WINTER ON THE GOLF COURSE

#2 Green at Pine Hollow March 2015 

https://www.usga.org/content/usga/home-page/articles/2019/12/winter-on-the-golf-course--what-to-expect.html

GOLF COURSE UPDATE 12/18/19

• The bunker work on #1 is performing perfect thru heavy rain events and our green is recovering on schedule. An Evergreen Winter Cover is also in place to expedite the recovery process.
• Aggressive sand topdressing on greens and approaches for firmer surfaces and for winter protection taking place until snow cover. Due to the heavy rains, we are continuing to dress our playing surfaces heavily until frozen ground or snow cover.
• 2020 Aeration scheduled to continue progressive maintenance practices (see below).
• Winter soil amendments and plant protectant products applied.
• Irrigation repairs, system adjustments and winterization are complete.
• Property Cleanup; leaves, plant material pruning, snow removal, parking areas, etc.
• Tree Maintenance Plan implementation and specimen beautification. Currently working on updating our long-range plan.
• Equipment Maintenance for 2020 – performed by PHCC’s full-time mechanic. This work includes sharpening all cutting units, preventative maintenance to all our equipment, servicing, and repair work. 
• Continued education to stay current with today’s agronomic issues and club business. Currently working on GCSAA Certification process, NYSBMP Certification, and taking online classes from Ohio State University on Golf Course Architecture and History.
• 2020 Budgeting/Ordering/Planning/Staffing.

PINE HOLLOW C.C. AERATION SCHEDULE

GREENS:

• **March 3/23/20– 1/4” Hollow Tine Aeration w/ Heavy Topdressing (3%)
• *Monthly (May to July) – ¼” Solid Venting Tine (no removal)
• ***August 8/10/20 or 8/17/20– ¼ ” Hollow Tine Aeration and Light Sand Topdressing (4%)
• ***October 10/26/20 – 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 3/24/20 - 5/8” Hollow Tine Tee Aeration with Sand Topdressing

•      August 8/11/20- 5/8” Hollow Tine Tee Aeration with Sand Topdressing

•      October - 5/8” Hollow Tine Tee Aeration with Sand Topdressing

FAIRWAYS:

•         March 3/4/20 – ¾” Solid Deep-Tine Aeration (no cleaning necessary)

•         March 3/23/20 – 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 November aerate all roughs for healthy turf green to tee

SUPERINTENDENT'S THANK YOU

It's that time of year again when colder weather is taking over and the official end to the golf season is approaching in the Northeast. Every year becomes more important for me to reflect on the season, reviewing all our successes and failures around the property to build a better program here at Pine Hollow. Looking back at 2019, we had another great year from membership excitement around golf, team-building opportunities, and project work to look forward to in 2020. This season was full of success and opportunities to continue building relationships with members and your guests to produce the best country club experience in our area. Every golf season also helps shape our department goals and expectations for how we will continue the progressive mentality of improving daily and accepting nothing short of championship golf course conditioning.

It's also time to reflect on those around us professionally and personally with the Holidays upon us. I am truly grateful for the opportunity to work with this property, thankful to work with great people and blessed every day to have a great supporting team at home from Hillary, Brayden, and Jason. Thank you for all your support over the past five seasons! We wish you a joyous Holiday Season and a New Year of peace and happiness.

Yours For Better Turf,

Brent Peveich

GOLF COURSE UPDATE 11/8/19

• Work at #1 Green Complex Complete - Until frozen ground sets up we will continue to grow in all grass withing the disturbance area. A winter cover will be placed over the green once temperatures consistently drop overnight. (SEE THE SEQUENCE OF PICS BELOW)
• FALL AERATION TO DATE - Greens 3/8" Hollow Tine 1.25" spacing filled with sand, Tees/Approaches/Collections 1/2" Hollow Tine 2" spacing topdressed with sand, Fairways 3/4" Solid Tine on 3" spacing complete. 
• Aeration to continue until frozen ground- Greens 1/2" Solid Deep-Tine filled with sand, Tees 1/2" Solid Deep-Tine filled with sand, Fairways 3/4" Solid Deep-Tine, Roughs will begin 11/11/19.
• Landscape Detail for Winter - Consists of removing all annuals, perennials, and pruning dead material from landscape.
• Irrigation System winterization will begin 11/18/19 this consists of removing water from our system and protection the pump stations from winter temperatures. All lawns bathrooms and tennis court irrigation will be blown out at this time.
• Add sand to bunkers while removing leaf/tree litter and contamination.
• Property detail daily for leaf and tree litter cleanup.

Winter is approaching and project season is wrapping up here around the golf course. We had another great year capped off with the exciting project at the 1st Green which turned out great from start to finish. All grass is recovering and starting to root and the sand is set over the Better Billy Bunker System to showcase how good the product performs. Our plan is to continue making plant protectant, fertilizer, and sand applications to all the greens but modify a more aggressive program to expedite the recover for our disturbed surface at #1. Part of this program will be covering the green this winter protecting from wind dessication but also to extend the growing season this fall and to start 2020. I will be monitoring the root development and programs in place to open that green as soon as possible without jeopardizing our turf for next season.

As mentioned, we completed our first round of fall aeration around the property and will be continuing with the plan laid out above until the ground is frozen. These cultivation practices are vital to our success throughout the growing season and we appreciate you patience and support as finish up the 2019 work season. The Deep-Tine Aeration is great to distrupt compaction prior to winter opening avenues for water, air, and nutrients to penetrate deeper into our soils promoting stronger plants heading into the 2020 golf season. 

Thank you again for another great season and please come out while the weather is good we'll be chasing leaves and prepping for 2020.  

 STRIP SOD

 DEMO BUNKER

CLEAN DOWN TO XGD DRAINAGE PRESERVING LINES

ADD 110 TON OF MIX ONCE NEW GREEN EDGE BUILT

MORE DRAINAGE  WORK/ ROUGH GRADE MIX

GPS MIX TO GRADE/PLATE COMPACT/GPS AGAIN/FINAL RAKE

READY FOR SOD AFTER FINAL RAKE AND ARCHITECT APPROVAL

NOW THAT THE GREEN IS SET PLAN OUT THE BUNKER PLACEMENT

NEW APPROACH WORK BEGINS AND BUNKER ROUGH GRADE WORK BEGINS

TIME SPENT VIEWING OUR BUNKERS LEAD TO PAINT LINES MATCHING OUR HAZARDS

SHAPING BEGINS

HAND WORK FOLLOWS AFTER MACHINE WORK

STONE IS ADDED  TO 2" DEPTH

BETTER BILLY BUNKER POLYMER SPRAYED OVER STONE

2019 AERATION SCHEDULE

PINE HOLLOW C.C. AERATION SCHEDULE

GREENS:

• **March 3/25/19 – 3/8” Hollow Tine Aeration w/ Heavy Topdressing (5%)
• *Monthly (May to July) – ¼” Solid Venting Tine (no removal)
• ***August 8/12/19 or 8/19/19– ¼ ” Hollow Tine Aeration and Light Sand Topdressing (4%)
• ***October 10/28/19 – ½” Hollow Tine Aeration w/ Heavy Topdressing and/or 2mm Sand Inject Graden (13%)
•   ***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 3/20/19 - 5/8” Hollow Tine Tee Aeration with Sand Topdressing

•      August 8/13/19 - 5/8” Hollow Tine Tee Aeration with Sand Topdressing

•      October 10/21/19 - 5/8” Hollow Tine Tee Aeration with Sand Topdressing

FAIRWAYS:

•       March 3/4/19 – ¾” Solid Deep-Tine Aeration (no cleaning necessary)
•     March 3/18/19 – 5/8” Hollow Tine Aeration *may be delayed until fall*
•    August -  ¾” Solid Deep-Tine Aeration (no cleaning necessary) w/ Verticut
•    October 10/15/19 – Graden Dethatching of Fwys/Approaches or ¾ Solid Deep-Tine
•      November - ¾” Solid Deep-Tine Aeration

ROUGHS:

•      Beginning November aerate all roughs for healthy turf green to tee

#1 GREEN AND BUNKER PROJECT UPDATE

As a reminder, work will begin on #1 to our Green Complex on October 15, 2019. During this time and until we re-open in the spring of 2020, a temporary putting surface will be available in #1 fairway until the green is restored and grown-in for early May golf.

The project work will break ground with McDonald and Sons Design and Construction Co., our goals will be to preserve the original design intent while modifying the green to become more usable and fair with our modern green speeds. This is not a total rebuild, simply a modification of the subsurface by matching the existing green specifications, re-working the added material and reusing the existing green's sod to reduce closure time and keep our surfaces consistent. Enclosed you will find the document that details the specifications of the changes.

Along with the work to the green site, we will also address the issues with the front right greenside bunker by rebuilding this complex. Over the past few years, this bunker has become compromised due to the heavy rain events causing significant contamination and collapsed grass slopes. Our goal is to restore this site as close as possible to the original design to keep the integrity of the bunker complex while improving the playability and repairing the drainage issues. During the construction, we will be using the Better Billy Bunker System which is widely viewed as the best liner on the market and a bunker sand was selected to help us achieve our goals on the golf course.  

If you have any more questions please feel free to contact me.

GOLF COURSE UPDATE 9/2/19

SUMMER TO REMEBER

• Actual mowing heights – GREENS .115, TEES/COLLARS, .300, APPROACHES/COLLECTIONS .325, FAIRWAYS .375, STEP-CUT 1”, ROUGH 2.25”.
• All August Aeration complete - Greens and Collections 5" Bayonnet slicing tine, Fairways and Approaches 3/4" Solid Tine to 8", Tees 1/2" hollow tine w/ no sand due to heat. I plan on 1/4" needle tining greens every two weeks throughout the fall, little to no effect on ball roll.
• Slice and seeded Rough areas to improve grass varieties and renovated weak areas.
• Sod work in select spots to help expedite recovery in weak or damaged areas. Also extended the fairway collection behind #13 green to provide more interest and shot options. 
• Soil Amendments applied to help build strong turf going into fall golf and build towards 2020.
• Planning and excitement builds while we wait until construction starts at #1 green. We will break ground on October 15 with good weather and be finished in 7 to 10 days. This green will be closed for the fall and a temporary green available in #1 fairway for play.
• Maintenance and bed detail work around the property daily.
• Tennis Court daily prep and detail - new watering windows and attention to court detail being worked on with Tennis Pro.
  
  

8/26/19 Consistency and Detail

The unofficial end to summer is here and looking at what we accomplished in some challenging circumstances gives me a lot of pride in the product our team produced. We battled relentless heat between torrential storms it seems since July of 2018 and continued to keep healthy surfaces while conditioning for tournament play. Over five seasons our staff has worked thru with my agronomic programs and this season the hard work shined while others in our area showed weaknesses. The extra time spent on property and effort put in by all my guys helps us to be who we are and what we produce and for those efforts I am grateful. Over the coming months, we will again start building towards next season with aggressive cultural practices and exciting project work to continue advancing our reputation as a Club and the reputation of our Department as one of the best-conditioned courses in the area. Thank you for the support and fall golf is going to spectacular!

DEEP TINE AERATION INFO

https://www.usga.org/content/usga/home-page/course-care/regional-updates/southeast-region/2019/deep-tine-aeration--deferred-maintenance-you-shouldn-t-do-withou.html

5 THINGS YOU NEED TO KNOW

https://www.usga.org/content/usga/home-page/course-care/forethegolfer/2019/five-things-every-new-golfer-should-know-about-caring-for-the-course.html

EMBRACING THE SUMMER GRIND

https://www.usga.org/content/usga/home-page/articles/2019/07/summer-on-the-golf-course--what-to-expect.html#returnable

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GOLF COURSE UPDATE 7/17/19

• Actual mowing heights – GREENS .115, TEES/COLLARS, .300, APPROACHES/COLLECTIONS .325, FAIRWAYS .375, STEP-CUT 1”, ROUGH 2.25”.
• Maintenance and bed detail work around the property daily.
• Tennis Court daily prep and detail - new watering windows and attention to court detail being worked on with Tennis Pro.
• Hand watering daily to promote healthy turf stands and promote firmer surface.
• Working with local authorities and claims adjusters to solve the vandal issues experienced the past few weeks.

Club Championship is upon us and so is the HEAT! We are currently embracing the grind of the dog days of summer and our staff is up to the challenge. As a recap since July 2018 we have seen incredible amounts of rain making conditioning, root production, and a strong turf stand incredibly challenging. Once we finally broke this trend with no spring to prepare grass for the summer months we went straight to high heat and humidity which took our golf course some time to acclimate to. You may have noticed some slower green speeds this past week and this is due to the extremes and us playing defense to preserve our grass for tournament golf. We will continue to monitor the weather and make calculated adjustments to promote plant health when tournament golf is not in action. This only means that decisions to push green speeds my be impacted during the week when day time temperatures exceed 85 degrees and nighttime temps don't drop below 70 degrees giving our putting greens no time to recover. Overall our turf stand is healthy and we will continue making sound chemical and fertilizer applications along sand topdressing to promote good health while combating summer decline.

And as if the mother nature wasn't enough to fight, we've been battling vandals since the holiday weekend. Brian and I have been working with local authorities, claims adjusters, and plan on a property assessment to see how we can improve our security as a club. We have repaired most of the damage to the golf course and are currently working on the equipment lost. I also want you to know I personally installed surveillance cameras at our shop and check mounted trail cameras daily along #7 service road to monitor any movements coming onto our property. This has been extremely time consuming the past few weeks dealing with the authorities and repairs and we are hopeful these individuals can be found fast to prevent future occurrences.

Lastly, I would like to thank you for your support and excited about our future working together making Pine Hollow the great experience it is for the membership and our guests. Thank You!!!

GOLF COURSE UPDATE 6/8/19

• Actual mowing heights – GREENS .115, TEES/COLLARS, .300, APPROACHES/COLLECTIONS .325, FAIRWAYS .375, STEP-CUT 1”, ROUGH 2.25”.
•  Our 2019 Golf Season has started slow with significant rain events. Over the past few weeks rough has improved and playing surfaces have healed from aeration. This process was slow!
• PUMPTATION– 100 hp. Pump replaced this off-season is working to full capacity. 200 hp. Pump has been flushed and serviced and is ready to take on the season, this station has had issues for years but since the upgrades made in 2015 this motor and pump have been reliable.
• Silvery Thread Moss eradication program for greens on is going. This process has shown significant improvements on most greens with populations decreasing by 80% but needs to be altered due to some aggressive varieties.
•  Bunkers have been severely impacted from extreme weather events causing failure of bunker liner, contamination, and bunker collapse. Our hazards have been maintained to the best of our ability but these issues are not going away without renovation.
• #1 Green continues to be a topic of conversation due to green speed gains over five years and plans are in place to rebuild the green and front right bunker with Macdonald & Sons.
•  Improve contours in fairways and green expansion areas with additions and subtractions. These areas are part of Hanse Golf Course Design’s original plan and fairway expansion will be discussed with all professional staff before work begins.
•  Our new bunker built during the offseason is open and provides more practice options. This area will join #10 fairway with the collection from #14 green and add variety and style.
• Drainage installation at chipping area approach (driving range), #6 approach, #5 approach, #8 approach, #15 approach, and #16 fairway.
•  Fall Aeration – Scheduled and will be aggressive to improve playing conditions and maintain overall turf health (see attached).
• Pine Hollow Green’s Department Blog – pinehollowgreens.blogspot.com

PROPOSED CAPITAL PROJECTS

•  LONG RANGE PLAN – Discussion with Committee and Board should take place to develop a Long Range Plan. This plan protects our interests, sets goals and provides information to set aside money. Macdonald & Sons can provide this plan with an architect to help the Club and Supt.
• LANDSCAPE - #1 Tee re-organize material and add plant material. #3/#7 screen out dumpsites.
•  GOLF COURSE - #1 Green and Bunker Complex fall 2019. Tee Complex Construction #11 and #12/#14.
• GOLF COURSE - Cont. Tree Maintenance Plan for 2018/2019 late fall to winter: In/Out House work done with a plan to replant.
• EQUIPMENT - Purchase Deep-Tine Aeration Unit. Purchase New Walk behind Greens mowers and new utility carts (2019).
• BUDGET- Continue to look at areas to improve our bottom line while increasing Member satisfaction with our Club’s biggest asset.

THEY NEED TIME TO GET IT DONE

https://www.usga.org/course-care/forethegolfer/they-need-time-to-get-it-done.html

PROTECTING VULNERABLE TURF

http://www.usga.org/content/usga/home-page/course-care/forethegolfer/2019/protecting-the-most-vulnerable-turf-on-a-golf-course.html#

GOOD COURSE ETIQUETTE

LINEAR PATTERN HELPS HEAL FASTER AT DRIVING RANGE

PLEASE REPAIR PITCH MARKS

FILL DIVOTS W/ SAND MIX AND SMOOTH SURFACE

TOPDRESSING BENEFITS

http://gsrpdf.lib.msu.edu/ticpdf.py?file=/article/whitlark-thompson-light-5-3-19.pdf

GOLF COURSE UPDATE 4/9/19

• MOWING HEIGHTS – GREENS .125 in., TEES/COLLARS/APPROACHES .325 in., FWYS .375 in., ROUGH is not growing to mow
• Green, Tee, Rough Aeration wrapping up for Spring – Fairway Deep-Tine was delayed until  Monday 4/15/19
• Our property and golf course have been cleaned up and detailed for the first time from 25A to Tennis Courts. Property lines and wooded areas have also been cleaned up of garbage and branches left of holes #2, #3, #6, #7 and the parking lot main drive buffer areas.
• All disturbance areas from our winter work and parking lot projects have been Hydro-Seeded to Turf Type Tall Fescue & Bluegrass mix.
• Bunker Work- Our initial cleanup and sand distribution was finished. We will be detailing our hazards starting 4/15/19 to remove as much contamination as possible, adding sand where necessary, and detailing all depths to edges.
• Initial landscape cleaning has started and fresh natural mulch will be added to liven up the beds for the season prior to our Annual Flower planting in May.
• Our NEW chipping green bunker was shaped and prepped for sod the week of 4/8 and with good weather will be open for practice at our opening tournament. (IN-HOUSE)
• As of 4/12/19, all Tennis Courts were available for play to our Membership with all windscreens replaced over the past two season and new nets on our showcase courts.

Spring has sprung and the Green Department is cranking on all cylinders for the start of another great season. This off-season the weather was extremely kind to the Northeast and that trend has continued for us as we welcomed back our Union Staff. For the first time in my five seasons, we are starting the year at full strength and our progress reflects the weather and staff returning. I am happy to say that the property cleanup and the condition of our playing surfaces are all ahead of schedule for the second week of April. You will notice some changes along the main drive, our practice facilities, and areas around the golf course and we are all excited to discuss and take on the 2019 golf season. We have an exciting year ahead with great golf conditioning to come, project work to discuss, and warmer weather on the horizon. We will continue detailing all aspects of the property in the days and weeks ahead and I can't wait to welcome all of you back personally!

Breaking ground with a great view of our Clubhouse
(THIS VIEW DIDN'T EXIST 5 YRS AGO)

Deep Bunker to provide similar practice options like our golf course
(BUNKER SHOULD BE AVALAIBLE FOR OPENING DAY) 

HOW TO PUT A GOLF COURSE OUT OF BUSINESS

http://www.usga.org/course-care/forethegolfer/2019/how-to-put-a-golf-course-out-of-business.html

LABOR BY THE NUMBERS

http://www.usga.org/content/usga/home-page/course-care/regional-updates/northeast-region/2019/labor-by-the-numbers.html

GOLF CARES

http://ny.audubon.org/events/plover-fencing-volunteer-event-long-island-ny?ms=ny-eng-email-ea-newsletter-engagement&utm_source=ea&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=engagement

Also check out my twitter page to see how the LIGCSA supports and leads in environmental stewardship.

WHEN AND WHY GREENS STAY CLOSED

This illustration explains why we wait to open greens. Root shear can happen when our soils are not fully thawed before traffic and maintenance starts. Thanks for your support as we begin another great season.

GOLF COURSE UPDATE 3/13/19

• Property Detail - Tree line cleanup, sweep roughs, blow-off fairways/tees/greens, and detail clubhouse grounds.
• Continue our work at parking lot entrances to meet requests for insurance purposes by softening mounding allowing drivers more line of sight.
• Bunker Work - Cleanout leaf litter, check depths and distribute sand, finish rake.
• Wrap up new chipping green bunker.
• Cleanup work from tree management – Clean grindings, soil, and seed once weather permits.
• Begin spring Aeration (see schedule).

Welcome back for the 2019 Season! Currently, our golf course is still under snow but the work mentioned above is ramping up. We’ve had a very productive off-season and are continuing the progress into this week’s Club re-opening 3/15/19. We will begin cleaning the golf course tree-lines from storm damage next week and will work our way from roughs to greens as weather permits. At this time we will follow the forecast and make decisions on reopening the golf course based on cleanup and conditions not by the calendar. Traditionally we always look to the first week of April for greens and carts but if our cleanup efforts are accelerated by Mother Nature cooperating we will open accordingly. I’m excited to get my guys back to work and welcome the membership back for what is going to be another great season. See you soon!

PINE HOLLOW C.C. AERATION SCHEDULE

GREENS:

• **March 3/25/19 – 3/8” Hollow Tine Aeration w/ Heavy Topdressing (5%)
• *Monthly (May to July) – ¼” Solid Venting Tine (no removal)
• ***August 8/12/19 or 8/19/19– ¼ ” Hollow Tine Aeration and Light Sand Topdressing (4%)
• ***October 10/29/19 – ½” Hollow Tine Aeration w/ Heavy Topdressing and/or 2mm Sand Inject Graden (13%)
•   ***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 3/20/19 - 5/8” Hollow Tine Tee Aeration with Sand Topdressing

•      August 8/13/19- 5/8” Hollow Tine Tee Aeration with Sand Topdressing

•      October - 5/8” Hollow Tine Tee Aeration with Sand Topdressing

FAIRWAYS:

•       March 3/4/19 – ¾” Solid Deep-Tine Aeration (no cleaning necessary)
•     March 3/18/19 – 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 November aerate all roughs for healthy turf green to tee