How Come the Course is So Dry?

It seems hard to believe that the golf course could be this dry considering the torrential rains we had back in May and June.  However, our typical dry, warm summer weather pattern has settled in and much of the soil moisture that was in the ground is now gone.  To put in perspective, just how much it has changed, we've only received .75" of rain since July 9th.  During this same time, our daily ET rates have averaged over .16".  ET is an acronym for evapotranspiration, which is a measurement of water lost from the soil by a combination of water evaporating into the atmosphere and water that is used, or transpired, by the turf.  That means that almost 5" of moisture has been lost out of the ground since July 9th, while only receiving .75" of rain.  Now, of course we have irrigation to help compensate for the lack of rain, but with almost 11 million gallons of water that has been lost out of the ground over the past 5 weeks, our water supply is running low.  As you can see from the picture below, our irrigation pond has dropped almost two feet.  Almost two weeks ago, we began our summer water conservation program to keep as much water in our ponds as possible.  As you play the course over the next few weeks, you'll continue to see the Bermuda go dormant.  Please know that although the turf will turn brown, we are watering just enough to keep it alive and once the rain returns, the course will bounce back and look as green as it did earlier this summer.

As always, if you have any questions, or concerns, please feel free to contact anyone in the grounds department.  Thank you.