8th Tee update

The ditch has now been cleaned out and a new hedge planted.

8th Tee clearance work

We have been clearing the back of the 8th Tee. This will enable us to clean out the ditch and reduce the flooding in this area. A new hedge will be planted at a later date.

Spring is not here yet!

It was nice to feel the sun on our backs this weekend. We have seen the course start to dry out over the weekend. This morning we have started work to improve the putting surface by carrying out light scarifying. It looks like this week could be a good drying week with very little rain. Cold mornings look like being the order of the day.

New irrigation pump being installed

I wonder if we will need to use it in March!

Course condition

There is a lot of standing water around the course. Some areas in the rough are now starting to get very soft, This in turn is making it very difficult to get around and carry out any worthwhile maintenance. Overall the greens have dried out well and are in good condition for the time of year. All greens are in play!

We have again started to get areas of bird damage. ( see picture).

February Maintenance update

The Greens have remained healthy following the January snow, with only the 6^th 7^th and 8^th greens retaining water and remaining soft.  Mowing was carried out last week with caution. The main problem was getting the mowers around the course without getting stuck! Consequently it has been a relatively quiet time for the green’s maintenance program so the main job for the greens staff has been the tidying of willow trees around the course. You may have noticed that the bunker to the right-hand side of the fifth green has also been removed and the ground levelled out ready for seeding.

With Spring around the corner and the days getting longer we look forward to the course drying out so the Spring maintenance can start and the course can be returned to the high quality surface we all know and love to play! It has been encouraging to see that golfers have been helping the ground by following the rules and using winter trolley wheels – thank you all for this!

For your interest, this month I have included some photographs of the greenkeepers shed housing all the machinery.  All serviced and ready for the season ahead.

All the machinery ready for the season