Labor Day Storm Clean-Up

With day two of clean up work continuing, it is clear that the shear amount of debris will take some time to address.  We were able to open the golf course this afternoon and have hopes that remaining snow will melt quickly as temperatures warm allowing us to let carts out tomorrow.  

Please understand that despite the course being open there will still be staff members working on debris clean up for the foreseeable future.  Our two working goals at the moment are have the course relatively tidy by the Sunday's Fall Classic and to resume something close to a normal agronomic operations schedule next week. 

Frost/Snow Delay & Re-opening

The staff is hard at work on day 2 of Labor Day storm clean up.  Frost delays and snow still hanging around are not help matters, however, the practice area is now open!

Snow is the biggest issue at the moment for opening the golf course.  We are projecting to be open for walking only at 2 pm today.  Please call the Pro Shop for the most up to date information.  

Labor Day Storm

 I hope everyone was able to get the Labor Day activities in before yesterday's storm came through! 

About all I can really say is that the golf course came out better than the bus stop at Albertson's!

With today's course closure, the staff continues to work on the clean up tasks.  However, Mother Nature is not cooperating too much with the snow melt.  Below you can see how much melting occurred during the "heat of the day." The first photo of #10 is from 10:30 am, while the second is from 2:00 pm. 

With the snow unlikely to clear today, and overnight lows forecasted to be near 20 degrees Fahrenheit, it is difficult to project when the course will re-open.  Pay attention to the member emails for the latest on re-opening.  Whenever that timeframe is, it is likely that the staff will still be working to clean up  storm debris throughout the week.  

#9 Green Progress

 The 9th green took a big hit over the winter.  This was ultimately due to cottonwood root encroachment (during repairs, many roots were removed).  This green is also the only "push up" green on the golf course--simply a sandy or amended soil profile "pushed up" on native soil instead of the more modern soil profiles existing on the other greens.  

The following photos were taken early May, early June, and this week...

A good bit of healing is seen above.  This was accomplished by an extra seeding, sand topdressing, and fertilization every other week.  However, our goal was to into this fall with "no bare spots" in order to get the most out of our fall plant protectant applications.  To accomplish this the staff did a little sodding this week.

Staff above are seen laying the last portions of sod.  The sodded back portion of this green will still receive extra sand topdressing, water, and fertilizer applications as we encourage the sod root.  Increased rolling will also help smooth the surface over time.  

 

August & Member-Member Preparations... Timing is everything!

This week we began preparations for next week's Member-Member event.  Our first step was to vertical cut and topdress the putting greens.  While this is done periodically throughout the season, as they say, timing is everything.  Completing this process 10 days before an event provides for the improvement in smoothness and firmness while allowing enough time to work the topdressing sand into the soil profile.  (On a side note, my favorite day to roll a putt is the day after a topdressing, the surface might be a little sandy, but super smooth!)

The staff is also working on applying various fertilizers, soil surfactants, and plant growth regulators to the playing surfaces this week.  These applications give a boost to the aesthetics and playability come tournament time, but also help battle the summer stresses that August can bring to the turfgrass.  

Soil surfactants or wetting agents have always been an important part of our program in terms of playability and water conservation.  However, this season we have leaned on these products even more in an effort to conserve labor, especially in this hot and dry part of the summer.  The idea is basically to be as efficient as possible with the overnight irrigation in order to reduce or eliminate the need for staff to water by hand during the workday.    

We will end this week of preparation by applying plant protectant products to the putting greens tomorrow.  This application will help the putting greens tolerate the high temperatures forecasted for next week in addition to fighting off a little "cosmetic funk" that showed up today on a handful of greens. 

"Cosmetic Funk" aka Yellow Patch (aka Cool-season Brown Patch) on #12 green 8/13/20

This Yellow Patch is caused by the pathogen Rhizoctonia cerealis.  Rhizoctonia species naturally occur in most soils which is why Brown Patch (Rhizoctonia solani) is one of the most widely occurring turfgrass diseases.  While Brown Patch can be a constant threat to a golf course, we are fortunate that our relatively cool temperatures are only conducive to its less aggressive cousin.  Typically, Yellow Patch does not effect the ball roll, and the turfgrass is able to "grow out" of the condition when environmental stresses subside.  However, we were already planning to apply plant protectant products tomorrow to help with heat stress and begin our snow mold preventative rotation (yes it is 85 degrees and I am thinking about snow mold, more details on this will be included in a future post).  Though it may be warm now, winter is coming and these chemistries are in our program specifically because of their versatility in combating the disease stresses common to our environment.  So once again, timing is everything. In this case a well timed plant protectant application is able to combat three different stresses with two chemistries... not quite two birds with one stone, but we will take it!

  

Pardon the mess...

In the technical world of turf maintenance, the term clipping yield is used to define how much of the turf is removed after a mowing event.  The JHGTC turf team uses clipping yield observations to guide fertility and growth regulation treatments on the putting surfaces, but that is for another discussion... Many terms could be used for this debris, but simply speaking, it is a mess.

As is evident in many areas around the golf course, the clipping yield has been fairly extreme this season.  This is due to a reduction in mowing events that is a result of reduced staffing levels.  The photo of the rough/fairway on #2 below is a good example of the debris left after a once a week rough mow.

We aim to clean up these areas a quickly as possible, but it is usually not possible to address all the debris before some players come through a particular area. 

Thank you for your patience in dealing with these unsightly issues.  The turf maintenance team is continually refining our practices to provide the best possible conditions while adhering to our COVID-19 operations policies. 

Opening Day 2020

Welcome to the 2020 Members Only edition of the Jackson Hole Golf & Tennis Club Blog...

In reality, the blog is not members only, I'm not that good at the internet. But the golf course is for the moment...  We look forward to seeing the JGHTC family on the course this season!

Given the circumstances, we are happy golf is a game relatively conducive to social distancing.  In order to provide a "touchless" golf round, the pool noodle trick is in play for the cup and flagstick.

Truth be told, in testing this morning I hit some putts that I believe would have fallen under the normal cup or flagstick/cup scenario.  The putt with some pace has a tendency to "ride over" the foam and bounce out.

An example of the current cup/flagstick/pool noodle set up - Keep it fair and keep it clean.

The absence of divot sand containers on the 3 pars is another change.  The staff will do our best to keep up!

Hopefully, these and other operational changes fade away over the weeks and months ahead.  But in the meantime, we are working diligently to simply provide a safe place for your favorite game.

Take care.

Moose Day 2020 - Report

JHGTC staff were happy to volunteer with the Jackson Hole Wildlife Foundation for another inventory of the area's moose population.  This year "Moose Day" was on Saturday, February 29th.  We were successful in spotting 5 moose on and around the property!  Many thanks to Greg Dillard, Assistant Superintendent, and Randy and Robyn Reedy, area residents, for helping cover the territory.

In winter, we estimate that moose are almost daily visitors to our 270+ acre property.  Therefore, we are always very excited to participate in this yearly count.  It is something of an Easter egg hunt at the club for our long-legged, unofficial mascots! (Only once in my tenure at the club have we been "skunked" on Moose Day!)

Surveying on # 11; moose tracks, and one of the females observed.

Overall, 100 volunteers in 32 different teams logged 350 hours and counted 127 moose!  The teams covered a large portion of Teton County: from Arizona Creek in Grand Teton National Park to the north, east out the Gros Ventre River drainage, west to Alta and south to the county boarder.

The moose observed seemed to be in great shape.  Only one injured animal was spotted.  And there were no reports of moose with signs of ticks (rubbed fur) or carotid artery worms (nicked ears).

Special thanks to Frances Clark, Moose Day Coordinator, for the organization and data!

Spring Operations Update

This week our staff started applying a carbon product to the putting greens that attracts more sunlight and helps snow melt more rapidly.  In addition to exposing the putting surface earlier to catch some more sun and speed green up, it also helps amend the soil.

#10 green melting quickly under sunny conditions

The beginning of this process usually triggers the end of our winter trail grooming.  While the grooming equipment for the classic track is unable to operate in these conditions, we will still attempt to smooth the trail tomorrow afternoon when the snow surface thaws.

Just like at the ski resorts this time of year, freeze/thaw cycles lead to snow conditions on the trail that are variable at best.  Please stay safe out there!

Spring Grooming Update

With rising temperatures and winter coming to an end, adjustments will be made to the route of the groomed trail.  Beginning tomorrow, the trail will only be groomed on the north side of Spring Gulch Road.

This accomplishes two important things.  For one, it allows us to extend the grooming period of the season because as the roadways clear it becomes increasing difficult and unsafe for the staff to cross the roads with grooming equipment.  In addition, suspending grooming operations south of Spring Gulch Road helps us minimize disturbances to the local moose population.

This is a critical time of year for moose and other ungulates as their winter reserves are depleted, and they are still struggling to travel and find forage in deep snow.  In general, please be extra mindful not to disturb wildlife during this important period for their winter survival.

Female moose bedding on Saturday (2/29/20) in the Gros Ventre River bottom off #11 south of Spring Gulch Rd.  

[not pictured, a yearling moose bedded down about 15 yards away from this female in the brush]

Grooming Suspended

The weather station just made it above 0 degrees Fahrenheit!

Because we did not reach our 5 degrees Fahrenheit by noon threshold, grooming operations have been suspended for the day to ensure the safety of our staff.

Normal operations will resume the next day temperatures allow.

Stay warm.

Grooming Update -- Moose Traffic

This morning there are two moose within 20 yards of the ski.  The morning grooming was adjusted in order to leave these animals undisturbed. 

Adult female feeding near the ski trail on #5 by the fairway bunkers

#12 ski trail in the foreground, adult female moose feeding on willows in the distance

Closer view of feeding on willows near the trail on #12 and #13

We will attempt another lap around the trail mid-morning in order to groom if these animals have moved.  As always, please keep dogs leashed and respect the wildlife.

Thank you.

Trails Update

With very little snow last night the ski trails and classic track looked pretty good during the morning track inspection:

In addition, three moose were seen within 25 yards of the trail this morning.  One adult female feeding near #17 tee box along with one adult female and one female yearling bedding near #1 green.  Please give be mindful of wildlife on while enjoying the trails.

Thank you.