Test bunkers completed

This week we finished up our "Test Bunker" project.  On Monday we installed the Capillary Concrete liner in the bunker #13, and in the small right greenside bunker on #14.  We have now completely installed new liner and sand on holes #4, #9, #13, and right side bunker on #14. This liner has already made a huge difference in the appearance of the bunkers.  We will not yet know how well the new concrete liners perform in a heavy rain storm, as it has not rained now for 29 days, and the forecast for the next 2 weeks does not look very promising.  We have installed a total of 3 different sands in the 4 test bunkers, replicating one of them on 4 and 14.  The new sand we have installed during the test is still soft and a little fluffy, but will settle in and firm up over time.  Rain helps with this process too!  Please take note of the different bunkers over the next few months to help us determine what sand to use when we completely renovate the bunkers.

Will it ever rain again?

If you have been outside at all lately, you have probably noticed that it has been extremely dry.  How dry you might ask?  Well let me give you a few facts to think about.

The last time it rained at the Club was on September 27th, which is 19 days ago.  The amount of rain we received on the 27th was a little over a quarter of an inch.

The previous rain before the 27th was on September 18th, and it was .77 inches.  So that makes for a total of 1 inch of rain since September 2nd!  Over 6 weeks of hot weather and only 1 inch of rain to show for it!  

This is very unusual, and is no doubt frustrating.  Take a look at the picture below.  The rough and surrounding landscape is brown and struggling to grow.

It is not hard to see how brown and dry all the grass on the golf course has become.  You can see how the green and some of the surrounding turf has stayed green, but everything else around it is completely brown.  Because of a lack of water and rain, we have cut back on our irrigation and only water greens and tees now.  Fairways will get watered once a week, but this little amount of water does not do much help.

Please help us dance for rain!  Maybe that will help to cure the drought!

Test Bunkers Cont.

Last Thursday we had the concrete truck finally show up and bring us our new bunker liner, Capillary Concrete.  This new type of liner is a concrete like material that is made up of small gravel, mixed in a binding agent like concrete.  The great thing about this type of liner is that it drains incredibly well because of the large pore spaces.  This good drainage helps the sand to not wash out as badly during bad rains, and also helps from keeping the bottoms of the bunkers too wet and firm.  Here is a picture of us starting to install the Capillary Concrete on the bunker on #4

Here is a good example of the installation procedure.  The concrete truck dumps a load of the material into the green utility cart in the top of the picture.  We then take the cart and dump the material around the perimeter edges of the bunker.  After the material is dumped, it is then spread around the cover the entire surface of the bunker, consistently at a 2 inch depth.  After the material is spread to a depth of 2 inches, a paint roller on an extension stick is used to roll the material smooth and to compact it down.  If you look closely you can see the parts that have been rolled smooth (shiny appearance), and the part that is still rough.  We repeated this process until the bunker was full of the Capillary Concrete, and the entire surface had been rolled smooth.  

Here is another photo of the guys rolling the material smooth.  The lighter colored material is the gravel that makes up the floor of the bunker.  The darker material is the Capillary Concrete.

After all the Capillary Concrete has been installed and rolled, it has to be covered up with a tarp for 24 hours.  This helps to lock in moisture and protect the material while it drys and "cures".

Here is what the liner looks like after we pulled off the plastic.  The material has dried hard and consistent like concrete.  Our staff member is blowing off any loose debris or small rocks that did not bind with the rest of the material.  The next step will be to start adding the new sand.

New sand is added to the bunkers the same way that the Capillary Concrete was added to the bunkers.  Our large utility carts back up to the perimeter of the bunkers and dump the sand.  Then our staff spreads it throughout the bunker at a consistent depth of 4 inches.

We then have a member of our staff wet down all the new sand with a hose.  This loose sand is very fluffy and will need to be tamped down.  The water helps to pack down the sand and makes it easier to work with.

After the sand has been saturated with water, we tamp the entire bunker with a vibratory plate tamp.  This tamp is a large, flat, heavy piece of metal that has a motor on the top which allows the machine to vibrate at a high rate of speed.  This tamp helps to pack down the new sand and try to make it a "firm" but "fluffy" surface.  We will truly need a few good rain storms and to tamp the sand a few more times until it displays its true characteristics.   

Here is a photo of the finished product.  The sand will be a little softer for the next week or two, but will slowly get more compacted and firmer when you walk into the bunker.  The bunkers are ready to play out of and to evaluate now, but please give the sand a few weeks to settle in.  I think you will really like the way the new sand plays!

  

Test Bunkers

This week we started our process of installing "Test" bunkers around the golf course.  These test bunkers will be used to help us determine what the best available bunker sand is on the market.  We are removing all the sand and bunker liner from the bunkers on holes #4, #9, and #13.  Each bunker will have a new style of bunker liner installed next Wednesday, and then each will be filled with a different type of bunker sand.  We are hoping that these test bunkers will help us determine which products to use if the Board was to approve a wholesale bunker renovation.  I will post much more information on the progress next week as we add the liner and new sand types.

Please remember while we the bunkers are Ground Under Repair you get a free drop outside in the grass if you hit into the bunker!

New Parking Lot is finished and now OPEN!

I am glad to announce that the new parking lot has been completed, and is now open for daily use for all members and guests.  It was no doubt a long and dirty process, but the end result looks really nice, and provides up to 29 new parking spaces!  These additional spaces will really come in handy during holiday events or the dreaded summertime swim meets!  Take a look at some of the pictures below to see from start to finish the work that went in to building this new parking lot!

Here is what it looked like before any work began....

Here was the finished product once the trees were removed and the parking lot paved...

Here is the finished product after all the landscaping was done and complete.  The hollies were planted around the perimeter of the parking lot will grow together and form a nice hedge to hide the cars.  What a nice edition for the Club and will certainly help a lot on busy days!

Water Main Leak at Clubhouse

Over the past few weeks we noticed a water leak coming from the Clubhouse.  This leak was very hard to detect, and it took us a lot of investigating to find out what the root of the problem was.  On Sunday morning, we decided to dig in front of the Clubhouse where the main water line comes into the basement.  What we found was a very large leak, so we decided on Monday we had to get it fixed.  It turns out that the ground has settled slightly over time around the Clubhouse, and when it settled it cracked the pipe which is running through the basement cement wall.  The wall did not give, but when the ground moved with the pipe something had to give, and it was the pipe which was the weakest point.  So, after digging out a large hole to the left of the front door, were able to locate the pipe, remove the broken piece, and begin the repairs to get the water back on and working with no leaks.  We apologize the repair has taken so long and the Clubhouse had to be closed today.  It should be no problem to open back up first thing Wednesday morning ready to go.  Here is picture from outside the front door of the Clubhouse:

You can see here even Buddy is surprised by how deep the water line is located!  The black pipe at the bottom of the hole is the main water line, and it is about 7 feet below the surface of the ground!  We had to cut a new hole, remove the pipe and run an all new piece to repair the broken section.  What a mess!

2016 Fall Member/Member

Congratulations to Jim Mutimer and Jay Gratwick on winning the 2016 MCC Fall Member/Member tournament this weekend.  We had some great weather to play golf, and I hope everyone had a good time!