Course Update

Winter wonderland!

Covers coming off for hopefully the last time

    Spring is in the air and a lot is happening around the golf course!  Last week, we hopefully had our last greens covering event and winter storm.  The course received 2-3 inches of snow last Friday that helped insulate the greens from the 14 degree low Saturday morning.  Thankfully after Saturday, we quickly warmed up and uncovered Sunday.  From there, we jumped right into tournament preparations for the Rogers State University Hillcat Invitational last Monday and Tuesday.  We hosted numerous division II teams and by all accounts, the course played well and feedback was positive. 

Regarding the greens, anyone that has played in the last few weeks can see that they look kinda funny.  While at first glance it may be concerning, our team has thoroughly inspected all the greens and although some areas of greens look void of any green grass, there are viable stolons and other plant parts under the surface.  This means that these brownish areas, are just more dormant that other parts of the green and we fully expect these areas to quickly green up once the temperatures warm up consistently and we get further into spring.

Over the past few weeks, the team has been working hard to not only prepare the golf course for play, but finishing our winter to-do list so we can begin all the spring tasks that will set the turf up for a successful growing season.  The team has been busy working on irrigation repairs, painting equipment parking spaces in the shop, removing/pruning trees, repairing cart path sections on #9 and #11 and installed a new stone path at clubhouse. 

Spring is not only a transition for the turf, but for our staff.  This week we welcomed back several seasonal greenskeepers from last year.  We are grateful for them returning this year and already our department feels more productive.  We still have a long way to go before we are fully staffed, but we feel that we are off to a positive start.  Over the coming weeks, we will be interviewing candidates and on-boarding new hires.  This is always an exciting time as we get to know all these new faces and get them trained and ready for the demands of another golf season.

Greens Covering

    

    Without a doubt, the biggest health risk for ultradwarf Bermuda greens in Oklahoma is winter injury.  Ultradwarf Bermuda greens love our long, hot and humid summers, but our winters get plenty cold enough to warrant covering them with tarps to protect them.  The decision to cover greens, or not, is largely based on if the temperature drops below 25 degrees for more than 4 hours.  Greens will remain covered until the weather goes above 40 degrees for more than 4 hours.  If not, the greens will remain covered until such conditions occur.  Once the grounds department decides to uncover the greens, they will begin once the temperatures reach 40 degrees, or the frost has lifted.  Tee times made during this time of year should be considered tentative and subject to change on short notice depending on the weather.  The best thing for golfers to do is call the pro shop to check on the availability of the course before they arrive. 

    Although we are new to the covering process, thanks to the experience and leadership of our Assistant Superintendent, Shane Brown, our team has acclimated to the task quickly.  The first time we covered, it took 6 people 5 hours.  Now we have it down to 2.5 hours with 8 people. Covering greens was something I was anxious about since it is labor intensive and we don't have a very big crew (there's only 4 of us).  Thankfully, we have such an amazing team, here at Bailey Ranch, that staff throughout the facility continues to step up and help.  We routinely get 8-10 volunteers to help out, which makes the process so much faster and easier on everyone.  Our GM, Head Professional, F&B manager, cart staff, and members have all gotten in on the action.  So grateful to be a part of such a special group.  We've turned covering greens, which many consider to be to big of a downside, into a team building exercise.  Everyone is engaged, committed and pushing each other to get the job done.  

    So far this winter, we have had to covered/uncover greens 5 times since New Years Eve, for a total of 26 days covered out of 41.  That's a cover rate of 63%!  Talking to other superintendents around the state that also have Bermuda greens, it sounds like the frequency and duration of the covering events is unusual.  I've been told that, although each winter is different, typically courses will cover 5-8 times on average and the duration may only be a few days each time.  Despite the unusually cold past 6 weeks, the covers seem to be doing their job and the greens look great.  Hoping for an early start to spring so we can stay open and get the growing season underway!    

Driving Range Tee Overseed

On October 5th, the grounds crew closed the east half of the driving range tee to begin the overseeding process.  We decided to overseed the driving range tee with Perennial Ryegrass to give our members and guests green grass to hit off of during winter.  We hadn't done this for many years, but decided with all the recent course improvements, this additional amenity was something we could do to bring even more value to the golfing experience at Bailey Ranch.  The recently upgraded driving range tee irrigation allows us to more easily halve the tee so we could close one side and water in the seed as needed, while leaving the other side of the tee open for play.  

On Tuesday October 12th, we mowed the seedlings for the first time and a week later, on October 19th, we opened the east side to play and seeded the west side.  The west side has taken a few days longer to germinate, and establish enough to open, due to colder weather, but we will be ready to open entire tee to regular use on Tuesday November 9th.  

Winterkill Recovery

One of the biggest unexpected jobs that we had to contend with this summer during our greens renovation was repairing the winterkill damage that occured this past winter.  As you may recall back in February, we spent over 300 hours below freezing, almost breaking a 40 year old record for consecutive hours below 32 degrees.  Not to mention, the snow we did get during the coldest part of that two week event blew off many of our north slopes and hill tops.  This exposed the Bermudagrass to some of the coldest air we've seen in a generation (-14 actual).  Predictably, many areas on the fairways and roughs didn't survive.  So, along with the work required to prepare and grow in the new tees, greens and collars, we had to sod cut, remove the dead turf and resod many areas throughout the golf course.  I'd estimate we lost almost 10% of the bermuda on the golf course (8 acres). Our team has spent hundreds of hours this summer laying sod with the goal to be filled in by opening day.  As of today, our team has laid over 60 pallets of sod on fairways and surrounds.

As you can see from the pictures below, we are still growing in areas and will likely not have all the repaired turf grown in to the extent you can't see the sod lines.  There will be visible sod lines and/or sprigged areas that will need time this fall to fill in before winter.  Please help us by keeping carts off these areas until they finish filling in.

Damaged turf was sod cut and removed

#11 all ready for new sod!

Once new sod is laid and begins to root, it is shaved down to height

After a few weeks, the new sod acclimates to the new cutting height. Sod lines will be gone by next summer

TifEagle Grow-in

 One of the most critical phases of the project was to sprig then grow in the new grass on the greens.  As I've shown in previous posts, an enormous amount of work went into preparing the new greens for sprigs.  This work can be seen here.  Once the new sprigs are down, the grow-in phase begins.  As you can see from the photos below, this grass gets settled over the first week or two then takes off.  It has been so impressive to watch this grass spread and fill in so quickly.  Within the first 6 weeks, the greens went from sand with sprigs to 100% coverage.  I can't say enough great things about the vigor and resiliency of this grass.  

Now that the greens are 100% filled in and we about 3 weeks out from opening day, we are phasing from grow-in mode to maintenance mode.  We are backing off fertilizing, increasing mowing and rolling frequency, verticutting and topdressing each week to work on surface texture and smoothness.  The team has been working hard all summer and we can see the finish line approaching.  They are determined to make these greens as good as they can be for opening day and I have no doubt our members and guests will be pleased with the finished product.  I know I am!  

Putting Green Day 1

Putting Green Day 7

Putting Green Day 28    

Putting Green Day 52

Putting Green Day 76

#1 Putting Green

You can see the original green dug out and the new green marked in orange paint

One of the main objectives for our greens renovation project was to increase the size of the putting green behind #1 tee box.  This green has long been a popular spot for golfers to spend some time while they wait for their tee time at the first tee.  On busy weekend mornings, there can be quite a few people trying to use this green.  The biggest issue we've had over there is that the green is way too small.  If more than a few people try to use it at a time, it gets too crowded to be useful.  I knew if we were going to keep the green, we needed to take the opportunity and make it more functional.  The new green will be considerably bigger than the old one.  As you can see from the picture above, this green will increase in size from approximately 900 sq.ft. to 3,000 sq.ft!  With such a large increase in size, we expect to be able to have 2-3 holes on that green and be able to handle a lot more golfers, which will help give everyone somewhere to practice on those busy weekend mornings.  We cannot wait to unveil this new practice green to our members and guests this fall!

   

Excavating the new green cavity

Green cavity dug out and ready for drainage and gravel

Installing new drainage pipe and 4" gravel layer

New practice green all finished and sprigged!

Sprigs are down!

Sprigs are spread by hand to ensure uniform coverage

 The first phase of TifEagle bermudagrass sprigs, from Pike Creek Turf, went down on the putting green, chipping green, #9, #10, #17 and #18 last week!  Since then, we've been using our new sprinkler heads around those greens to keep the surface wet and will do so for the next 10-14 days until we begin to see root and shoot initiation.  Then we'll begin backing off the amount and frequency of water until we get to full coverage.  Talking with colleagues that have gone through this process before, it sounds like we will mow them for the first time around the beginning of week 3!  It's hard to believe that in 3 weeks, we will go from what you see now to a green that needs mowed.  We will also begin fertilizing the greens aggressively during the second week and will continue for the remainder of the grow-in process.  The folks at Pike Creek tell me that we should expect to see 100% coverage of the greens in approximately 45 days.  Then it's all about improving density and lowering the mowing height to improve surface quality until we open Labor Day weekend!

Once spread, they are cut in with this machine to ensure soil contact

Finished product!  Doesn't look like much, but will begin to root in and grow like crazy in a week or so

#12 Green Expansion

One of the goals of this greens renovation, besides expanding all the greens back to their original dimensions, is to take the opportunity to soften some slopes and flatten pinnable areas to make the greens more playable.  One of the bigger adjustments we have planned is to increase the front pin area on #12.  We are adding approximately 1,250 square feet to the front of the green which will substantially improve accessibility from approaching shots and make putting on this pin area much more feasible.  As you can see in the picture above, Fleetwood is beginning to remove the soil and make the shape of the new front edge.  Once the soil is removed, they will begin installing the necessary drainage pipe, gravel and greens mix to match the existing greens profile.  Over the next few days, they will complete this work so the whole green can be rototilled and the rest of the process can continue as we get ready to spring these back nine greens sometime late next week.  We are excited to complete this work and I'll be sure to post some pictures of this area once the final contours are set and we're ready for sprigs!

Greens expansion on front of #12

Greens/Irrigation Renovation Update

All treated turf was cut 1" deep

On May 3rd, with the irrigation phase of the project successfully complete, Fleetwood Services came to town to begin the greens renovation phase of the project. May 3rd was, not only the day we closed to the public for the summer, but was also a big day for our team. We went out and sod cut all greens, collars and tee boxes as the first step in the project. This ended up being about 280,000 square feet with only 4 sod cutters and 6 guys taking turns! It only took them 2.5 days and I couldn't be more proud of their efforts. 

Once the sod was cut, the contractor began loading all the cut turf and hauling it to the parking lot to be store for removal off-site. The following week, another crew showed up with more equipment so they could move twice as fast through the process. As of today, 5/19, they have 6 greens ready for sprigs, 6 more that are about 7-10 days from sprigs and the last group of greens are a few weeks away from sprigs. This puts us on time or slightly ahead of schedule. Now we just need to keep the rain from complicating things. The weather forecast doesn't look good, but the guys at Fleetwood will do their best to carry on despite the weather. 

Cut turf is removed to prepare sprigbed

Our team is excited to begin the grow-in phase of the greens project! We've been planning and organizing supplies and materials for weeks leading up to this and the new grass will be here before we know it! I'll make sure to update the blog at least a few more times throughout the project to be sure everyone stays up to date. As always, if you have questions regarding the project, leave a comment, or contact the pro shop. Thanks, and can't wait to see everyone on the course this fall!

Tee boxes cut and stripped for new sod

Bermuda contamination removed from inside edge of green

Rototilled 8" deep 2 directions

Final shaping complete and ready for sprigs!

#11 Bridge Project Complete!

It's been a hectic few months, since we rolled right from the bridge replacement project into the greens and irrigation project, but I wanted to take a minute and provide the final update on the bridge project now that it's complete. In early February, American Native Ventures, put the finishing touches on the bridge project and it was opened up to cart traffic on February 5th. We couldn't be happier with the outcome and look forward to having this bridge for many decades to come!

Irrigation System Upgrades

 The irrigation system upgrades have begun this week!  Yesterday was the first day the contractor was out on the golf course exposing valves in preparation to install the new irrigation control wire for the irrigation system.  Today they began plowing the wire from the shop through the back nine.  The contractor will need a day or so on each hole to install the new wire, pipe and sprinkler heads.  Please be mindful of the crews safety and avoid playing the hole that they are working on.  There will be signage in the pro shop and on the hole they are working on to remind golfers not to play that hole.  We appreciate your cooperation and are excited to get the improved irrigation system up and running soon!

As always, if you have questions or would like to know more about the work being completed, feel free to contact myself or the pro shop for more details.

Thanks and see you out on the course!

Greens/Irrigation Renovation Project

 As you play the golf course over the next few months, it will be hard to miss the red lines that have been drawn around the greens.  These lines show the location of the original greens edges that were built back in 1992.  Locating these edges is the first step of the greens renovation project that is kicking off during the summer of 2021!  We are very excited for this project to get underway.  Expanding the greens is only one of several goals we hope to accomplish with this project.  The main goal of the renovation is to convert the old Bentgrass greens to TifEagle ultradwarf Bermudagrass.  Bermudagrass will give us the ability to have firm, smooth, fast greens every summer regardless of the weather.  Bailey Ranch was designed as a links golf course where firm, bouncy conditions create a focus on the ground game.  Golfers don't often get the full intent of our design since our Bentgrass greens are slow and soft throughout the summer.  Bentgrass can survive our summers, with lots of care, but doesn't allow us to create this desirable playing surface due to us focusing entirely on turf survivability.  Bermuda greens will allow us to optimize our conditions to suit the demands of our members and guests throughout the golf season, when they are here.  Often, our Bentgrass is best from fall through spring, when fewer customers can enjoy it.  

Greens won't be the only improvements being made during this project.  Irrigation upgrades and Par 3 tee box laser grading and sodding are planned as part of the project.  The irrigation system as become increasingly unreliable and accuracy of our water applications has always been an issue.  These upgrades will increase our control and accuracy of how we water which will, in turn, reduce our water usage and improve the overall health and playability of the golf course.  The Par 3 tee boxes have become severally crowned over the decades from divots being taken and sand topdressing being applied.  The tee tops have become so sloped that often I hear from golfers that they have trouble finding flat lies on the tee box.  We are very excited to be able to address this issue while making these other improvements.  

#11 Bridge Update

 

Hard to believe it's been a year since I last updated the blog regarding the bridge on #11.  Although it may not seem like much has happened to the bridge, there is a reason the project was delayed.  Last year, after I wrote the last post, the project went to bid and the bids that came in were over budget.  Therefore, we rejected the bids and went back to the drawing board.  Since this is such an invasive project and we would need to close the back nine while the bridge is out, it was determined that we'd need to wait to do the project during the off-season.  Therefore, we planned to re advertise in fall and begin the work in December of 2020.  

With this in mind, I'm happy to report that the bridge renovation on #11 is underway!  On December 7th, the contractor began working on the project and has already made progress.  Demolition of the west cart path approach and preparations for the west side bridge abutment have begun.  Once the west side bridge abutment is finished, they will demolish the old bridge and begin building the abutment on the east side.  After both abutments are finished, the new bridge will be lifted into place and the new cart paths will be poured on each side of the bridge.  Lastly, any necessary grading and sod work will be done to finish off the project.  Barring weather delays, the contractor expects to finish the project around the end of January.  

We are really excited for this project to get finished and cannot wait to see the finished product when it's complete.  As always, we understand this improvement project is disruptive to the golf experience and appreciate your continued patience while we complete this project!  If you have any questions or comments, please feel free to contact the Grounds Department.

                                                                                                                            Thank you!

Sneak peek of the new bridge!  Can't wait to see it in it's new home!

2020.....A look back.

 While it's safe to say that 2020 has been....let's just call it what it is - a dumpster fire.  All of us have been affected negatively is some way by the pandemic.  Economic uncertainty, health concerns, personal struggles and a contentious election had us all on edge this past year.  Fortunately for Bailey Ranch Golf Club, golf re-emerged as a great recreational activity that was a safe respite from so much misery.  Back in the spring, when everyone was locked down, people looked for safe outdoor activities to help them stay active and have something they could do with family and friends.  Almost overnight, our daily play went up 50%.  As the pandemic persisted, the demand for golf continued throughout the year and Bailey Ranch continued to see increased play all year long.  At the end of 2020, we will have had almost 37,000 rounds.  You would have to go all the way back to 1997 to see more rounds in a calendar year.  A year that, set a record for the most rounds ever in a calendar year.    

I have to pivot here and mention the efforts of our staff.  Despite the heavy increase in rounds, our staff did an outstanding job producing a great product for our members and new guests to enjoy.  The golf course became a great place for people to forget their troubles, even if only for a few hours.  We relished the opportunity to showcase the golf course to so many fresh faces and feedback was very positive throughout the year.  I couldn't be more proud of our staff and all their hard work.  We couldn't possibly have done it without their determination and dedication to our mission.  We are hopeful this renewed interest in golf will carry into the future and look forward to the challenges and opportunities that lay ahead in 2021!

#11 Bridge Update

I’ve had many people ask me what’s going on with the bridge on #11 over the past few months.  It’s clear the condition of the bridge has deteriorated over the past few years, and as you’ve noticed, we’ve been using wood planks and steel plates to make it as smooth as possible while we work on getting it replaced.  Over past few months, we have been working with public works on designing a new bridge and are currently advertising for bids.  The plan is to award bids this week, begin construction in January and have the bridge complete before the golf season begins.  I’ll post more information once we get further along in the process.  Thank you for your patience while we work to get this done.

The Great Rain of May 2019!

Everyone get out their canoes and kayaks! Just about the only way you would be able to get around the golf course this morning after the rain we just had.  In all seriousness, the weather in May can be unpredictable and recently we've had more than our share of storms.  In the past 24 hours, we've had almost 8" of rain. May is historically the wettest month of the year, with just over 6" average rainfall, and we surpassed that mark in less than 24 hours!  This is on top of the almost 5" of rain we've received thus far in May.  To say it's been wet lately is a huge understatement.

The tunnel ceiling is almost 10 feet tall. 

After the tornadoes and lightning moved off to the east this morning, we set out to assess the damage.  Besides being incredibly wet, the golf course fared well.  We didn't have any major flooding damage, except for some limbs and miscellaneous debris in some fairways.  The rain came down so fast that it overwhelmed the tunnel pump and we had to ask for help from the Public Works department to get it pumped out.  Our drainage infrastructure handled the water well, it just took most of the day to drain out the excess water off the golf course.

All contaminated sand with mud will have to be removed and replaced

The one part of the golf course that didn't survive the storm was our bunkers.  The majority of the bunkers look like the picture of #5 bunker complex shown to the right.  Significant sand movement
and exposure of the sub-grade.  This will require an extensive amount of work from our crew to get them back into normal playing condition.  Typically, when we get an inch or two of rain, our crew can spend the next day putting them back together and we can move on to another task.  This time it feels different.  The damage so extensive that I feel we will have to completely remove and replace the majority of the sand on the golf course.  This will drastically extend the time to get them back into playable condition. Several dump truck loads of new sand will need to be hauled out and placed into the bunkers.  This process will begin tomorrow and could last all the rest of the week, possibly into next week.  We appreciate everyone being patient with us while we work to restore the condition of the bunkers and please realize that a few other tasks will be deferred so we can focus our resources on making this process go as quickly as possible.