With the arrival of October, we have now begun the second half of the golf season. The course is absolutely ready, playable and in great shape, but just as quietly, the deer are making their mark on the course with their eternal roar. The shorter days mean that it is the deer, not the golfers, who rule the Hermitage. The greenkeepers fight back by blowing leaves and nuts away from the course, straightening hoof tracks and repairing after fights and top dressing to just as quietly, year after year, make the course firmer and more resilient.
Starting Monday, October 19th, there will be a mandatory mat requirement on the driving range. A long and extremely busy season has come to an end for the turf on the driving range. We are ready again for spring.
The putting green at the driving range also needs rest, but here we will first aerate and then reduce the mowing frequency before we close for this season.
We are really getting members and guests to help repair fairway marks. Our divot bags hanging in the starter's house have become very popular and with the help of the filled divot tubes out on the course, we are working hard to fill in holes. The result is visible in the dense grass sprouts that are appearing all around the fairways.
Oskar and I have just recorded a new Turftip Thursday video about proper rake removal and repositioning. Always rake with two hands and place the rake back perpendicular to the direction of play, on the side of the bunker facing the rough and finally – resting on the edge of the grass so the rake is easy to reach. The video can be viewed on both Facebook and the website.
If the weather is not against us, lots of good maintenance work is planned on the course in the next few weeks:
Week 42: Selected paths, around greens and on 15 fairways are top-dressed.
Week 43-45: Green surroundings are dotted and topdressed, tees are dotted and topdressed, foregreens are dotted and topdressed.
Enjoy.