As of today, September 19th, we have completed 90% of our aerification process. Both of our fairway aerators developed mechanical problems, one will be fixed in the next several days. The other will require more time and probably won't be ready until next year. Because of the problems, we have decided to solid tine the back nine fairways to finish the process. Our final aerating will be in the roughs, which will be attempted next week.
As part of the process, you will have noticed we have fertilized as well, pretty much wall to wall. The greens are progressing nicely with a very quick recovery. The current weather has been a big help for healing in the holes. Within another week green speeds will have totally recovered and you should see speeds up around 10 or 10 1/2 on the stimp meter. We are planning to verticut and lightly sand on next Monday the 24th. This process will help smooth out some of the bumpiness that can creep in after aerification.
In case your wondering why we waited to aerate the putting green, we simply wanted to provide as much practice area while we were closed during aerification week . It should be back in good condition as well within a couple of weeks.
In trying to push the sand down on the greens with our watering practices, you may experience some wet areas in the surrounds on some greens and tees. This is normal due to the inability of our sprinkler system to apply water to just the greens and specific areas on the tees. Please be patient as these will continue to get better as we back off the water.
A big thank you goes out to my crew who worked very hard to get all of the aeration processes done by Wednesday. They did an outstanding job.
As we prepare for the fall and winter months, I'd like to thank our members for their patience during this process. I know things get a little messy out there during this time.
