The Wee One Foundation

I just wanted to share this video with you regarding the Wee One Foundation.  I'd look to both Wayne Otto and Rod Johnson for advice when I found myself with questions I couldn't figure out on my own.  FYI:  While I wasn't in the video, Rod did mention volunteer superintendents that helped prep the course for the event.  (My job was to empty grass clippings from mower baskets into a manure spreader and then finally spread those clippings in out of play rough areas.)



If you would like more information or you would like to play in the event yourself, please feel free to call me for more information. _Mk

Red Solo Cups

Sorry, but its a Kienert tradition to "Pre Celebrate" another Badger FB victory by using a Red Solo Cup for a simple pregame Bloody....  Enjoy Toby Keith's CMT video.

Red Solo Cup - Toby Keith - Toby Keith Videos

When Cart Paths Bleed.

Touring your golf course to see how well our "Smiley" surface drains were working I was reminded of a blog idea I wanted to post from a few weeks back.

With the holidays and football, it just fell off the table I guess.  With the recent warm weather and rains that followed a week long cold snap and with knowledge not all golf courses in the State closed for winter, I wanted to post this head scratchier.  "When cart paths bleed."

Because "Winter Kill" is a very real and costly concern for courses in Wisconsin, I've often wondered if I could link some of the turfs injury to the frost as it leaves the soil.  Late season play is generally based on the leaves and never on the soils condition.  The main premise of my concern is based on the phenomenon in some of the photo's seen below.

Question; At what time does play, cart traffic cause significant loss of turf grass and at what time should we as responsible turf grass managers close the course for the season to protect your greatest asset, the golf course for the year?

In the photo's you can clearly see moisture on the turf grass leaves following leave debris removal by our blowing equipment. These wheel prints could have just as easily been formed by golf cart tires.  You have to really look closely to see the outline of a footprint but trust me it is there.  It is more visible on closely cut greens but hidden from our view today due to our recent heavy winter coat of topdressings.

Winter injury caused by play, carts and equipment will be a topic of discussion for years to come as we continue witnessing climate change.  As golf course managers, we all know the "How and Why" turf dies, we just have never been able to identify "When" turf dies!  (but we all know what it looks like and we both can agree, we don't like seeing it when it's there before our eyes.) _Mk

Superintendent Movie

supt movie
by: gulfdiver

Vista's restored

Taking advantage of the weather (snowless course) work continued on tree and Sumac removals on the Club house hillside and the "original #4 fairway" of the Stiles and VanKleck's 1922 design of Bull's Eye Country Club.

I'm always amazed at the capacity of growth of the Sumac plant.  Some canes cut down were at least eight feet in height!  (The sumac plants are stabilizing an unsettled excessively steep bank keeping the club house patio and putting green from sliding into the river...barely.)

Twelve man hours later (counting the man taking this photo,) your view up river has been restored.

Here is a view looking down "old #4" or as you would know it today as a look from #10 green down onto #16 fairway.  The white pines had grown to a height of 24 - 30 feet at the time of this removal.

FYI:  Those trees were planted in the spring of 1987 or 1988.  Trees were "grubbed from the woods" and planted primarily to thwart winter sledding by the general public trespassing on our private property.  The sledders would stand on #10 green compacting the snow into ice killing the putting surface below.  By now most of you know first hand what winter kill looks like after this season of misery.  _Mk