Hermitage CC Golf Course Management

  Spectacular weather is upon us! For the last six weeks, we have said every week, “Once we get through this week, things will calm down.” And, if history is any indication, we will probably say the same thing for the next eight straight weeks as well. But this week actually felt a little different. The cooler temperatures have arrived, the course is starting to quiet down, and we have finally started removing the rest of the fans. There is something about getting those big fans off the course that makes everything feel a little more peaceful. The course looks cleaner, feels quieter, and for the first time in a while, it actually feels like fall might be on the way. Everyone’s least favorite week — ours included — arrived on Monday as the Manakin greens were aerified and topdressed. It is never easy pulling a core out of greens that are absolutely perfect. After all the work that goes into getting them to this point, intentionally putting holes in them seems a little crazy. But aer...

  Usually, this post is a sign that the week is coming to an end. This week, however, we still have two more big days to get through the week with Member-Member. It was a short, condensed week coming off the holiday, the End of Summer event, and fireworks, but the crew had plenty to accomplish to get both courses ready for another big tournament week. Tuesday was a closed day, which gave us a great opportunity to get a lot of much-needed spraying done. On Monday alone, we covered all 100 acres of short grass along with 39 greens. These new sprayers have been a game changer for our spray applications! They will be getting a serious workout over the next several weeks as we move into our fall application season. Winter Poa pre-emergent, spring dead spot, take-all root rot, and fall armyworm applications are all on the schedule over the next 4–6 weeks. The golf courses are finally starting to firm up, which is a welcome sight after a pretty wet stretch. Hopefully, we can finally break...

  I probably shouldn't have said that... Last week I was talking about the ideal weather conditions—cool nights, comfortable days, and just about perfect for the golf course. Well, that paragraph really came back to bite me this week. It's been a rough one. The greens are actually holding up well and continue to survive this stretch of heat, but they're definitely on the slow side. This turtle crossing was a pretty good representation of playing conditions this week. The heat and humidity have the greens puffed back up again, and we avoid using the roller during weather like this. There just isn't much to gain, and we'd rather protect the plant than chase green speed. Thankfully, this weekend's forecast looks much better. With a few cooler nights leading into Member-Member, we will be able to start working on improving both green speed and firmness. One thing we've been fortunate enough to avoid this week—so far—is rain. This is exactly how we pref...

  After what has felt like an endless stretch of heat and humidity, Mother Nature is finally starting to cooperate with us. This week we're enjoying overnight lows well into the 60s, with even a couple of nights dipping into the upper 50s. It's a welcome change that both golfers and the golf course have been waiting for. The courses are finally beginning to dry out and firm up—about a week later than we would have preferred—but we're happy to see conditions trending in the right direction. As mentioned in last week's blog, we kicked off the week by completing a ¼-inch hollow tine aeration on the Sabot greens. While aeration may be temporarily disruptive, it's one of the most important cultural practices we perform. Removing organic material and replacing it with clean sand helps maintain healthy putting surfaces for the long term. One of the photos from this week shows an old aeration channel that we uncovered while changing cups—a perfect example of how these c...