After a long winter, I want to update you on what has been happening on the golf course and what to expect this summer. Starting last August, over five tons of Kentucky Bluegrass were seeded into the fairways. This is the second year we have seeded fairways with Kentucky bluegrass. As you may remember, this same grass was over seeded in the roughs for the previous three years and has performed well. Since seeding the fairways, we have received rainfall in nine consecutive months, accumulating close to 65 inches in total. This has enabled the seed to establish and mature, which gives us confidence the fairways should perform much better than in previous years. Kentucky Bluegrass is more resilient than rye and poa annua. A significant benefit of using bluegrass is it spreads using rhizomes which are roots that grow in the soil, rather than rye grass, which is not able to do this and must be re-seeded annually.
I would also like to thank the membership for your patience during long stretches this winter when we were cart path only due to the wet weather. It did, however, allow the seed to mature and eliminate wear and tear that would not have been able to recover during the low temperatures.
Although this winter was also an uncertain time for the club, I would like to highlight the other accomplishments the team has made. They completed numerous drainage projects, most notably on 3, 4, 8, 14, and 18, in historically wet areas that will make a significant impact. They also leveled every head around the greens, which will now irrigate the greens more uniformly and help the green surrounds become more consistent. I would also like to note that during the uncertainty, we only lost one golf maintenance team member, and it was because he was accepted into the Sacramento Sheriff’s Police Academy. The golf course maintenance team genuinely loves taking care of Winchester.
Jason Conrad Golf Course Superintendent
