What are they up to now?

I’m sure everyone is wondering why the big pile of rocks at the Learning Center has been sitting there for a few months and why there is equipment and missing bunkers dotted over a few holes.

The edge of the irrigation pond had been eroding over the last couple of years to the point where it needed reinforcing. While researching the best option, we were able to source some huge boulders locally, which will provide the best aesthetic solution to reinforce the banks. The plan was to excavate the old edge, build a shelf to place the boulders on, and then backfill behind them. Once the shelf was built (and the weather cooperated) we contacted the pond liner contractor to install the liner, only to find out it had been backordered. We had anticipated a delay so ordered it last fall to make sure it was here, however, as with it seems everything this year, we are at the mercy of the shipping companies. It is now supposed to be installed by mid-April, so hopefully this is the last delay. The rest of the project should only take a couple of weeks to complete once the liner is in place.

The old pond liner and erosion on 14 pond

Unloading the boulders

As you know, the board approved the greenside bunkers to be replaced this spring. The recommended life of bunker and is approximately seven years, so the 17-year-old sand at LedgeRock is well past its sell by date. The rebuilt bunkers will be constructed using the best method/materials available; this will ensure that the money spent now will pay off in the long term as it virtually reduces all contamination of the sand, ensuring that the new bunkers will greatly exceed the current recommended life span. We have sourced an excellent bunker sand to complement the project.

Bunker washouts from 6+" of rain from Hurricane Ida Sept 2021

Bunker washouts from 6+" of rain from Hurricane Ida Sept 2021

Slight bunker washout on new bunker on 17 from Hurricane Ida showing how well the liners work preventing washouts while keeping the sand clean even after more than 6" of rain

New fairway bunker on 12 showing the liner (Blinder) and edge structure (EcoBunker)

Now that the course is approaching its third decade, the club contacted Rees Jones so, as part of the reconstruction, they can make any changes needed to ensure the design continues to challenge into the future. The added benefit of this is that we can reduce the sand area, which will save money on maintenance in the future. It is amazing how architects can reduce sand area but without affecting the visuals and playability, so I cannot wait to see the finished product.

Alan, Asst Super Cody, Bryce Swanson (Rees Jones Inc) & Brian Ley (contractor) checking out 16

A perfect example of what we are doing, is on 18. The left bunker is getting tweaked to fit into the land better but also the front edge is getting lowered so there will be more sand visible from the fairway – one of the architect tricks to make it look bigger, when it will actually be smaller. The front bunker gets broken into two, with the smaller part nearer the approach being raised so you can now see the greens surface from it, while the other part remains similar to the old version. They are also lowering the front edge so there will be more sand visible from the fairway, making it aesthetically better and more visually intimidating, while also making it a little easier!

Quick sketch from Rees Jones showing the changes on 18

New bunkers shaped on 15

The plan was to start in early April and have the project completed by June 1^st. The contractor was able to get a head start on the project with a couple of staff and hence why it currently looks to be moving slowly. He is still on schedule to have a full crew here as planned in April and the progress will move quickly from then on.

Over the next week the bunker sand will start to be delivered and stockpiled in the parking lot. Once the contractor gets fully started in April, we plan to send out regular updates on the progress. It has been a frustrating start due to the delays with materials - however I am glad we got a head start so did not run into these issues later which would have greatly delayed the original schedule. So sorry about the mess but bear with us for the next couple of months as it will not be long until it is all put back together and LedgeRock will look and play better than it ever has!

As always, please email me with any questions: alan@ledgerockgolf.com

Summer Aeration 2021

After the crazy year that was 2020, as this year passes, everything is slowly coming back to normal. The major course update of the redesign of 17 is now fully complete and it looks like nothing was done - which is the sign of a great renovation!

The one big question that arose this year is "why are we aerating in August, when we didn't last year” so I figured that I would revisit the topic of why we need to aerate, why we were able to "skip it" in 2020 and why it needs to be done again this year. 

As a background to why we need to aerate and to save some time, here are some links to older blog posts that hit on some different aspects of the topic. 

• Link 1 How I maintain the greens at LedgeRock and why we need to aerate. We manage greens turf at the Rock differently than others but the proof that it is the correct way for the course is that the greens are fast and true all year, even through the heat of the summer, and do not need any extra maintenance to speed them up as they are already fast with just basic practices. 
• Link 2 Timing - why timing is so important to the length it takes to heal. 
  
• Link 3 How soil temperature affects recovery. 
  
• Link 4 2020 ISTRC Test. 
• Link 5 ISTRC Guidebook to Your Greens - everything you need to know about aeration.
  
• Link 6 A short video from the USGA Green Section explaining everything above in less detail. 
  

The greens physical properties are tested twice a year. In doing so it shows how they are maturing and progressing, but more importantly, how the past aeration practices have worked. In the early years the turf needed more nutrients to mature and get used to its growing environments, its ability to withstand the rigors of play and the stress the weather creates. The downside to the extra growth was that the turf rooting was extremely dense and it essentially clogged up the sandy soil it grew in, reducing the infiltration capacity of the growing medium. The reduction in infiltration has a knock-on effect in the greens draining slower, a reduction in available air for the roots, more water logging - which in turn can increase compaction, increase disease incidence and encourage the encroachment of poa annua (which will in turn compound the issues....). The ultimate effect being soft greens, that are slow and do not handle stress well. Once the turf matured to a point where it could handle the stresses it was being put under, the fertility was able to be reduced and with it, the aeration practices were increased to improve the rootzone to return it closer to a new profile - but now one where the turf could really appreciate it. 

The aggressive aeration practices over a couple of years brought them back to nearly new - almost too new in fact as they had virtually no organic matter in them to "glue" the soil together so they were softer than ideal. With a bit of tweaking, we found our ideal organic percentage and have been maintaining them to that since (We found the sweet spot to be ~1.9%OM near the surface). Having the buffer of a clean soil turned out to be the key to the light aeration done in August 2020 (which was necessary to get the Covid19 shortened season back on track). It was also a good test to see what would happen if we were to switch to a less aggressive aeration once a year. It went really well and the recovery was quick due to the tiny holes as only 1.5% of the surface was disturbed (vs the ~8% we aim for normally). The roots liked getting the air they get every  August and the greens were perfect for the fall. However, the next round of testing showed that the infiltration rate had halved over the previous test, as well as an increase in that all important Organic Matter percentage (a soil can only drain as fast as its most limiting factor). 

While the lower infiltration rate and higher OM percentages were still excellent by most standards, the gains of the previous years were quickly negated. One more similar aeration would only make them worse and detrimental to turf health and quality. We have worked hard to find the sweet spot to maintain the standards of the greens at LedgeRock so varying from the optimum numbers will reduce the playing conditions and eventually require more work to get them back to the expected conditions.

The spring 2021 aeration was pretty comparable to what was done the last few years and the greens were tested again in July so that we could see how well those practices worked. The results were not quite as expected! The infiltration rate had actually jumped to over 30" an hour - which is as good as, if not better than, a brand new green! This might imply that we don't need to aerate in August; however, it does not tell all of the story. The OM percentage did start to go back down from ~2.5% but it needs to get back to ~1.9% for optimum conditions. As mentioned above the limiting factor in drainage is the slowest draining medium and the greater the amount of OM, the less drainage there is, so ensuring that it is in LedgeRock's sweet spot is essential. The only way to do that is through core aerating (physically removing) and topdressing (diluting) the OM. While the August aeration will not be as aggressive as those in the past , it will be closer to a normal core aeration (rather than the the light aeration done in '20) to make sure that the OM percentage can get back to the optimum number. 

The power of aeration. This is 5 green about a week after lightning took out the irrigation there. While the turf was starting to show signs of drought stress the hole aeration holes are still green with healthier turf. 

So what about that infiltration rate? A week before pulling the cores to be tested we contracted Dryject to hydroject the greens - essentially using their machines without sand to just push water through the profile.  The high pressure water creates non evasive deep aeration channels in the soil. When we did this, there was some grumbling that we messed up the greens but they were putting fine the next day and within three days they were back to 100%. This also helps dilute some of the OM in the soil by moving it deeper in the soil. This has the added benefit of removing the layer between the OM and the green sands which was one of the reasons the pocketed greens (2,4,10 & 17) struggled over the years even after the trees were removed and the fans added. The layer kept the water from moving through the profile properly so the surfaces stayed wet. Since we switched to using the Dryjects to hydroject the last few years those greens have been consistent with the others on the course. By loosening up the soil profile, it greatly increased the infiltration rate, albeit temporarily, but long enough to where it showed up on the report, giving somewhat of a false positive. Sometimes we get these eureka moments, where normally we wouldn't find hard evidence of what is happening other than the turf performing better. So while we now know this process increases the infiltration rates in the summer, helping the roots breathe better and keeping the profile drier for better playing conditions, it does not solve the issue of physically removing the OM like the core aeration does. 

Using the Dryject to just inject water can cause a little blowback of the sand. These are some pictures of the worst areas right after the procedure. An irrigation cycle and after mowing and rolling, the spots were gone in 2-3 days. 

The timing of the aeration has also come into question this year. The ideal time to aerate is when the turf is actively growing so the heal time is minimized - unfortunately this coincides with the best time of year for golf..... Cool season turf only starts to grow when the soil temperatures are consistently above 55F. The soil temperature will obviously vary on the weather but also on the soil type. Sandy soils will heat up faster but will not retain heat so in the spring it takes a long time for them to warm up and they lose a lot of the heat they gain at night, whereas a soil will take longer to gain heat but will retain it, so it will slowly increase as it does not lose much on cooler spring nights. As such the fairways can be aerated earlier than the greens as they will reach that consistent 55+F quicker than the sand based greens. The L93 bentgrass on the greens also likes warmer temperatures before it really gets growing so that also adds to the slow recovery in the spring. The bentgrasses on the fairway are coarser older varieties but they start to come out of winter sooner than the L93, which also helps the fairways heal quicker. On a side note poa annua is a winter annual so it likes the cooler temperatures and will start to grow sooner - hence why poa greens (which are also usually soil based) green up and heal quicker in the spring. Due to our management practices the greens are virtually poa free. The switch to the earlier aeration date a few years ago did coincide with an increase of poa spots appearing on the greens. Luckily PoaCure finally became available and due to our testing we were able to acquire it on its release, which has removed the small bit of poa that was on the greens. Penn State is trialing another new poa control on the practice green and it is looking very good also. As part of that trial they actually measured the amount of poa on the green and it was less than 1% which shows that the maintenance practices are working really well. While having chemical controls to remove the poa are great tools, it is a much better practice to keep ensuring that the maintenance practices are directed to keep poa out so that the chemical controls can be used sparingly as a clean up so there is no resistance to them in the future. 

Due to the golf schedule this year it was decided to go with an earlier aeration and see what would happen. While I was not happy about the date (due to the worry about recovery), it was nice to have it done and out of the way, especially in 2021 as we had the project on 17 fairway to complete also. At first it seemed like a great idea as an early spring warm spell had them growing and they recovered to about 80% in 10 days but then the temperatures dropped and with it the greens soil temperatures so the turf shut back down and they stayed at 80% until mid May - the time at which traditionally in this area the soil temperatures are consistently above 55F and the turf is happily growing. In 2020 no one noticed as the course was shut down due to Covid19 and with running minimal staff for safety reasons, the slow growth was welcomed as it reduced the work load! 

The opposite happened on the fairways. Normally we would try and get them done early to get them out of the way and free up labor at the beginning of the season but also to take advantage of the extra healing time the warmer native soils afford. Due to some equipment issues and needing to contract out the spring aeration last minute, they were done later than usual so were not healed fully before the first onset of hot weather. All season they seemed to battle the heat and dry where they would recover with a few cool days and rain, only to open up again when it got hot and dry. We added some wetting agent applications to the normal program to help manage this better but going forward, it should not be much of an issue as the club purchased a new fairway aerator which affords us the ability to aerate when we want to in future years. We also changed our aeration practices a few years ago on fairways to "double" aerate in the spring by closing up the hole spacing. In doing so, it helps remove the desired organic matter percentage for the year, so there is no need to pull cores in August. Now we use solid tines in August which go a little deeper (aiding drainage) but have the added benefit of providing air to the roots but not beating up the turf with sweepers in the heat that are used to clean up the cores. The solid holes usually grow over within a week or so. Unfortunately due to the different requirements of the surface and therefore the maintenance of them, this schedule would not be ideal for greens.

At the time of writing, hurricane Fred is in the gulf and working its way north. If the timing is right and it makes it to PA, it should really help with getting the greens to heal quickly after aeration due to the warm temperatures and abundance of moisture. If it all goes to plan, the greens should be close to if not back to 100% by Labor Day. Going forward, we are planning on adjusting the golf schedule to better accommodate the aeration schedule in 2022. This will ensure that the healing time is minimized with  minimum disruption to the enjoyment of the course. 

As always, if anyone has any questions, email me at alan@ledgerockgolf.com

COURSE RENOVATIONS SPRING 2019

It has been brought to my attention that many members, were not aware of the changes coming to Hole #10 this spring and were surprised to see what looked like disruptive change as construction progressed. I want to apologize for this as it has been in the works for a long time and since it was constantly in my life, I assumed everyone knew about it…. 

The changes were made for a variety of reasons, but one important consideration was to make the course more friendly to higher handicappers and beginner/occasional golfers, while still maintaining and even raising the challenge and beauty of the hole for the experienced players. Other important considerations were to reduce maintenance where possible and to enhance some of the least attractive bunkers on the course. 

A couple of years ago LedgeRock was a trial course for a new USGA program to see how courses play, how layout effects players of different abilities, and how traffic patterns effect maintenance. This program, using GPS to track players, provided some invaluable information to the club. Around the same time the club was talking to Rees Jones about updating features of the course and making it easier to maintain where possible while also making it more accessible for players of all abilities. After 10 years of play, it was time to see what tweaks could be made to make the course better. Bryce Swanson (Rees’ lead designer) did an initial evaluation, and it was surprising that (unknown to him) a lot of his observations paralleled those of the USGA report. 

Some of simpler and inexpensive tweaks came right away with more tree removal and the change in the fairway lines and approach on 8. The approach on 8 was changed to allow higher handicappers the option to putt from a short distance while still letting the better players chip, albeit from a tighter lie, making it a little more challenging. The interesting part was as groups came though their reactions to the changes were what we wanted to hear – the higher handicappers were delighted with the option to putt while the better players were excited about the new challenge it offered. 

Now, back to the new changes this year. #10 has had the most work, and while the initial plans were carefully planned, some of the project evolved as it went along as Bryce saw how to make it better and fit with the other changes. 

The redesigned 10th from new green tee (the title picture is the original design) 

The new men’s green/blue tee was always part of the plan, but the club was not allowed to build it during the initial construction phase. This tee not only affords an exciting new angle to the hole, but also provides valuable teeing space as the current tee sees a lot of traffic and is always covered in divots. Further, it was decided to add a new forward tee from the same angle, that could be used on special occasions, or for those who play the gold or white tees who wanted the alternate angle, but not at the longer distance. We do not expect it to be used a lot (and hence it is not very large), but adding it at this time made sense. 

The first draft for the redesign on 10

The USGA report showed that out of the 200 sample rounds recorded no one used the fairway on 10! While it was understood that some like to use it (or at least know there was a bail out), the fact stood out that it was an area that was unnecessary. Also, many felt that it looked a bit odd (like a second green), helped with the decision. Replacing it with rough makes it a slightly easier shot for anyone who may end up there, as it will be easier to hit than chipping from a tight lie. Removing the short fairway meant that the orange forward marker no longer had a home, so a small tee/ball drop was added for this purpose. This tee will become part of another hybrid course for beginners/occasional golfers, where it will be a gold/orange tee negating any shot over the pond. 

Redesigned 10th from new gold tee 

The new bent grass approach in front of the green was a late add on by Bryce as he noted how many people ended up short (and it has been amazing to see how many landed on it while we were working there). Now anyone that lands short of the green has the option to putt rather than chip which may make the hole more appealing. 

The bunkers on 10 were some of the worst on the course both for maintenance and playability. When discussing rebuilding them it was decided to reduce the size as much as possible (for labor savings) and the far right bay near the woods was eliminated, as it never saw play. The new bunkers are lined with Blinder to ensure longevity. It will take a few weeks for the sand to fully compact at which time some more will need to be added to make sure it is all the correct depth. 

The new approach on 6 was also done based on the USGA’s and the Rees Jones reports. The complaints of balls rolling right and coming to rest against the rough in a poorly draining area have been coming for years. Upon consultation with Rees, Keith Evans (Rees’ lead on the initial course design) added more fairway to the left to encourage player to go left and feed the ball onto the green. While this did work to an extent, the complaints still came about balls stopping to the right. The concern was adding fairway to the right would make it a tougher shot to the green, but after the USGA report and consulting with Bryce they said to add it. 

The plans for 6

6 completed

It still provides the opportunity to putt using the bank on the left to feed onto the green and while not the direct way, it provides a safe option to a tough shot. Sod was available from the removal of the fairway on 10, so it made sense to complete this improvement. The area was regraded so balls will not collect in the same spot and now drains better, so it should play a lot better than it did. 

 

6 before (left) and after 

The lower fairway bunker on 11 was removed as few golfers went in it, based on the USGA report. It was also a maintenance nightmare as it didn’t drain. Last year we fixed the drainage only for it to clog again a few months later. Removing it will have little effect on play. Surprisingly, removal did not affect the aesthetic, but it will save money by not requiring maintenance. 

11 before (left) and after 

The next project in planning is #17. There is a plan being finalized to make the hole play better for players of all abilities. The first phase is a new forward tee. This has been in the planning for a while (you may have noticed the fill being installed over the last few years). The plan is to make this part of the gold/orange hybrid course. It provides an opportunity for those players who struggle to cross the wetlands on 17 to tee up and start the hole on the green side. I believe the new tee will be about 160 yds uphill. While still providing a challenge to what is a very tough green, the planned elimination of half of the cross bunker and regrading of the bailout landing area will enhance play for ladies from the new tee and ease the anxiety of crossing the wetlands for the gentlemen, which is one of the toughest shots in golf. 

If you have any further questions or concerns, please let me know: alan@ledgerockgolf.com 

Sample of the information from the USGA report 

Sample of Rees Jones recommendations for the course 

Spring 2018

The blog update always seem to find a way to the bottom of the to-do list but the plan is to have an update at least once a month from here on.

It wouldn’t be an update without talking about the weather - what a wild ride 2018 has been so far! The winter never wanted to end and then April ended up being one of the coldest ever. It looked like May would be the same but it was actually warmer than normal, mainly due to the warmer nights.

So what did that mean for the course? The cool weather resulted in an extended healing period after spring aeration. There was a PA Golf Association event in early May so it was decided to move spring aeration up this year in hopes that the greens would be healed for the event - with the side benefit that they wouldn’t have lots of sand on them for GAP Matches. The plan worked in that the sand was mostly below the canopy for the GAP Matches and the greens were in good condition for the PA Golf Association event, even if some of the holes were still visible after six weeks. Soil temperature drives growth, with cool season turf starting to wake up and start growing in soil temps in the mid 50Fs. Bentgrass really gets going once it gets into the mid 60Fs. The bentgrass variety at LedgeRock is also one of the slower varieties to get going in the spring, which also compounded the issue. It seemed like the last few springs were cool and it took forever to warm up but 2018 consistently was three to four weeks behind.  The soil sensor data below shows just how much longer it took to warm up this year (the blue line shows the average soil temp of 55F).

Spring 2018: The average soil temperatures above 65F only start around May 1 and it only gets into the mid 50Fs around April 22.

Spring 2017: The average soil temperatures above 65F start around April 23, however it hits mid 50Fs in early April

Spring 2016: The average soil temperatures above 65F start around April 23, however it hits mid 50Fs in early April

Due to the amount of rain the course looked great and played as good as it ever has when we were actually able to dry it right down. Since then the overall weather pattern has been wet. I’m surprised how well the course has handled it. The club has been lucky to miss a lot of the bigger rains, which means that regular maintenance and letting carts out on course hasn’t been too much of an issue and the Founders Cup was a big success.

Every decision on what needs to be done on the course has to ensure that it will not set the turf back for the summer so skipping a rolling or mowing when it’s wet pays dividends later in the year. Just a reminder too that carts can do a lot of damage when it’s wet, especially in areas like drive offs where the traffic is concentrated so it is imperative that the traffic control measures are followed at these times.

The greens were top dressed lightly on Thursday 7th for the first time since aeration. This helps with smoothing the surface along with thatch management which helps with firmness. This would usually have been done earlier but due to the schedule and the cold and wet weather this was the first time it was able to be done. There are a few more planned as the summer continues and as the weather permits.

The Poa annua populations on the greens have increased a little this year, largely due to the wet cool weather in which the poa thrives and which bentgrass does not like (and therefore isn’t competitive against poa envasion). While the populations are still greatly less than one percent the spots are getting more visible and numerous. We still plan to dab and pick it, but there is enough now to look into more widespread applications to kill it. A product called PoaCure has been in trial with great results however the poa at LedgeRock was not bad enough to warrant trials prior to this year. The turf program at Penn State is helping us to trial the product on the 16 green which is one of the worst. We are confident that it will work and we hope that the product will become available next year.

Poa being eaten by Annual Bluegrass Weevils on 4 green. The strip of green are bentgrass plugs from a few seasons ago - the weevils are not eating it (yet!)

Dr. Fidanza at Penn State is also helping with a trial of other poa controls on the collar of the small practice green. These applications are duplicated around the collar and once we have data from that - ie how will they kill poa and how well the bentgrass can survive the treatments, the trail will be modified and repeated. Poa is a very aggressive plant and can adapt to changing environments quickly. Due to this it is important to have multiple control products that can be alternated to ensure long term control so the practice green trial is very important. There may be some dead grass on the collar but they will be sodded out once we know how the products work.

The fescue areas are looking great and a lot of people have asked about not mowing them. I’m still debating what to do but most likely they will need to be mowed so the weeds can be sprayed and the thicker areas do not get out of control.

Lastly, I had the opportunity to visit some of the top courses of the world this year that I had not been to before. I finally made it to Augusta for the Masters - I went with high expectations but still was blown away by everything, it was an amazing experience. Earlier in the Spring I went to the BIGGA (British and International Golf Greenkeepers Association) conference in England and visited with staff from Royal Birkdale and the superintendent at Royal County Down. This week is the US Open so I’m also looking forward to checking out Shinnecock Hills. I love visiting other properties and seeing what they do and how they work. Its great to see what we're doing right and to pick up some new tips, trick and see if we need to step up the game!

 Royal Berkshire GC

   Royal Berkshire GC

 Royal Berkshire GC

  Royal County Down GC

   Royal County Down GC

   Royal County Down GC

  Royal County Down GC

As always email me alan@ledgerockgolf.com with any questions or concerns.