Tee to Green - December

The Downs Course

Looking back on December, the weather has changed again and most of this month the course has been frozen solid with temperatures getting down to as low a -5c at times. This has halted some of our recovery works and projects, such as overseeding and restoring the 11th bunker faces. With the ground being frozen we have concentrated on woodland management and raising canopies behind the 10th green and 9th tees. We have also tidied some of the thrift that was left behind when the estate pipeline was being installed through the valley holes.

We had a visit from our agronomy team and it is pleasing to see the greens improving which are disease free into the Christmas period and have an increased root depth, which is at its deepest since I have been here.

Reflecting back on this year, it has been a tough year with the extreme weather we have had. Especially with a heat and lack of rainfall in the summer months, adding onto to that an aging irrigation system that caused a lot of issues during the playing season. We had a good recovery period in the autumn with good temperatures, which brought back a lot of the grass, however due to the soil make up / profile on The Downs course, some areas remain patchy. November was a wash out with over 11 inches of rain recorded at the end of the month.

Looking forward we will continue our woodland management work and start to cut and collect the longer natural rough and flail into woodland copses. We will be raising green sprinkler heads over the winter to create a more uniformed water spray over the greens and better coverage.

Posts and rope will be added and moved throughout the winter. Please walk around this as we are trying to protect the course for the main playing season in 2023.

Lastly we wish you a very Happy Christmas and New Year from all the greenstaff. We look forward to continuing to improve the course next year!

Look forward to seeing you on the course!

Rob Dyer, Head Greenkeeper, The Downs Course

The Park Course

The weather gave us a challenging year on The Park Course!

Extreme heat throughout the summer on what was the driest year on record apparently!
So, we were always going to get some rain and November provided us just that. 318mm which is over 12.5inches of rain so it was no surprise that we were closed 13 days throughout the month. But despite the weather, the course is at its best for the time of year, no disease scars on greens healthy grass coverage on all surfaces.

The GKB sand filler was hired in to remove the thatch layer in the top 25mm and replace with sand.

We have put down 150 tonnes of sand this year to help dilute thatch and make for a smoother, quicker, firmer putting surface.

Aeration, Aeration, Aeration - all year on all surfaces is key. From 10mm tine at 75mm depth up to 13mm tine going to 200mm depth. To improve root development and relieve compaction and aid drainage.

Fairways

Due to the long hot summer and the fact that the park doesn’t have fairway irrigation the fairways have suffered through the draught. There is a lot of dormant growth that has laid flat which will obstruct any new growth coming through. To give new shoots a chance to come through we needed to rake out the dead stems and stand the plant up.

The below picture of the 1^st fairway was taken in December. Excellent definition and healthy grass coverage.

I’m sure you will agree that the fairways are the best they have ever been in winter. That is quite an achievement when you consider the brutal weather condition we have had throughout the year.

Merry Christmas and have a Happy New Year!

See you on the course!

Simon Berry, Head Greenkeeper, The Park Course