GOLF COURSE UPDATE 1/11/22

 Winter work is in full swing here at Pine Hollow now that our golf course has moved to walkers and winter temporary greens. Currently, we are working on preventative maintenance on our equipment fleet, 2021 final reporting (DEC/WATER/BUDGETING), Tree-Maintenance, and of course snow removal. This is the most important time of the season for our team to re-calibrate their minds for the upcoming season and set the foundation with the off-season work to catapult our team to great things in the upcoming year. During this time we also sit thru countless hours of continuing education to ensure we have the most cutting-edge chemistries, technologies, and current techniques to deliver the best playing surfaces our money can provide. 

Gearing up for next year project season has begun with the completion of the Range Tee Extension and now moving onto the tree work setting the stage for some exciting new tee complexes. We will also begin our bunker renovation, as we discussed in the previous update, to stay competitive with those around us and ensure our hazards function and play up to our standards. Other projects will also begin inside and around the club and any help our team can provide will only help expedite the completion to kick off the upcoming year.

Please check back for progress and stay safe! 

GOLF COURSE UPDATE 11/9/21

 

ROUGH TEE PAD BUILT/MIX TO COME/GRASS NEXT WEEK

• GREENS - Mowed at .125" 3 times per week rolled 2 times, TEES/COLLARS/APPROACHES Mowed at .325" 1x times per week, FWYS Mowed at .375" 2 times per week, ROUGH Mowed at 2" as needed.
• Fall Aeration schedule was modified due to inclement weather during our week but overall it was a success greens, collections and tees were cored with big 5/8 tines and filled with sand, while fairways were deep solid tined to an 8" depth allowing water to penetrate deeper in the soil structure. Roughs will begin 11/15/21 and continue until completion.
• Our irrigation system will be winterized beginning on Friday 11/12/21 and will include all golf course, halfway house, and pool house restrooms.
• Renovation work has started in roughs with sod and seed to repair areas damaged from the additional cart traffic, diseased varieties, and weakened grassy areas, and as time permits will continue.
• LEAF RULE IN EFFECT - Leaf cleanup will be daily and often. Thankfully we had hard frosts all last week to hopefully get them down fast and hard.
• Property Detail - All flowers and perennial beds will be cleaned out and lightly mulched for the off-season as frosts have scorched any good plant material.
• Plant protectant, growth regulator applications, and weekly to bi-weekly fertility application programs are in full rotation to provide healthy playing surfaces.
• Needle-tine aeration to greens bi-weekly with sand topdressing as time and weather permits. This will allow us to continue pushing root mass before winter and allow air, water, and nutrient to penetrate our surfaces.
• PROJECT WORK has begun and will continue next spring with driving range tee area grass extension work, the re-introduction of our step-cut (11/8/21) similar to pre-pandemic lines, rebuild/reline/resand greenside bunkers, and rebuilding the #12 and #14 tee complex. Tree work will also begin this winter starting with dead trees and moving to other areas where we can open sightlines for aesthetics or help improve growing conditions.
• Tennis Court Screens/Nets - Friday 11/12/21 we will shut down water to courts meaning Har-Tru Clay will no longer be watered daily. Courts #6,#7,#8 will be taken down the week of 11/8, Courts #3,#4,#5 will be taken down the week of 11/15. And Courts #1 and #2 once Ricky has decided that they are no longer necessary.

What a season it has been with transition, more rounds than ever, labor gaps, incredible rain events, and my high expectations to deliver the best! We did it! We managed to pull off a great golf season during some adverse circumstances.

Now the fun has begun to get our property back to pre-pandemic conditions and propel Pine Hollow to best in class as I always felt we were on the North Shore. This all began back in August with our first aeration and continued with all the small projects we've been working on the past few months. Now we have turned to a more aggressive mentality while laying out major CAPX projects listed above and dialing in our cultural practices with aerification and sand topdressing. These short-term inconveniences will be performed in the off-peak season and provide us with great playing surfaces and exciting improvements for years to come. McDonald and Sons Golf Construction has been secured to rebuild bunkers and tees mentioned and is the same company we used successfully for #1 green complex. This company is the best in the business and is currently booked for the foreseeable future with work, so we are extremely lucky to have such a great team on site. In regards to our playing surfaces, we will continue to aerate at different depths and with different tines this fall adding more sand applications until the ground freezes and again aggressively next March so that I can restore all shortcut turf to firm and fast playability. I know it's always tough to say goodbye to golf in the Northeast but this is my department's time to shine and prepare for next year. As always thank you for your support and get some rounds in while we can! Thank you!!!!

FROST 11/7/21

 

GOLF COURSE UPDATE 10/23/21

 

• GREENS - Mowed at .120" 7 times per week rolled 3 times, TEES/COLLARS/APPROACHES Mowed at .325" 3 times per week, FWYS Mowed at .375" 2 times per week, ROUGH Mowed at 2" 1 time.
• Fall Aeration schedule may be modified next week due to inclement weather next week but we will do our best to prepare and execute. Greens, tees and fairways will be cored with big 5/8 tines and sand will be applied as the weather allows.
• Renovation work has started in roughs with sod and seed to repair areas damaged from the additional cart traffic, diseased varieties, and weakened grassy areas.
• Plant protectant, growth regulator applications, and weekly to bi-weekly fertility application programs are in full rotation to provide healthy playing surfaces.
• Needle-tine aeration to greens bi-weekly with sand topdressing as time and weather permits. As a reminder, we did not hollow core aerate any playing surfaces the past two years so this practice will help aid in the benefits of core aerification and diluting organic material accumulated.
• Project Work has begun and will continue next spring with Range tee area grass extension work, the addition of our step-cut similar to pre-pandemic lines, rebuild/reline/resand greenside bunkers, and rebuilding the #12 and #14 tee complex. Tree work will also begin this winter starting with dead trees and moving to other areas where we can open sightlines for aesthetics or help improve growing conditions.

Cooler days and crisp nights are finally upon us bringing great grass-growing weather and perfect playing conditions here at Pine Hollow. These days are what we in the turf industry always look forward to as we prepare our properties for the following year by renovation work, aeration, and small projects. This time is also some of the best golf weather and an opportunity to enjoy time with friends and family playing the game we all love. This has been an incredibly challenging season for us with the transition but thankfully our new ownership has given the club stability and true excitement of restoring and rebuilding the Club we all love.

Thank you all for your support and the Green Department is appreciative of your patience and commitment to us here at the Club.

GOLF COURSE UPDATE 8/19/21

The days are getting shorter and the Green Department is beginning to transition our time preparing our property for some great fall golf while building for next year. This has been a very successful summer tournament season once we got rolling and congratulations to all our tournament winners this year. Looking ahead I'm getting more and more excited about the project work to restore our bunkers, the renovations to teeing grounds, and tree maintenance work we have discussed to continue defining our great property. Other small project work to expect in the coming months will be re-establishing our step-cut, drainage work, extending the grass range tee, and converting a tennis court over to pickleball. 

We have all been thru so much the past few seasons due to covid and club instability and we are finally getting some normalcy and setting ourselves up for a productive future. But before all that I'd like to thank all of our members for your dedication to preserving Pine Hollow. As always THANK YOU for your support!

• GREENS - Mowed at .115" 7 times per week and rolled 3 times, TEES/COLLARS/APPROACHES Mowed at .350" 3 times per week, FWYS Mowed at .375" 2 times per week, ROUGH Mowed at 2" 1 time.
• Fall Aeration schedule will be reposted for your review and will help us build towards a great 2022 golf season.
• Renovation work has started in roughs with sod and seed to repair areas damaged from the additional cart traffic, diseased varieties, and weakened grassy areas.
• Plant protectant, growth regulator applications, and weekly to bi-weekly fertility application programs are in full rotation to provide healthy playing surfaces.
•  Needle-tine aeration to greens bi-weekly with sand topdressing as time and weather permits. As a reminder, we did not hollow core aerate any playing surfaces this spring so this practice will help aid in the benefits of core aerification and diluting organic material accumulated until this fall.

AND WELCOME OUR NEW ADDITION SHEA!

GOLF COURSE UPDATE 4/18/21

                                         

Here we go Pine Hollow! The season is about to start cranking and I'd like to welcome all incoming members to the family and thank all the returning membership for their continued dedication to our Club. This has been quite the journey for all of us and with an exciting new business model combined with a vibrant membership our team is dedicated to making this rebound season one to remember. As we continue transitioning and making changes until the closing of the sale, I hope you feel the excitement permeating from our property as we lay the foundation for this year. You can also rest assured our management staff is working tirelessly to assemble the right team to prepare for today while building for our long-term success tomorrow and we know this may take time. We understand and acknowledge all aspects aren't currently to our standards but please give us the opportunity to get everything in place to generate a great club experience for you and your guests. 
Around the property you will begin to see more detailed work addressed, golf course conditions improve, and the grounds start to come alive with the warmer spring weather. This is always an exciting time of the year and this spring we have an added element of excitement as we welcome new faces that haven't seen all our Club has to offer. In my 14 years at Pine Hollow I've seen every aspect of our property, and yet I still challenge myself to experience the day differently. Maybe this means spending more time at the tennis, a round of golf with a new member, walking thru the grounds wildlife watching. My point is we have so much to offer here and it's not all about the scheduled events, this is your property and we are here to help make this Club your sanctuary. You have my team's dedication to assisting in your experience and our department will do everything we can to exceed your expectations. 
So please help support us thru this transition while we work out operations, don't forget to enjoy the small things life over the past year gave us a renewed perspective on, and enjoy every aspect of your experience here at home.


• GREENS - Mowed at .125" 3 times per week rolled 3 times until grass growth and demand dictates otherwise. TEES/COLLARS/APPROACHES Mowed at .325" 2 times per week. FWYS Mowed at .375" 2 times per week. ROUGH Will be cut in the coming weeks to clean up any winter debris and keep turf tight as needed.
• As of now, setup will be 2 times per week on greens and all accessories will remain off the course until further notice.
• Bunkers initially raked out during the week of 4/5/21. The initial cleanup redistributed sand, removed weeds, and cleaned winter debris. We will continue to address thin sand on floors and rake more as the transition continues. As of now, we will only touch up rake once a week on Fridays before the weekend play. 
• Plant Protectant, Growth Regulator Applications, and all Pre-Emergent Applications applied to all shortcut turf, rough, range, and lawns. Our weekly application schedules will begin now that we are in the beginning of the actual growing season.
• Weeding, mulching, and pre-emergent applications will be made to landscape beds and will continue until completion. Flowers will be introduced to our beds around Mother's Day.
• All golf course irrigation, bathrooms, and tennis irrigation are on and any repair work will be made as soon as possible with as little impact on member experience as possible.
• All tennis courts re-surfaced and being rolled/groomed daily. During the week of 4/12/21 windscreens will begin to be hung up and detailed work will be completed as time allows.  
• During the week of 4/19/21 driving range detail, mowing, and divoting will be made to have our practice areas ready for the season. The grass tee will be available 5/8/21.
• Needle-tine aeration to greens will begin bi-weekly across all our playing surfaces. We did not hollow core aerate any playing surfaces this spring so this practice will help aid in the benefits of core aerification until this fall.

Yours For Better Turf,
Brent Peveich, GCS

GOLF COURSE UPDATE 3/8/21

Welcome back and thank you for your support and dedication to Pine Hollow in what has been one calendar year since the lockdown due to Covid began. Our team, membership, and club structure have been through a stressful time and without you, this season would not be possible. 

Our plan to begin the 2021 golf season is the same this year as every other and consistent with other Club's Operations. Starting today, we will phase in employees to begin the initial golf course clean up even though we still have snow on holes 2,3,5,6. and 7. Our plan is to open Greens as soon as possible with walkers once surfaces are cleaned up and daytime freezing temperatures are not forecasted. With the current snow coverage and volatile weather pattern, like in every March, our initial target on 3/24 for opening with walkers to greens is very conservative and with good work weather, we are hoping to exceed those expectations. Many may be questioning why it seems so late to open but this is not uncommon and we determine when to open by weather not calendar. Looking back to my notes we opened in a similar pattern; 2015 first week of April, 2016 the third week of March, 2017 the third week of March, 2018 the fourth week of March, 2019 the third week of March, and if not for Covid early March in 2020. Other restrictions and cart availability will be determined once the initial treeline cleanup is completed and forecasted rain events become more clear. Also as a reminder, please use good Driving Range etiquette and practice from the mats until our grass tee is made available.

 Welcome back and we're excited to ramp up for the 2021 season!

 

PINE HOLLOW C.C. AERATION SCHEDULE

GREENS:

• **March 3/22/21– 3/8” Hollow Tine Aeration w/ Heavy Topdressing (5%)
• *Monthly (May to July) – ¼” Solid Venting Tine (no removal)
• ***August 8/9/21 or 8/16/21– 3/8 ” Hollow Tine Aeration and Light Sand Topdressing (5%)
• ***October 10/25/21 – ½” Hollow Tine Aeration w/ Heavy Topdressing (8%)
•   ***December – 5/8” Solid Deep Tine Aeration w/ Heavy Topdressing

*    Minimal disruption to putting surface (healing time a few days)

**  Medium disruption to putting surface (healing time 7-10 days)

***Most disruption to putting surface (healing time 10-14 days)

Emphasis put on removing 20% of surface area per year

TEES:

• March 3/23/21 - 5/8” Hollow Tine Tee Aeration with Sand Topdressing
• August 8/10/21- 5/8” Hollow Tine Tee Aeration with Sand Topdressing
• October - 5/8” Hollow Tine Tee Aeration with Sand Topdressing

      FAIRWAYS: 

•         March 3/1/21 – ¾” Solid Deep-Tine Aeration (no cleaning necessary)
•      March 3/24/21 – 5/8” Hollow Tine Aeration *may be delayed until fall*
•     August -  ¾” Solid Deep-Tine Aeration (no cleaning necessary) w/ Verticut
•     October – Graden Dethatching of Fwys/Approaches or ¾ Solid Deep-Tine
•     November - ¾” Solid Deep-Tine Aeration

      ROUGHS:

 Beginning March aerate all roughs for healthy turf green to tee then again in November since Aeration skipped in 2020