The following post
was prepared by Kirk Hudson, Second Assistant Superintendent. Kirk joined the Glen Oaks team last
fall. Kirk graduated in the spring of
2013 from ISU with a degree in Turf grass Management. Throughout his time at
Iowa State Kirk worked at Veenker Memorial, as well as completing internships
at Copper Creek and Wakonda Club.
The focus of this post is to inform our members of the work
that is being done when the golf course is closed. When it comes to winter work
the focus is on preparation. Countless hours are spent each winter going over
the pros and cons of our previous golf season and developing plans for
improvements. Everything from our daily maintenance routine, irrigation
practices, staffing, and budget evaluations. This information is used to
develop our golf course maintenance plan that guides us toward our goal of
providing the best possible playing conditions on a daily basis.
Figure 1: Oil,
hydraulic fluid, and all filters are being replaced on this workman.
Our winter maintenance program begins with servicing and
inspecting all of our utility vehicles. Filters, belts and fluids are replaced
and a thorough inspection of each piece of equipment is completed. Chris Horton
(Equipment Manager) is in charge of the equipment maintenance schedule and
oversees all of the equipment repairs.
Figure 2: Each
vehicle is inspected and repairs are made as necessary
Figure 3: Jordan and
Chris inspect our roller for any necessary repairs
The next phase in our winter maintenance program is
servicing all of our cutting units. In total we have nearly 30 cutting heads
that must be torn apart and inspected. Bearings and seals are replaced in the
rollers and cutting reels. The head is then reassembled and sharpened. This is
by far the most time consuming part of our winter work but is crucial to
keeping our mowers operating and cutting properly.
Figure 4: New
bearings and seals about to be installed in front roller
Figure 5:
Disassembled Toro cutting unit
Figure 6: Using
Accugage to set mowing height on heads after grinding
Although equipment maintenance consumes a big portion of our
winter, there is still a great deal of work being done on other key aspects of
our golf facility. All of the yardage plates, tees markers, signs, benches,
rope stakes, flags, bunker rakes and other materials you see on the course each
day are brought inside for the winter to be repaired and refurbished.
Figure 7: Rope
stakes are sanded and repainted
Figure 8: Doors
being built for our workbenches
The winter is also a great time for us to reorganize and clean
the maintenance facility. This winter several projects are being completed to
help with organization including building doors on our workbenches to allow for
better storage, reorganizing the irrigation parts/tool room, and reorganizing
the golf course accessories room.
Aside from our typical work week the maintenance staff is
also responsible for snow removal at the Clubhouse. A recent purchase of
enclosed cab tractors have aided us in our efforts to clear the never ending
snowfall. During each snowfall event our staff is responsible for clearing the
main drive leading to the clubhouse, the parking lots, walk paths, and applying
sand and salt to any area necessary.
Figure 9: One of our
tractors used for snow removal at Clubhouse
This winter we have spent numerous hours developing new irrigation
maps to help manage water use more precisely.
Many of these irrigation maps required updates as a result of the new
controllers that were installed during the dual head irrigation project that
was completed last spring.
Figure 10:
Jake Newman working on Freedom maps for irrigation system
As we near the end of the winter our focus turns toward
future course improvements and overall playability. Course set up is one
example; course set up here at Glen Oaks is broken down into 21 different days
all with specific tee and pin locations. Throughout the golf season we analyze
each hole individually in terms of difficulty from the tee to green. Changes
are made to our set up schedule that help us spread the wear and tear of play
and provide the golfers with a variety of pin locations each day.
Figure 11:
Jordan Kapple analyzing and adjusting course set up sheets
In summary, the overall functioning of the golf course each
playing season is directly related to the amount of preparation done in the
winter. Taking the time to evaluate areas for improvement, implementing a
maintenance plan, and creating new goals is what allows us to provide the Glen
Oaks members with the best possible course conditions each day.
