As you probably know the back of the clubhouse has gone through a major transformation over the last few weeks.  The new putting green has been constructed and we are continuing to finish the landscaping.  Measuring approximately 7500 square feet and with a lesser slope, this green will provide more usable putting space than the old green.  At this point it is critical that we manage the layer created by the sod.  We have started to aggressively topdress and will continue with this process as well as other cultural practices once turf and weather conditions allow.

While everything looks great from a distance, it will not be until late spring that the green is ready for play.  At this time it looks like Memorial Day weekend will be a realistic date to open the green.  Favorable weather this Spring would go a long way and aiding with the maturing of the sod on the putting green.  This would allow the turf to begin growing earlier in the year, which would allow us to begin the cultural practices that are necessary to get the green into putting condition.

Also, it is important to remember that it will take time for the putting conditions on this green to mimic those found on the golf courses.  As you may recall from greens being re-grassed in the past, it can take somewhere in the range of three to five years.  We will make every attempt to break the layer created by the sod.  This will require frequent topdressing, multiple quad tines in conjunction with our regular aerification practices, and use of the sand inject Graden as long as the turf can withstand the aggressive nature of this process.

A silver lining of building this new green is that we were able to use the sand mix and sod from the old green to rebuild the green at the practice facility that is located next to the grounds parking lot.  The quality of this green was not very good due to the poor soil conditions as well as lack of drainage.  We were able to eliminate both of these issues by using the mix from the old green and adding drainage before it was reconstructed.  In addition to rebuilding the green we were able to add two mall areas for chipping.

The pictures below demonstrate all that took place during this project.