Snow Drifts

 

The snow from Friday and Saturday has caused havoc on the course. There are massive drifts caused by the high winds meaning that some parts of the course are unplayable. We are trying to sort the problem as much as possible. We will have to see how the weather develops over this week and then make a decision as to weather Opening Day can go ahead or not.



 

The road in front of the 11th green

The 1st green finally cleared

 

This is the large bunker, left hand side of the first green!

 

 

 



3rd Fairway

The area in the middle of the third fairway had become a mess due to constant waterlogging, machinery and golf traffic. Therefore we took the opportunity this winter to dig it up and repair it.

 

3rd Fairway, Drain underneath



The ditch on the right hand side then runs through pipework under the 3rd fairway into a large pipe network, eventually entering the ditch on the 13th. We dug up the top surface to reveal the original drain stone layer.

 

Removal of top to reveal stone layer



We then took the opportunity to install another shallow drain on top of this to ensure water could escape more quickly. We used 100mm pipe and gravel and then filled the rest of the trench with composted soil, ready for new turf. We installed an inspection pot so that we can rod the pipe to remove any silt blockages.



Area turfed

Maintenance Blog





Winter morning sunrise
 

Welcome to the new information blog regarding the ongoing maintenance of the golf course. I intend to update it as often as possible and include pictures of everything we do. I will start by bringing you all up to speed with the work we have been carrying out over the winter period.

1st and 16th Greens Drainage
 

The main task this winter was the installation of drainage into greens 1 and 16, two of the wettest on the course. Having previously drained greens 3,5,13 and 14 in previous years it seemed sensible to continue the programme. We again used the Aquadyne blocks instead of pipe and stone as we have seen how well they have worked in the past.

 

1st Green Drainage, 2m apart down to 500mm

We use a contractor to carry out the main trenching works and then carry out the rest of the work in house. Trenches are dug 2m apart and the spoil taken away. Some of the spoil was used to fill in another area nearby which has been turfed to make it easier to cut. The Aquadyne blocks are then placed in the trenches end to end and the trenches are then filled to the top with sand. The original green turf is then replaced and levels are checked regularly.

 

1st Green Aquadyne ready to go in

 

1st Green Sanded Ready for Turf Reinstatement

 



                   1st Green Turf back down

 

 

  16th Trenches 2m apart

 

 

5th Tee/Path

 

Another big task undertaken was the reconstruction of the 5th tee into a three tiered tee to incorporate mens competition, mens daily play, visitors, ladies and a winter tee. The banks were softened so as to cut them with the semi rough mower. The area to the left of the tee has always been extremely worn and so a path has been installed too.

 

Using a digger the tee shapes were formed and then a laser grading machine was contracted in to create the tee surfaces.

 



The 5th tee works were constantly plagued by the weather, this particular shot taken after an inch of rain had fallen in a 24 hr period.

 



Laser Grading the Competition Tee

Unfortunately due to the constant poor weather the bottom tier could not be lasered due to being far too soft.


Large rolls of turf were used to finish the job.


5th Tee cut down to 15mm.









The path was constructed using a digger and wooden edging was nailed in to form the edges. A hardcore material was laid down and rolled to form a base and the new path material will all being well go down next week.






5th Path

 

 

The path material is now down at the 5th tee path. The main reason for the delay in this procedure was down to a rock fall incident at the quarry where we were receiving the material from. Due to the snow and frosts at the time, a collapse of the face meant many tons of material were covered. This had to be dug out, rescreened and reformed to make the material. Once we laid the material it was compacted down using a compacting plate and then topped up again level with the boards at the side. The edges still need to be  filled in and tidied but now at least the path is there to be used.