March 22nd, 2023
Over the past 3 months, our grounds team, supported by our contractor, Landscapes Unlimited, has completed: (1) several capital improvement projects; (2) late winter aeration; (3) machinery repairs/replacement and (4) all of our seasonal planning. While it has been a busy offseason, indeed, the golf course remained playable and is foundationally positioned for one of our strongest spring seasons on record.
I. Capital Improvement Projects
Fairway Drainage - The most difficult challenge for our bent grass, fairways will always be the combination of soil saturation and sustained summer heat. 3 years ago, we contracted with Turf Drain of America to design a fairway drainage system that would reduce saturation cycles while improving firmness. In our 3rd year of drainage installation, we completed over 7,000 linear feet across fairways 3,8,10,11 and 12. (our aggregate total is now 20,000 linear feet) The installation was performed by our contractor, Landscapes Unlimited, and they did an outstanding job with speed, precision and cleanliness. We look forward to stage 4 during our next offseason. The photos below will walk you through the design to the completion of the system.
(1) Painted Design
(2) Sod Stripped
(3) Trenching Lines
(4) Basin/Pipe Installation
(5) Sod Replacement
Tee Renovations - Kinloch Golf Club is over 20 years old. As a golf course ages, certain aspects of the initial construction will begin to decline. The inconsistent leveling of our tee tops is an example of this decline. While the turf itself is doing fine, many of our tee surfaces have sloughed off around the perimeter. Not only an aesthetic concern, sloughed tee tops are a functional problem for tee space and player usage. This offseason, we continued our tee renovations on holes 11,12 and 13. The photos below will walk you through this process from demolition to re-grassing.
(1) Initial Demolition of the Subgrade
(2) Rough Shaping
(3) Drainage Installation
(4) Finish Grading and Profile Installation
(5) Tee Top Fine Grading - Leveling
(6) Re-grassing and Finished Product
Hardscape Additions - Kinloch is a walking golf course and we absolutely adore the heritage and tradition of that distinction. Over the past few off-seasons, we have been installing hardscaped walking paths to improve the aesthetics of our members' walk and to keep our players on dry, firm ground as they move from hole to hole. Examples of past products include the walk-throughs to holes 2,3,7, and 13. This season, we installed a new hardscape trail on the walk through to hole 16. In addition to the path itself, we have begun to beef up the surrounding horticulture, with more material to come as the spring season draws closer.
In addition to this walking trail, we have also constructed cooler patios for our newly built, custom, cooler boxes. The entire presentation of our water coolers will be dramatically improved in 2023. You can thank Mr. Rule for the inspiration and design of this new amenity :)
Cart Path Repairs - Although not as glamorous as hardscaping and custom cooler boxes, cart path repairs will remain a consistent focus during our off-season, project cycles. This season was no exception as we repaired the bridge crossings on 9 and 17 while replacing panels on 8, 11 and 15. These repairs not only improve the aesthetics of our property, but enhance the safety and functionality of our cart paths.
Late Winter Aeration - This annual aeration and topdressing is one of the most important processes in protecting the long term health and sustainability of our putting surfaces. We begin the process with a very heavy, sand topdressing. We follow the sand with our deep tine machine and a 3-direction, 5/8", solid tine hole. All of the sand is swept into the holes and then the greens are rolled with a 1-ton, asphalt roller. To put the quantity of sand into perspective, the USGA recommends that you dilute your greens' profile with 2500 pounds of sand per 1,000 square feet over a calendar year. We inject nearly 2,000 pounds of sand per 1000 square feet in this one process! Diluting the aging profile will allow us to enjoy our greens well into the foreseeable future. The photos below will walk you through the process from start to finish.
(1) Initial Top Dressing
(2) Deep Tine Aeration
(3) Sweeping after 3-Direction 5/8" Punch
(4) Finished Product
In addition to our putting greens' program, we impacted all of the playing surfaces at Kinloch. The tees and fairways were core aerated and vertically mowed in two directions. The primary roughs were aerated in multiple directions and the fairways have been deep tined one time with a second application in progress. These processes have been very clean, efficient and will help to provide healthy, playable conditions throughout the growing season and beyond.
Machinery Repairs and Replacement - In addition to the on-course, projects, Kinloch does a beautiful job investing in its machinery. Aside from purchasing: new electric fans (2), a Hahn Spray Bug, buffalo blowers (2), a JD tractor, e-osmac controllers (4) and lithium utility carts (4), our equipment team, led by Javier Castro, has done a marvelous job with numerous repair projects. Our equipment fleet enters 2023 in excellent condition and very versatile.
Seasonal Planning - Our membership entrusts us with an outstanding collection of resources. As such, we try to plan with purpose and efficiency. From capital project and labor sheets to pesticide applications and operational budgets, we have spent countless hours planning for a spectacular 2023 season.
Final Thoughts - The past 3 months have been busy, indeed. But we are ever grateful for the resources and patience that allow us to improve Kinloch each and every off-season. And while we are proud of all that has been accomplished, we are more excited about the incoming season. We are hopeful that 2023 will be one of our best, yet.
