We have a busy week ahead! One of our biggest challenges is having one week to prepare for the Men's M/G tournament after the 4th of July. We are up for the challenge every year! This week, you will see more of an emphasis put on hand watering to really dial the moisture content of the playing surfaces in towards the drier side. In addition, we have all of the details to focus on from divots to edging and even replacing towels on ballwashers. No detail is left unattended.
You will also notice a slight increase in green speed. We will continue to double cut daily. In addition, we are verticutting on Monday and Tuesday. This thinning process always increase green speed due to reduced friction.
On fairways, we are back to mowing some stripes for the tournament. I am asked why we mow the 50/50 pattern, also known as light and dark. The reasons are as follows:
1. It is a throwback to the days of mowing fairways with a team of mules or horses. The large gang mower couldn't be turned around easily to stripe. Therefore, they went up and back, up and back.
2. It is faster.
3. Saves wear and tear on the roughs by not turning mowers on them. It also save wear and tear on the mowers because you aren't lifting the reels after every pass.
4. Saves a tremendous amount of fuel over the course of a year.
Simply put, striping of golf course fairways is a thing of the 1980's. That is when the technology became available to stripe. I am proud of the heritage of HCC and feel the light and dark is much more fitting.