PC Conversion Update - 8/5

      Only eight days remain until the Players Club reopens. We have now shifted into full course preparation mode. The coming week will see us wrap up any ongoing projects and prepare the course for play. The greens are in excellent shape and will be 100% ready for golf on August 13th. Below is a picture of the Players Club practice green on Friday.

      You can see that the green's have come a long way in six weeks. We will shift our focus next week from growing to grooming the greens. The grooming will help to increase speed and maximize playability. Here is last week's recap and a look ahead to next week.

Last Week 7/29-8/4

• Monday - Today we mowed the greens. We cut at (.150"). This height allows us to benefit from the increased leaf tissue. We will rapidly decrease the height next week to prep for play.

      We fertilized the greens today with (22-0-22) fertilizer. This fertilizer will help restore potassium levels and keep the turf green and vigorous.
      On Monday we also began to prep the bunkers. We started mowing the banks, edging and redistributing the sand. Redistributing the sand is a job done on a biannual basis. The sand gradually works itself to the lowest points of the trap. This results in increased sand on the low side and virtually no sand on the high sides. There is plenty of sand in the bunker, however it has worked itself to the low points. Our job is to move the sand from areas where there is too much back to where there is too little. We strive for a depth of four inches throughout the bunker.

• Tuesday - We dropped the height on our mowers today. We mowed the greens at a height of (.140). We will remain at this height until next week. At that time we will drop the heights to an acceptable playability level.

      We aggressively groomed the greens today. We verticut the greens at 1/8". This means that we sliced the surface at a 1/8" depth. This will promote lateral growth and better assist the surfaces to fill in.
      Today we spread lime over the entire golf course. Lime (CaCO3) helps to raise the pH of the soil. the increased pH level will help in increasing the availability of certain nutrients to the turf. Here is a website explaining the benefits of lime in turf.

• Wednesday - Today mother nature did our work for us. Six inches of rain dropped on the plantation. Although we lost a work day, the rain was much needed and greatly appreciated.
• Thursday - We mowed the greens today at (.140"). As stated we will remain at this height until next week.

      The rain and ensuing humid conditions increase the chance for disease and algae. Today we applied a contact and systemic fungicide to help prevent the onset of any diseases.
      Today we also continued to work on the bunkers and make some more progress on our sight line projects.

• Friday - Mowed greens at (.140"). We also topdressed the greens today with a light layer of sand/peat mix. The topdressing will help to fill any remaining voids on the surfaces. The peat will help to keep the moisture at the surface. The retained moisture will encourage new plants to fill these sand voids.

Next Week 8/5-8/11

• Continue bunker work. (edge, mow, redistribute sand).
• Edge cart paths, sprinkler heads, and yardage markers.
• Verticut the greens.
• Groom greens with mower attachment.
• Roll greens.
• Mow out the entire course.
• Apply growth regulator to the entire course.
• Continue fertilization of weak areas throughout the course.

      The coming week will be our busiest and most enjoyable so far. Nobody is more excited to unveil the new and improved Players Club than the maintenance staff. We will all be working Monday to Monday to ensure that we provide the best playing conditions possible on the 13th.
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