Getting There Day by Day

Pythium?  Really??

Every time you think the weather could not be more perfect ... well Mother Nature has her own views on what should happen.  Last nights we had howling winds which is taking our already stretched resources and challenging them even further.

1's Fairway Growing In

Today we are putting down extra seed and tomorrow we start the wall-to-wall fertilization.  Are hands are full but we will pull it together before opening.

Even with the fantastic weather pythium still raises its ugly head.  We will be spraying a preventative this morning.

Working the Details

7's Fairway

I love the triplex line look in the fairways but sadly it is so time consuming that we cannot continue the process.  It takes five guys seven hours to complete all of our fairways here at Avondale.

Edging 9's Fairway Bunker

Some ask me what is the hardest part of the overseeding and the answer depending on the weather is always the details.  You can never do enough of them but you always will have more.  That is why I look forward to opening the golf course because after that what is ... is.

The Rough of 8

Slowly but surely the grass seed I s germinating and we are getting there.  Still lots to do before we open.

Working Towards Opening

New Flower Bed Added - Clock to Follow

On Monday the flowers were planted and they look great.  Today the remainder of the flats will be plants behind 18's green.  With the expansion of the clubhouse flower bed and the new flower bed at the chipping green you will be happy to know we have added the over 50 new flat of flowers.

Flowers Mostly are In - Finish Today

Lots of fertilization due, lots of detail work needed but slowly we are getting there.  Now comes the hard parts of getting the small details ready.

18's Fairway

Mowing in Full Force

18's Primary Fairway Cut

Strips!!

Short and sweet ... we are extremely busy and slightly behind.  That is the norm but as always we will get there.

Stripping!!

First Rough Mow on 4

I love it when we do the first mow ... wonderful strips.  If I could keep the golfers off of it it would always look great ... just kidding.

Mowing is Ramping Up

6's Approach First Mowing

We are mowing more and more everyday as we germinate.  The greens are filling in nicely and we have even started fertilizations and chemical applications.

No Overseeding on DR - To the Right

This upcoming Monday the flowers are getting planted and we will be starting the list of those details - that is the biggie.

Germination!!!

11's Green is Ready for the First Mow

 All of the greens have been mowed at least once.

So is 17

 And the fairways will start there mowing today.

4's Green Has Had It's Second Mowing

It is fun to watch all of the hard work the team has done come to life!  I could not be more proud of my team to step up and make everything happen.

Mowing Has Begun

First Mowing on 4's Green

Yesterday we started mowing the first greens that were seeded and today we mowed them all.  Additionally, we mowed the first tee and fairway.

Tag Team 4's Nursery

There is still lots and lots to get done and currently we are behind ... but we will as we always do get caught back up soon.

Hole 6 is still Growing In

Germination & First Mow

On Sunday 4's Green Started Germination - First Mowing Today

Today we will start the mowing of the greens on 4 - 1 and the large nursery.  I project that by this Friday that we should see the mowing of the first seeded fairways.

Prepped Flower Beds for Planting Next Monday

This upcoming Monday the flowers for the clubhouse will arrive and the planting will begin.  Since last year's major success with the flowers we continued using Armstrong Nursery and their planting team for this year's success.

Still Waiting Behind 9's Green

We overall are still waiting for the germination to start on the remaining parts of the golf course, but it is so nice to start the mowing up as soon as we can.

Snow on the Mountains

Can You Believe It?

We have survive the light rain only to find that once the clouds cleared that there was snow on the mountain - in October.  Unbelievable.

Now it is a waiting game until the grass seed pops.  Please do not hesitate to contact me if you see any issues with our irrigation ... we do not always catch them all.

Just in Time

Rain Loomed Over the Mountain

Finishing the Last Holes as the Weather Moved In



Team was Working Hard

The rains threaten to come in and finally did in the afternoon and luckily we got the last of the seed down and finished the product.  We have only two areas (one on 9 and one on 5's Tee) that we have to wait until the grass piles are removed before we can turn on the irrigation.  Those piles will be moved on Friday.

Day Eight Starts with High Hopes

The Morning Did Not Start Quite Right

But Then A Idea Came

And Trucks Were Shifted

We started the morning in a hole with the seed truck getting not one but two flat tires.  As we finished up the fifth hole seeding we transferred the seed to the other truck and continued onward.  Even having the belt break on the topdresser did not stop us as we had our vendors step up and give us aid to finish the topdressing of the greens ... but we still have one remaining since the burrowed topdresser stopped working.

The front nine is almost complete and the back nine has only holes 14 to 11 to be done.  If all goes well we should finish today or tomorrow at the latest ... barring anymore issues.

Day Six is in the Books

Loading Seed

 Yesterday the seeding started in earnest and we got most of the seed down in the front nine.  With the exception of hole 5, the remaining front nine is complete.

After Seeding Mowing the Seed to Improve Contact

Extra Pass in the Fairways

We even got the irrigation started on holes 4 - 2 so please it is time to stay off the golf course. 

Today we will be seeding on the back nine, of course after we finish 5.  More updates to come on our progress.

Starting Day Six -- Overseeding

Wall-to-wall Seeding on 4

Yesterday we started the seeding due to some changes thanks to equipment failure.  Part of a successful overseed is adapting to changes thanks to weather, equipment or personnel issues without skipping a beat, and yesterday was no exception.

Bags of Seed

Today, the seeding and fertilizing continues on the golf course.  We expect to be irrigating our first holes today.

Overseeding - Day Five

Seed is in the Field

Yesterday the seeding started thanks to the winds promised not coming.  On the front nine we made the simple extra pass of seed in the fairways of the front nine, and even finished the grasses of the front nine.

Today we will start working on the back nine and with any hope and of course good weather we should be starting irrigation on the golf course by Monday.  Overall, even with the prep work taking a bit longer than planned we are only half to a day behind schedule.

Overseeding - Day Four Starts

Seeding 4's Green

Yesterday, we started seeding using the rotary spreaders but most of the efforts were focused on working on the prep of the golf course.  We got some seeding done on the front nine and even finished the greens 4 - 2, and the large nursery.

Today the wind has picked up as we expected so the team is focusing their efforts towards prep.  We will not be seeding today but the prep work should be finish completely by Sunday which means that Monday, the projected end of the winds.

Day Three -- Progression Going Well

Prepping the Target Greens

 The new design for seeding on the driving range to change the overall look while saving the Club has been completed yesterday.

Prepping 1's Tee

Most of the front nine has had the first pass in prep completed.  Today we hopefully will have completed the front nine and start working the back nine prep work.


Clubhouse Hills are Ready for Seed

Additionally today the clubhouse hills will be completed and hopefully by tomorrow we will have the irrigation started there.  Seeding of the club house hills will be completed this morning.

New Target Green

Team Seeding the Target Greens

The team is in positive sprits and working hard to keep our deadlines.  Thanks to the golf course being so thick as turf is concerned the prep is slightly behind, but we will get caught back up soon.  I could not be more proud of the team's efforts.

Day Two - Overseeding

Prepping 4's Approach

We started the first pass in opening up the bermudagrass in the overseeding prep yesterday.  After spending all summer getting the bermudagrass thick and healthy we now have destroy that hard work to get the course ready to accept seeding.

Spraying Seed Barrier on 6's Greenside Bunker

You will notice that the gravel areas and the bunkers have a yellow tint to them ... or some of them as of now.  This is the protective barrier we spray to prevent the grass seed from germinating and to make them much easier to prep for opening.

Our goal today is to get the club house hills seeding today and the irrigation for them turned on.  Of course also to continue the prep work of the course.

Day One Overseeding

Overseeding started today but for the most part today is a prep day only. From setting up the computer to the first prep pass to even just removing items from the golf course today is one of those necessary evils to prepare for seed.

Overseeding Starts Tomorrow

We have been drying down the course but during the process last night the probe to automatically shut down the wells failed which lead to an overflow of the lakes.  Good news is that it wasn't as bad as it looked.

Above is the new clock area.  More to come soon.

Overseeding starts tomorrow and as with the first day there is a lot of adjustments that will be made.  We will handle all the things thrown at us as we always do during these trying times.