Fairway Drainage

I mentioned in a  recent course update that we would be starting drainage work in the very near future and indeed we have begun. I believe I mentioned also that this is a fairy normal state of affairs on a new golf course or newly renovated golf course. New golf courses, including Granite Bay in 1994, had underground drainage systems installed to accommodate surface water running off the turf and into a catch basin or drainage inlet. These  original drainage inlets are normally associated with low areas or depressions that were purposeful during construction to pick up running surface water. 

Drainage work that occurs after construction or renovation can be an expansion of the underground drainage system, but more often then not are what we refer to as French Drains. According to Wikipedia, these type of drains - 

 "may have been invented in France^[2] but Henry Flagg French (1813–1885) of Concord, Massachusetts, a lawyer and Assistant U.S. Treasury Secretary described and popularized them^[3] in Farm Drainage (1859)." 

Drainage patterns become very evident after we start to irrigate and  usually follow the flow of water and tie into the existing underground drainage. 

Granite Bays french drain installation is a simple trench with 4" perforated drainpipe surrounded with 1" gravel, followed by some sand and replacement of the sod which was removed prior to trenching. The above internet image shows a fabric liner that we do not use. From our experience these geo textile fabrics slow the water infiltration and end up clogging the drain entirely.  A few pictures below are worth a thousand words for those who are interested.

First drain we did was the approach area in front of #10 green.

Step 1 is removing sod where you want to trench. This area is left hand side #4 near new fairway bunker. 

Next trenching and soil removal. Soil need's  to go and make room for porous drain rock and must be manually scooped up and hauled off.

After everything is cleaned up its time for a little gravel on the bottom of the trench, then........

Installation of the drain pipe, then ........

Installation of the gravel over the drain pipe, approximately 8-10 inches, then .......

Replacement of the removed sod after a couple inches of some sand for the sod to root into.

Finishing touches include topdressing sand to even out the area. This will require a few applications to get the disrupted area smooth for ultimate playability.

This image of the soil profile in a drainage trench is an example of what we have been dealing with here at Granite Bay since our inception. Very difficult soil to get turf to thrive in. At least now with the Santa Anna Hybrid Bermuda up the middle we have a crop that stands a fighting chance.

Look for us to continue to work on drainage through July and August. This allows us to irrigate more efficiently without the highs and lows of reacting to boggy, wet areas by turning off sprinklers surrounding the area to dry out the bog, resulting in drying out the turf associated with the irrigation these turned off sprinklers are designed to provide.

Thanks for your patience. The Best Is Yet To Come!

Happy #1 Birthday GBGC Fairways

It was indeed just a year ago this week when we started the sprigging process to convert our fairways at Granite Bay Golf Club from a mix of cool season turf varieties to warm season Santa Anna Hybrid Bermuda. The process we used to convert the fairways is called sprigging which involved shredding big rolls of sod into little pieces, disking them into prepared soil, rolling, flood watering followed by allot of fertilizer, more watering and rolling, then BOOM! a fairway. Sounds simple, but in reality, it was a stressful time filled with learning curves and setbacks and questions such as "is this going to work?". 

Fast forward a year and we have the foundation of what will be, with a little more time to fine tune and mature, some extremely fast, firm and sustainable fairways that wont be susceptible to the stresses of summer any longer, along with superior playability year round to our previous cool season blend.

The first big roll of Santa Anna Hybrid Bermuda about to be made into sprigs on #1 fairway
June 28, 2021

Starting the sprigging on #1. GM Kevin Marshall is so excited.

Hard to believe this turned into fairway turf.

Fairways we started playing on 4 - 5 months later.

Fairways we are playing on a year later.

10 months after sprigging

Fine Tuning Continues

We have been continuing to fine tune this young golf course since the 2021 renovation and are starting to see some expected and unexpected issues that will need immediate and long term attention. The expected items include irrigation of Hybrid Bermuda fairways directly adjacent to cool season rough and installation of drainage to move surface water off of the plying surfaces where it now accumulates. 

Surface Drainage

Drainage work after a renovation or on a new golf course is pretty normal. These areas become evident after either sustained rain in the winter or after you start irrigating. We didn't get much rain this past season and when it did rain it rained in buckets, then dried out relatively quickly. Although many of these drainage areas were known, we started seeing others when we started to irrigate. We've been making irrigation adjustments to buy some time knowing that we would sooner rather then later have to start installing surface drainage. Sooner has come, and we will begin installing drains on #10 approach and #12 fairway the week of July 4, 2022. I'll do a course update then on process, plans and progress of this surface drainage work.

Approach on #10. The contours of this area in particular were all changed in 2021 and the necessity of a surface drain very predictable. If we reduce irrigation in the area too much to dry the approach area down,  the tall fescue surrounding the bunker at the top of the picture will really struggle. This is a great example of an area that needs a surface drain now, and some supplemental irrigation to independently water the fescue in the future

Supplemental Irrigation

I've mentioned irrigation on the edges of fairways and rough as being a big challenge. This challenge won't go away with irrigation programing and adjustments in many cases. Bottom line we have cool season and warm season turf growing right next to one another with different irrigation needs and wants that are irrigated with the same irrigation heads in many cases. The above picture illustrates this well. The ultimate solution will basically be supplemental irrigation in our cool season rough areas that will provide adequate independent irrigation. 

I am hoping to make a starting push on this work during the Winter of 2022. Much more to come on this as it will be a key to our success in the future. Below illustration of the beginning of the fairway on #10 is another simple example of what we are facing now, and planning for the future solutions.  

Above is a copy of a new updated irrigation map. Blue 10F #'s indicate fairway head's, red 10R #'s indicate  rough head's. If you locate 10F1 & 10F2 you will see by their proximity to the rough /  fairway line that they irrigate both cool season rough turf as well as warm season fairway turf. One area can get dry very easily, while simultaneously the other is wet. Short term help can be achieved by installing a surface drain. Long term solution will be  installing supplemental irrigation for the cool season rough.

Unexpected Circumstances

The one unexpected issue I have observed so far with our new Santa Anna Hybrid Bermuda fairways is seedhead production and how it can affect aesthetics particularly in the spring.  Most varieties of Hybrid Bermuda do produce sterol seed heads on stems or stalks that don't  cut very well when mowing and leave a straw like appearance. 

The Santa Lucia Preserve Golf Club in Carmel Valley is a golf club I toured in 2017 in preparation for our Santa Anna conversion as they had converted their fairways to Santa Anna a few years prior. The Santa Anna fairways at "The Preserve" are what I consider the gold standard for Santa Anna fairways, and what we are striving for here at Granite Bay. They are dealing with the same issues like seedhead production and irrigating cool season rough next to their Santa Anna Fairways. The Preserve's Superintendent shared with me last week, a study that was just concluded at The Preserve by Dr. James Beard from UCR on Santa Annas seedhead production. Dr. Beard and his department are probably the most active turfgrass researcher's in California and a valuable resource for Golf Course Superintendents in the state on a variety of turf issues.

The study's results will be available shortly with good news on timing and application of  certain products that  can prevent seedhead production and the straw coloration associated with it.

Above is a good closeup of Santa Anna seedhead.

Clean Santa Anna Fairway after seedheads were removed with vertical mowing

Granite Bay Golf Club. What a Treat!

Last week I got these pictures of Granite Bay wildlife one morning at sunrise and wanted to share. 

Conclusion

The good news, as far as I am concerned, is we have a superior turf to what we had and complete irrigation coverage and system, including a new pump station to irrigate this turf. Additionally we are in a part of the State, that at least at the moment, have a adequate water source to irrigate with. That being said, we will have a water conservation story to tell this year and  in the future at Granite Bay, and have an even better story to tell farther in the future when we have the enhancements in place that I spoke of above. 

The first birthday of fairway sprigging brings to my mind at least, of how far we have come since last year. There is much left to be done which seems formidable at times, but much has been accomplished since that first sprig hit the ground on June 28th, 2021. Our work continues. Thanks for your patience and support. The Best Is Yet To Come.

Pond Windows - A Work In Progress

Last season we purchased a piece of equipment called a Ventrac. The Ventrac is a very versatile piece of equipment with numerous applications and attachments that was purchased to replace an old rough mower we used to mow what we refer to as "native areas". These "native areas", like the banks of the pond on #1 & #9, the section of rough between #14 green & #15 tee's, are areas that prior to the purchase of the new Ventrac, were mowed with older rough mowers that had now been retired to native mowing, as these areas are typically very rough and rock & stump ridden.

Enrique mowing with the Ventrac along the steep pond edge on #3

When we first took it out and mowed the pond banks on #1 & #9 we found out just how versatile  the tractor really was. It allowed us to cut back years of encroaching vegetation including aquatic bulrush and cattail's. In doing so we opened up "windows" on both pond edges which we now plan to enhance and maintain.

We always knew these banks were not properly irrigated to sustain desirable turfgrass and had been on our irrigation expansion list for quite some time. However the old vegetation obscured the banks from view of the clubhouse or restaurant so irrigation expansion in the area maintained a B to C level of priority. Now that the area's had been opened up, this irrigation expansion rose to an A level priority because,  first things first, we need adequate irrigation coverage to have good turfgrass and these areas are very visible and exposed.

GBGC installing adequate irrigation to pond edges on #1 & #9 earlier this year 

New irrigation in operation on #1 pond bank.

Once the irrigation was installed and in use, it became obvious that for this change to be truly successful we would need to eradicate the weeds prior to seeding, in particular the nasty Dallasgrass infestation, which was the dominant weed species on these pond banks. Dallasgrass is very difficult to eradicate as it is a perennial weed that need's eradication from the leaves and stems all the way down to the roots or it will just come back.

A dallasgrass plant that escaped recent treatment on the pond bank of #9. You recognize it now dont you! This stuff is nasty and almost impossible to play golf out of. 

 # 9 bank in its current state after a few treatments to eradicate the dallasgrass. 

We still have some weed eradication to do and some minor grading work near the new left-hand fairway bunker on #9. Again to be totally successful, we really need to eradicate all the weeds, especially the dallasgrass.  This like everything else we are trying to wrap up on the course takes time.

I think we are all going to enjoy the aesthetics of this project when complete. It might even keep balls from traveling into the pond. Time will tell. We just wanted to let everyone know what's going on over there.

Goose Patrol

 Any of us who have been either playing golf or working on the golf course this spring couldn't of helped but notice the increased Canadian Geese population and the excrement they leave behind. Each goose can eat four pounds of grass per day which turns into two pounds of you know what. Geese believe it or not, are still state and federally protected under laws and regulations within the Migratory Bird Treaty Act and the California Fish and Game Code.

#12 seems to be the new hang out spot for migratory geese. Easy access to food and the lake for escape predators is my guess as to why they now like this location.

It is legal to utilize non-lethal hazing methods to pressure migratory geese to depart the golf course, but the hazing pressure must be maintained so the geese population doesn't get comfortable and start to nest and make granite Bay Golf Club their home. Granite Bay is a very desirable nesting location for geese as we have wide open food sources, safety with pond escapes as well many hidden nesting locations in the riparian areas. And despite all of our hazing efforts there are always a few families that escape the hazing pressure and hatch here every year. 

A few Gaggle's  of geese are tolerable and fit our  Audubon Signature Sanctuary Status, but if all of the migratory geese pairs that pass through GBGC were allowed to propagate we would have one mess on our hand, particularly as legal hazing efforts are substantially limited  when goslings cannot fly.

Gaggles of geese are inevitable here at GBGC. We do try to put extra pressure on during mating season to prevent inundation, but a few always slip through. 

I believe the new renovation, opening up the course has made Granite Bay more desirable  this year and is the reason for our increased population. We have over the years utilized many hazing and deterrent methods from realistic coyote manikins to lasers  and flashing lights in the ponds, as well as spraying  non toxic deterrents on the turf. The only process that has consistently worked to keep the population to a manageable level, has been hazing with trained Border Collie's.

Some of us remember the very realistic coyote scare crows we used to have on the course. Even with frequent moving of the twenty or so that we had, the geese figured them out, rendering this hazing method ineffective.

Granite Bay has been using Dog & Whistle Goose Control since 2009 to legally harass the goose population. Recently we did have to step up the pressure to get some of the troublesome populations that that had figured out our hazing patterns. The extra pressure has made a difference and populations have substantially decreased since early spring. Again having a few geese around fits Granite Bay which is a good thing because getting rid every goose all the time is probably not possible.

Jane from Dog & Whistle Goose Control speaks with a group of Granite Bay kids during a nature walk right here at granite Bay Golf Club in 2011

Vertical Mowing Fairways

We started verticle mowing the fairways this week to groom the turf and mechanically remove seed head stalks that have developed this spring on our Santa Anna Hybrid Bermuda fairways. This seed head is obstructing the green grass blades and contributing to the brownish  color of our fairways this spring.  Hybrid bermuda does produce a seed head, as does all turf grass varieties, but like poa annua can produce seed heads at close mowing heights. The seed produced from all hybrid bermuda  seed heads is not viable which is why all hybrid bermuda varieties need to be propagated with either sprigs, like we did last year, or by sod, like we did to #17 in 2019 as our beta for the  hybrid bermuda conversion in 2021.

Its common to see seed head on Santa Anna or any hybrid bermuda in mid May through beginning of June. This year has been different with the alternating  hot & cold & rainy  periods we have been having. Colleagues with whom I've spoken with, that have more Santa Anna experience, are reporting the weather is the likely culprit for more then normal seed head production. I also believe the immaturity of our Santa Anna Fairways  has created a situation for more heightened seed head production. As the fairway surfaces mature, I believe we wont see the volume of seed head we are seeing in year one. 

Vertical mowing of the fairways will definitely help groom the seed head out of the fairways and promote tight verticle growth, which is what we want. We started this process for the first time on our fairways on Monday 5/16/22 and finished the front nine on Tuesday 5/17/22. We will do the same to holes 10-13 on Wednesday 5/18/22 and finish the back nine on holes 15-18 on Thursday 5/19/22. The next time we do this we can likely finish the front nine on a closed Monday, then take a couple mornings to finish the back nine. We are going need to do this 4 to 5 times this initial season and likely 3 times at least in subsequent seasons. As a reminder, all cultural practices such as these will always be done when the Santa Anna is actively growing. None of these types of activities will be done fall through early spring, just late spring through summer. Its a small window admittedly, but hybrid bermuda recovers almost immediately from these activities and needs these practices to tighten up as well as .....

"More Sand"

Old Tom Morris's famous battle cry
"More Sand"

A Picture is Worth A Thousand Words

Close-up of Santa Anna seed head. Seed head stalks don't cut easily, and when stripped of dark purplish seed  turn brown contributing to brownish hue in fairways this spring.

Vertical mowing will groom out the seed head and trim horizontal hybrid bermuda runners 
creating more upright verticle growth. 

Close up of the verticle mowing blades. Currently the depth of penetration when  of these blades is fairly shallow at 1/4" when cutting unit is set down on the turf surface. There will come a point we will need to go deeper but not this year.

After the verticle mowing we have to sweep up the debris 

After sweeping we mow. Mowers are currently set at .400", which is slightly below 1/2". Mowing is necessary as verticle mowing stands leaf blades and seed head stems up and they need to get mowed flat to promote new growth.

After a double cut with the fairway mower,  we need to blow the remaining clippings off of the fairway. So you can see the 4 step process take's 4 GCM EP's 5 hours ahead of member play to complete about 4 holes. You should start to see a difference in fairway texture and color very quickly and combine this with a full course fertility application next Monday we should be looking at some very thick and green conditions come Memorial Day.

I want to remind everyone that  we are still culturing and growing in turf from the renovation of 2021 and a earlier course update addressing Tying Up Loose Ends, from only March said it best at the end. 

It will still take some time to complete what was started in February of 2021 at Granite Bay Golf Club. It's that simple. It needs a couple of birthdays. I believe this golf course will be great in 2022 as many of the establishment and grow-in issues will be a thing of the past. But I also believe this course has the potential to be even better in 2023 and beyond as it matures even further and accumulates yet another years worth of topdressing sand. Everything we need to accomplish this is in place.

• The right turf 
• The right plan
• The right partnerships

All we need now is time. 

Thanks for your patience and support

Driving Range Tee Back On Grass

Below is a message from our  Head Golf Professional Michael Nicoletti announcing the re-opening of the grass tee on the driving range. Great graphic as well. It totally makes sense that the new Hybrid Bermuda will recover very quickly with this wear pattern. Thanks Mike!  

Granite Bay Golf Club is happy to announce that we will begin utilizing our new and expanded grass teeing area on the driving range. We will be using the grass range tee Thursday through Sunday beginning this week. We are excited to be able to offer this upgraded practice experience. The driving range will continue regular hours, 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. On days we use the front of the tee, there will be a restriction on the length of shots. Please make sure to observe any signage or distance limitations on these days. We appreciate your support.

When using the driving range, to have it in pristine condition for you as much as possible, please find how to use grass areas in the picture below. Making strips of divots by hitting balls from the back of the previous divot will allow the grass to grow back almost twice as quickly. Please try to remember this when out getting some range time in.  

Topdressing & Golf Carts

This past week marked some  significant events here at Granite Bay Golf Club Golf Course Maintenance. First the completion of our first post renovation Fairway Topdressing and second the return of golf carts on the course. The fairway topdressing went as planned, and I think showed us the potential of what subsequent topdressings this year and beyond will do to these new Santa Anna Hybrid Bermuda Fairways. 

The carts getting back on the course just happened yesterday, 5/5/22, and I'm sure carts back on the course was a very welcome change for many members. Unfortunately, I dident order enough of the  black stakes with white tips we are using as on and off  gates I mentioned in last weeks update. So we improvised with some of the shorter stakes we used in the past. More proper stakes to arrive next week and I'm sorry about any confusion the smaller stakes might have caused in the short term. 

Here are some Pictures

Above are the gates we will use throughout the course
as planned.

Great example of Granite Bay Member, Don Darst not driving on the course when it wasn't necessary even though cart path only restrictions had been lifted.

Temporarily we are using some of these small stakes for gates. 

Topdressing Fairways at 50 tons per acre last week.

After allowing the sand to dry a little, we drag it into the Santa Anna Hybrid Bermuda turf canopy.

After dragging, before irrigation which moves sand further into turf canopy.

If you were playing golf this past week you probably noticed another project we started and completed. We installed irrigation to water the pond banks on #1 & #9. This irrigation allows us to water these fairly steep banks independently of the new Hybrid Bermuda which will have a much lower irrigation requirement then the pond bank of what we plan to convert to cool season tall fescue. In order to accomplish that we needed to have independent irrigation.

And here is the new irrigation in operation.