After

There has been much speculation now that we have hit the coolest month (February) as to the health of the golf course and why some areas are discolored. As everyone knows we did not over-seed the golf course which gives us a strong agronomic advantage going into the Spring and Summer, as we do not deal with the "transition" of perennial ryegrass/poa trivialis dying out and bermuda grass growing back in. Bermuda grass, which is our main-stand of turf goes in a period of "dormancy" during the cooler months which allows the plant to store carbohydrates and survive during these cooler months, this is why the turf currently appears discolored. But not to worry, the golf course will quickly green-up when consistent warm weather moves in. A few benefits of not over-seeding are less irrigation (dryer and firmer conditions), better weed control, no-transition period which results in a stronger base turf which would be bermuda grass, and more rounds which are noted by our awesome golf professional staff:

Round counts at the Country Club of Orlando for Ocotober-Mid February are as follows:

'13-'14  = 8,596 total rounds

'14-'15 = 10,231 total rounds

The following article goes into much detail as to the advantages and disadvantages of over-seeding and why it can vary from golf course to golf course depending on the region of the golf club. 

http://www.golfcourseindustry.com/gci-0710-alternatives-overseeding.aspx

This morning we measured and mapped our green's mix root-zone depth and they appear to be not uniform to United States Golf Association green building specifications. Our depths range from 10" to 24" which is unusually deep and inconsistent. The following website gives a complete description of the specifications of a USGA putting green.  http://www.usga.org/Content.aspx?id=26124

Our maintenance crew understands the importance of how the golf course is set up and maintained on a daily basis and one of our biggest emphasis' are locating and setting up "fair" pins. We use a system in which an electronic level is placed in three different angles around the cup before being cut a new pin, in which all of the slope percentages are under 2.5%.

We have been continuing our irrigation work around the tennis courts and have come across several problems we have been working on correcting. Our goal is to have the tennis court landscape up and running in the next several weeks to develop a sound maintenance program for the surround plants and turf. We appreciate your understanding if you discover areas where we are currently working!

One of our priorities as an agronomic team is to continue to improve and update the surrounding landscape around our entrance, clubhouse, swimming pool, tennis courts and halfway house. We have started to incorporate an agronomic program on the St. Augustine located around the entrance, clubhouse, swimming pool, tennis courts and halfway house which includes fertilizing, mowing, pre-emerging, post-emergent weed control, topdressing and irrigating. We have begun going through the irrigation in these areas starting with the clubhouse and around the clubhouse we have 4 out of 28 heads working properly. Needless to say we have a lot of catching up to do around these areas and if wet areas are noticed around these highly visible areas a lot of that is due to our agronomic team checking and repairing a very inefficient system.

We have had a few members ask about the current health of our greens. Our Tifdwarf greens are in good shape for this time of year, with the exception of areas that get constant shade. Due to Tifdwarf's open growth pattern they are appearing thin in areas but that has a lot to due with the growth pattern associated with this particular grass. Spike marks have been apparent, which is a normal occurrence on non-overseeded greens. It is important to try to avoid dragging feet while walking and putting on the greens and also pivoting while putting can be detrimental during this cooler time. Below I have compared pictures of, first, our Tifdwarf putting surface, compared with our Champion putting green which has a noticeably tighter putting surface. As stated before, both are healthy during this time of year, they just tend to have different growth patterns. Also, we have been topdressing these weaker area on the greens, where mainly shade is a contributing factor with sand to combat the areas becoming hosts to algae which disrupts runners and stolons from lateral growth. We are coming to the end of Winter and Spring, accompanied with warmer weather, will be here shortly in the next few weeks. 

Tifdwarf Putting Surface (Managed Identically to Champion) 

Champion Putting Surface (Managed Identically to Tifdwarf)