Project Update - 11/27/13

The greens project has been continuously on schedule.  The plan was to have the final grades done just prior to Thanksgiving, which is tomorrow.  And having said that, the final grades were done right on time - finishing yesterday, just prior to.....the first major rainstorm we have had in over two months.

as of 12:23pm on Weds 11/27    2.5" of heavy rain and it appears that more is on the way.

   Seems that this has been our luck this year.  As happened to the 12th tee during the Member-Guest, the rain has tossed us a load more work.   Having worked on all the clay out there for 5 weeks in bone dry weather, the fact that it is clay seemed to be a non-issue.  Dumping 2.5" of rain on clay with no turf to help filter the water was like dumping it in a parking lot.  It ran where it could, cutting into the finish grades and contaminating bunker drainage.  If the turf was down we wouldn't have any issues at all, in fact the green surfaces are firm and dry, the greens are now 90% sand and sand drains.

We are now only two steps away from completing what we can this season, but the weather will play a roll in how it now goes.  Very cold air is heading in tonight and it will freeze all the standing water.  Fortunately, tomorrow is Thanksgiving and most folks are off from work as it should be.  So we buy 24 hours of drying time.  Hoping for decent weather on Friday to get repair work under way.  Irrigation is scheduled to begin installation on Monday and the sod crew is scheduled to be here on weds to grass the green surfaces.  

 

Picture time....

  

16 bunker work



16 from the tee.  Players will now be able to often see their ball on the green.  It has been lowered 6' from the original.  This photo was taken as an aid to decide how much  the hill on the right had to move to see the green.

bunker drainage sump on 15, this hole is 20' deep and used nearly a full truckload of gravel to fill.

bunker drainage work on 16

bunker drainage work on 15.

finish grading the surrounds on 16

after the 2.5" of rain on 11/26-27

UGH !   so close......and once again the rain came hard.

Tune in again next week for more action. 
thanks, John 

Construction update 11/19

The project continues to move forward on schedule.  The green surface finish grades are completed and now await approval from the architect, who will be on site today.  Bunkers will be carved out and the surrounds tied in to the greens, this should be done by the end of the week.  The next step will be the installation of the irrigation and once that is completed the process of grassing will begin. The new greens will be sodded to A1-A4 bentgrass.  The fairway areas will be shortcut bluegrass (the same turf used on 12 & 13 fairways when renovated in '03) and the rough will be a tall fescue/bluegrass blend.  

Monday morning we received our first dose of measurable precipitation that has come our way in a long time.  We got .5" and there was absolutely no sign of any residual water on the new green surfaces as it was on various other locations throughout the course.      

 

amendment blend added to our greensmix to provide a nutrient base for the new greens

more reasons for renovation work, this beauty was only 4" under the surface.  note the "dents" from the deeptine

last of the mix being added on 15 

15

15 from the temp green area 

gravel layer being added on 16

finish grading done with "sand-pro"

15

greensmix nearing completion on 16

finish grading on 16

Shaper, Kevin Nolan, making sure that it's on the money!
 

Kevin

blending surrounds up to the green surface on 15

tie-in on 15

15

 

so ends our update for today.   as we continue, more photos to follow.

thanks again for checking in.

 

-Johnny P.

Contruction continues...

 

"The three most important items for success of a green.

DRAINAGE, DRAINAGE & DRAINAGE."

 

Drainage, Sunlight & Airflow is probably more accurate...but the point is made.

 

The rough shaping is now finished on both 15 & 16 and drainage work under way.  Both greens drainage systems have improved dramatically, going from near nothing to extensive.

 

Today, 11/12/13, we had a slight delay due to an unexpected burst of snow.  This made the surfaces a little too wet to work on today, but will be fine to  continue tomorrow.

 

as usual...here are some photos:

 

 


drainage "plan" for 16

shooting grades for proper pitch

installation process begins

lower section of 16 green, herringbone drainage

16 drainage completed

upper 16





 

15 drainage being installed



 

15 final rough grade
 

through it all the leaves keep falling...

...and we keep cleaning 'em up.  This seems never-ending.  Pretty much, 8 hrs a day for 8 weeks

11/12/13  surprise snow

Pretty to look at, but that's enough for me.


that's our update for today, 11/12/13, hope you enjoy the blog.  tune in again soon for more photos of the project.

Thanks, John





 

 

Rough Grading on 15

The dry weather allows the renovation work to move forward at a good pace.  The 16th complex is ready for drainage work to begin and 15th is nearing that stage today.  Our other greens are well on the way to good health and the repair work done is healing very nicely.  Please take an extra moment to repair ball marks on the 14th green, now playing as a 100 yard par 3 the green is getting hammered with ball marks.  

early stages on 15

16 ready for drainage to begin

shooting grades on 16 for drain lines

15

Architect Kelly Moran, with construction crew making certain that thing are what they should be.
 

15's turf healing well on #18.   



Kelly fine tuning in the field

Kevin makes adjustments to slope on right of 15

ACTUAL PHOTO, sign was not moved.  PLEASE REPAIR BALL MARKS ON ALL OF OUR GREEN.
It is even more important this time of year because the grass is not growing at a rate to repair itself.

World Series Champions - 2013 !!!
Not easy being a Sox fan in NY, but this helps ;)