SUMMERTIME GOLF COURSE PROJECT UPDATE

We would like to thank everyone for another great season at PPCC and wish everyone a great summer wherever you may spend yours.

We are seeing great growth and recovery in the greens. The prolonged cold wet winter inhibited the bentgrass growth and recovery. The roots are actively spreading and deepening back down to about 6-8 inches and lengthening, as we prepared them for the summer stress.

We also will be performing a significant amount of brushing to help the grass stand up vertically, allowing the ball to roll on the tips of the leaf blade, instead of the side. Brushing is also very instrumental for increasing turf density and alleviating grain in the grass.

We aerified the greens on May 8 and 9, maintaining higher cut heights on the greens after aerification and throughout the summer to protect the health of the bentgrass during the stressful summer months.

You will see the greens and grounds department become more active in hosing or syringing the greens throughout the day. We respectfully ask that you please be careful and help keep our staff safe during this practice. Please pause and/or yield for the sta ff to complete their job, as this is a very di ffi cult and strenuous task during the summer stress months.

The transition back to bermudagrass is in full swing. It is very encouraging to see how much is coming through the overseed on the fairways, tees, and approaches given what a prolonged cold winter we had. As we moved into summer, we made a series of applications to slowly and methodically remove the overseeded ryegrass. The grass will not go brown or disrupt play at all. Instead, it will lighten to a pale green, which is the same very successful process we have used for four years.

We have several projects coming this summer. We will be adding six fans to the golf course. We are currently working with APS to run power from Pinnacle Peak Road to power them. Players will see a significant amount of trenching being performed for several weeks, which will be completed in July.

We will be improving the drainage to the area north of No. 8 green, between the homes where the drainage water enters the golf course. This will be done to fix the water that is dammed up above the turf and also to remedy the need to pump the water after every storm. This will also improve the aesthetics of the area as well as a long-term solution to the drainage problem. We will be lowering all the turf on each side of the bank and will add a four-foot-wide cement channel that will let all water through to empty the drainage basin completely after storms.

We will be re-grading and improving the desert to the west of No. 16, between the tee and the homes. This will primarily be a grading project to slow and hold the water to control the erosion issues in the area. We will redirect and brace several embankments to help the erosion issues for the golf course and the homes in the area.

We hope you enjoy your summer. We look forward to seeing you on the course. For those of you who do not spend your summers here, we will see you when you return.