Spring 2014 vs. Spring 2015

Our turf conditions this year are looking to be much healthier than last year coming out of winter. Last year's turf loss at golf courses in the Detroit area was due to solid ice formation that lasted over 75 days, essentially suffocating the turf. This winter we took a different approach for winter maintenance on greens by removing snow frequently to reduce ice formation during freeze/thaw cycles. Removing snow, even with its apparent benefits of reducing ice formation, is not a silver bullet. Turf grass can still be killed by other winter stresses.  

When removing snow in the winter, there can still be turf injury from extreme cold temperatures, desiccation of exposed turf to wind, or mechanical damage from equipment used to remove the snow. Removing snow through the winter is a hard decision and one that needs to be timed correctly for positive results.  With this said, our new program appears to have worked well for us this year. Below is a comparison photo taken 1 week apart from last year and this year.  We are continuing to clean the golf course up and are looking forward to welcoming members and guests back soon.

2 North on 3/25/2015

2 North on 4/3/2014

Golf Course Conditions - Spring Update

As we start to see the signs of spring  with weather changing and the Masters tournament being only a few weeks away, our staff is back at it and getting the golf course ready to open. Although the temperature is rising, the course is still a few weeks away from being ready to take traffic of golfers, not to mention that frost is still in the ground.  While it seams thawed at the surface, many areas are still frozen just a few inches down and some areas even have snow remaining.  

Our main staff returned yesterday and began the process of raking the course, picking up debris from the fall/winter, and finishing up remaining tree work. With weather being the final determining factor, I anticipate opening the courses in the first few weeks of April.  As you return to playing golf this spring we will still be finishing renovations on the South course. While we are finishing up those projects this spring, the South will be open with the exception of whatever hole we are working on. This is for the safety of our staff as well as efficiency of completing the work and we thank members ahead of time for your understanding.

1 North green after removing the cover on 3/24/15. Looks great!

I'm very happy to say that our turfgrass looks healthy coming out of winter this year and we should have a great season ahead.  Please check back frequently as I will post updates as we determine when the course is ready to open for the 2015 season.

Course Conditions Update

Warm afternoons are coming our way next week and our staff has been preparing the greens for a safe melt.

Heavy snow has been removed from the greens all winter with only an inch or two left on the surface for insulation from cold temperatures. As afternoon temps warm up, melting of this layer will occur.

Current turf conditions on greens look healthy. This picture was taken on 3/2/15 on 2 North green below the permeable cover

Channels are cut around the greens and off the green surface to facilitate water movement away from the green. If re-freezing occurs, it will be off the green surface.

Range Tee Expansion for the new "Jason Guss Golf Academy at Walnut Creek Country Club"

Starting in the 2015 season, Walnut Creek Country Club is excited to announce that members will now be able to take advantage of an outstanding new program to improve their golf game with the "Jason Guss Golf Academy at Walnut Creek Country Club".  With this new program starting, a bigger range tee was needed so lessons can be taught at all times no matter how busy the primary range tee is during the season.  To accomplish this, the range tee was expanded by over 25% with the addition of 10,000 sq. ft.of teeing space!  In total, we added over 1,300 cubic yards of fill soil to expand the tees.  Below are a few pictures including descriptions of the process. The anticipated opening date for this area is May, 2015.

Expansion area was planned in 2014

Snow was removed to create a frozen haul road through the center of the range to allow access for the large trucks hauling soil. Although it looks damaged from above, the brown color in the picture is merely soil that was tracked over the ice road. The turf remained untouched.

Paint lines then detailed the expansion area

Five trucks hauled soil for two days - Each truck weighing approximately 70 tons fully loaded hauled 40 yards of soil at a time until over 1,300 yards of fill soil had been hauled on site!

The fill soil was continually graded using a bulldozer between loads

Aerial photograph showing the new range tee expansion. In the spring, the surround will be sodded, range tee top seeded, and irrigation/drainage installed.

Kevin Kretz Named Superintendent of Timberstone at Pine Mountain

Congratulations to Kevin Kretz, Assistant Superintendent at Walnut Creek for the last two years, who has accepted the position of Superintendent of Timberstone at Pine Mountain Resort in Iron Mountain, MI. Kevin did an outstanding job while working here and has been instrumental in the changes we have made in the past few seasons. Please feel free to reach out to Kevin and wish him well as he takes his career to the next level! Best of luck Kevin, and thank you for all of your hard work!

Winter Work Update

Many wonder what the grounds maintenance crew does in the winter during the freezing cold temperatures and snow on the ground. The answer is that we suit up in warm gear and tackle projects that would either be a disturbance to golfers during the season or projects that require frozen ground. For the last month and a half our Assistants have been tackling a lot of tree work involving the removal of dead or dying trees, and pruning others we plan on keeping for health, aesthetics, and better playability.  To do this work, heavy equipment is used on the course and it's best to have the ground frozen so no unwanted damage occurs to the turf. In addition, rock walls are being constructed on 4 West and 5 South which will match the walls already constructed on the course. Having the ability to tackle these projects in the off season with our winter staff provides a better experience for members all season long. 

Assistant Superintendent Kevin Kretz hand pruning 

Pin Oak prior to pruning

Pin Oak after pruning

Frozen grounds makes it ideal for the use of heavy equipment on the course during the winter to properly care for the trees

Removing unhealthy trees in the winter reduces the risk for damaged to the course or injury to members and guests during strong summer storms

Insect damaged trees and dead/dying trees are removed for safety and aesthetics

Winter Update

Winter finally arrived and brought snow along with it! Cold temps have enabled the snow to stick around for a little while but the future forecast for the weekend shows sun and above freezing temperatures. In an effort to reduce risk of injury to turfgrass from ice formation following the thaw, we are clearing snow from all greens this week. At the current time, our greens are not showing any signs of stress and we do not have any ice formation to be concerned with. 

Assistant John Jones with our new snow setup

Removing snow cover from greens

3 North green clear of snow

Renovation Update 12/18/14

As weather permits, work is continuing on the South course with sand removal from the fairway bunkers that are not being completely rebuilt.  These bunkers are keeping the same shape with the only change being the installation of our matrix liner as well as new sand.

Sand removal from the right side fairway bunker on 1 South

Original bunker edges are found. Some edges are 10" back!

Renovation Update: Friday. December 5th

#3 South is almost complete.  In the spring the finish grade will be done on the top soil, sod will be laid, and bunkers will be completed. Below are some aerial photos of how #3 currently looks.  What can't be seen in the photos are the fairway expansion areas around the green and between the pot bunkers. In the spring we will post updated pictures with these areas sodded.  

Four pot bunkers now protect the green. New 600 sq. ft. green expansion (light colored soil) can be seen in the back of the green which will provide three new pin placements!

View of 3 South from the right side of the green

Renovation Update: Thursday, December 4th

Sodding in December!
Believe it or not the recent weather has been nice enough for construction to continue for a short period of time on the South course. Over the last two days we were able to finish shaping the new approach that will connect to 6 South green as well as finish all rough bluegrass sodding around the pond by 6 Green.  In total, we laid 18 pallets of sod in December!  Always a bonus to be able to tackle sod work this late in the year in Michigan.  Due to the fact that we were able to accomplish this when we did it has allowed us an even bigger cushion for completing the remaining renovation work in the spring.  When spring comes, we will be finishing laying sod on 3 South, installing bunker liner and sand in all South course bunkers, and last but not least completing holes 4 and 5.

Aerial Photography
With the recent purchase of a DJI Phantom Vision drone, we now have the capability of taking our own in-house aerial footage of the golf course.  This is especially nice when undergoing construction to help document the great changes.  Below are some examples of the photos recently taken. Enjoy!

1 South: Construction completed in August, 2014

NEW! 2 South on 12/4/14: Matrix bunker liner and sand will be installed in spring of 2015

NEW! Fairway bunker on 2 South. This bunker moved 10 yards closer to the green and turned into the fairway to be more visual.  The fairway expansions in front of and behind the bunker add landing area for the higher handicap player while providing a risk/reward for the low handicapper who wants to take on the bunker!

100 yards from the green on 2 South. The new bunkers are extremely visual and dramatic!

A view from behind the left bunker (+/- 35yds from green).  The new fairway expansion between the bunker and the green adds interest and options as you play the hole. Drain lines can currently be seen in the bunkers until the Matrix liner and sand are installed in the spring of 2015.

2 South: View from the right side of the new fairway expansion.

A view of the clubhouse and 8 South from 175 feet in the air!