The Inside Scoop from Tobiano Golf Course Superintendent – Paul McDonald
Everyone’s favourite time of winter has arrived (the end) and that means that golf season is fast approaching. Spring cleanup has started at Tobiano, with crew members returning to work make sure that everything is ready to welcome golfers on April 6th. The garden beds at the entrance to the golf course and in front of the clubhouse have been cleaned up. Plants have been dead-headed and debris raked out. The streets and gutters have been swept to remove gravel.
We are slowly getting on to the golf course. The greens have been blown of to remove any debris that the geese left for us. We have had to wait for the frost to leave the greens and for them to settle back down as that happens. As usual we have seen substantial heaving on number 2, 3, 4 6 and 12 greens with 4-6 inches of movement. In the coming 10 days the greens will be rolled a couple times and cut before opening day. The fairways have also been blown off. There are still areas in the fairways and rough that are frozen at a depth of between 2-10 inches, but everyday the probe sinks deeper. The tees, fairways and rough will all need to be cut before open, with the rough cut starting today.
The biggest job to complete before opening day is the raking of the 96 bunkers. The sand generally stays where it should, but in areas that receive runoff the sand will wash off of the face of the bunker. It also compacts and needs to be fluffed back up so that it is playable. Spring is also a great time to try to remove some debris and rock from the sand. This process will take 3-4 days with 3 people to complete. This will also allow us to identify bunkers that will receive more sand throughout the season, or have work done to reclaim areas that have grown in. There are still 5 or 6 bunkers that still have snow in them so the crew will have to wait until next week to get to them.
Paul McDonald
Image title
Your subtitle here