Fall Quarterly Insight from The Country Club at Loch Lloyd

THE COUNTRY CLUB AT LOCH LLOYD GOLF COURSE MAINTENANCE UPDATE FALL 2020

Dear Members, Thank you for taking the time to read the third edition of my report. Fall is right around the corner, bringing with it shorter days and cooler nights. The year has gone by relatively quickly with all that has been happening, both on and off the course.

The challenges that 2020 has brought forth have been very real and the Golf Course Maintenance team has been working diligently to turn these challenges into opportunities — not only for our future success, but also for our continued growth.

Since coming on board as part of the GCM team less than two years ago, we have been able to make a lot of changes within our work environment, with safety being a top priority. Building a strong team and healthy culture takes time. Initiating new programs and plans, and executing these plans to become second nature and consistent, will certainly take more than these first couple of years. In two years, one can make some changes. In five years, one can certainly make a difference. In 10 years and beyond, one can make it their own. I am excited about the future here at The Country Club at Loch Lloyd.

The GCM team has been under much criticism lately with regard to some of the challenges we have been facing on the course. In this issue of , we hope to shed some light on the facts behind the specific concerns of members. Although facts do not change feelings, it is my hope to turn any negative feelings into a positive future, based upon the facts and direction of maintenance of the golf course.

As mentioned in the previous reports, we receive many questions on a daily basis. If you ever feel that we have not successfully answered your question or solved a situation, please reach out and email, text or call me any time so that I may clarify and resolve your concern.

As many of you have noticed, the GCM team has been working tirelessly these past several months. I hope you’ll notice their efforts and impact they make on a daily basis. The team takes a great deal of pride in the work they do. When conditions are not perfect for our members, it impacts them as well. At times we miss the mark, but I can promise you that we are aware of our short-comings and are working hard to remedy these issues. We will continue to strive to produce the best product on a consistent basis.

I look forward to seeing you around the course, in the Clubhouse, throughout the community and at our first Round Table Discussion on September 29th (see below for more information).

Jeff Steen

Director of Golf Course Maintenance jeffs@lochlloyd.com

Round Table Discussion with Jeff Steen and Sean Hanna Please join Sean and I for our first Round Table Discussion on Tuesday, September 29th at 9a.

We’ll host a small group of eight members each week to maintain social distancing protocols. Our goal is to have a specific topic to discuss and to create a relaxed group setting for questions and answers. Look for an email soon regarding the Round Table location and how you can sign up to attend. 2

Dagoberto (Dago) Carrillo has been with the GCM team for just over four years. A hard worker and valued contributor to the operation Dago is a key member of the team.

Dago is able to do it all. Whether he’s working on a special project, operating equipment or spraying applications, he has proven himself to be an excellent greenskeeper. It is a pleasure working alongside Dago and having him as a part of the Loch Lloyd team!

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Recent and upcoming initiatives within our operation.

“What is going on with areas in the roughs?”

First off, I want to apologize for not addressing this question sooner. I did not have all the facts until recently. Again, although facts do not change feelings, I want to provide an overview and timeline of what happened to isolated areas around the edges of the roughs and what is being done about these areas.

SEPTEMBER 2019 An herbicide produced by the Bayer company was sprayed on the fairways, according to the exact label specifications. This product, commonly used each fall and spring by golf course superintendents, should not be sprayed on cool season turf (per the product label).

Because of this warning, a common practice is to stay well away from edges of the fairways, preventing injury to non-specific turf type.

MAY 2020 Seven months after the initial application, the GCM team witnessed the first signs of damage on the #16 approach.

The team re-sods a small triangle patch.

JUNE 2020 Eight months after the initial application, areas of obvious turf struggle reinforce that it was caused from a chemical application.

The team re-sods the area on #14 although two weeks later, the same area starts to die a second time.

We contact Bayer to communicate our issues and alert them that their product has a problem!

We report that the product is moving a great deal although it was applied nearly nine months prior.

#14

The product label also states that the herbicide does not “move;” therefore, if applied in accordance, one should not have any concerns or issues. Unfortunately, this was not the case. As you can see from the photo above, it is obvious the product did move, causing detrimental injury to the turf.

The team re-sodded the same damaged areas on the front of #14 a second time with the same results. 4

JULY-AUGUST 2020 Weather in July and August was not favorable for the team to continue re-sodding areas coupled with the uncertainty of success. I work closely with Bayer U.S. Technical Service Support and PhD staff.

SEPTEMBER 2020 At the time of writing this report, the GCM team is working hard to re-sod, overseed and correct the damage done nearly one year ago.

As a result of our experience, the product’s label verbiage and specific language for end users is being addressed by the Bayer team.

MOVING AHEAD

Again, my apologies for not writing about this sooner, but it has taken the last several weeks to truly understand the dynamics of what we were dealing with. While the efforts continue (working closely with Bayer through soil sampling, overseeding, testing and sod work) we feel confident that we should be past the challenges and turn this negative into a positive for our Club and our industry.

I hope this overview and timeline have shed some light on the situation. Please reach out to me at jeffs@lochlloyd.com so that I may elaborate and provide additional insight if you’re interested.

Jeff Great moments come from opportunities.

These opportunities can present themselves in both positive or negative forms and can come from challenges not known nor foreseen.

Capitalizing and seizing these moments with humility only makes one better.

Leading a team, seeking opportunities and creating great moments … those are my goals! 5

Attention to detail is ongoing and takes time.

It sometimes changes a culture within the work environment.

Here are just a few of the details being taken care of by our hard-working team on a regular basis. Plus … some insight to projects earmarked for 2020.

GREENS COLLARS With certain areas of the collars struggling, they have created a great deal of conversation. Being eliminated altogether several years ago, I reintroduced the collars and step-cut last year. The look has been well-received. However, when playability of certain areas is “sub-par,” this is obviously unacceptable and therefore we continue to enhance our programs to make sure our attention to detail is a top priority! Two areas that have traditionally struggled (#13 and #15) look great under the current program. Facts do not change feelings, but please reach out to me directly if you have questions and/or concerns regarding the aesthetics or playability of the collars.

TRIM WORK As you can see from the pictures here of holes #13 and #17, the team has worked hard to maintain the creeks and water features. Our immediate and future goal will be to keep these areas trimmed and tight in appearance year round.

#13

#17

NEW ASSOCIATES As you drive by hole #12, you may notice four new members of our team! We haven’t named them yet, but working together, they are doing an outstanding job keeping the Canadian Geese off the playing surfaces! 6

#13

#15

CART RULES ANDBALLMARKS Although this is an ongoing topic, moving forward we would like members with private carts to adhere to the “off path” rules as best as possible so that we may maintain the integrity of our golf course. As you can see from the picture here, the amount of cart traffic leaving the path early is very evident.

The Golf Shop fleet carts are all now equipped with GPS system that blocks them from traveling in certain areas so these traffic marks are obviously made by non-Club carts.

On the chart below, you will see the off path rules we’ve sent out many times. Please scatter and stay on the fairways when you leave the path and follow the cart directional signage as you exit the hole. Next year we plan to install additional entry and exit markers to help simplify the process. For now, please do not enter the fairways until you are past all tees. If we all adhere to these simple directions, it will help us mitigate any unnecessary damage to the course. We anticipate keeping carts on paths for holes #3, #18 and all par 3s. It’s your course so whether it’s cart traffic control or fixing ballmarks, please hold yourself and others accountable and work together to keep it in the best possible condition. These simple guidelines will make such a difference. Thank you.

Do Not Enter

X Enter Here

Scatter Carts/ Remain in Fairway

…

Exit Fairway at Cart Signs

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NOTE: #3, #18 and all par 3s remain cart path only 7

It’s my pleasure to spotlight two of our key associates on the next page. Thank you for taking a moment to read about Eli Sandoval and Andres Avendano, two of our hard-working greenskeepers at The Country Club at Loch Lloyd. These gentlemen do their very best every day to provide you with the most optimal course conditions possible. They also appreciate a wave or “hello” when you see them on the job!

Weather during the third quarter of 2020 was interesting to say the least. We had only .6" of rain the first 28 days of July … considerably less than the previous year. According to the National Weather Service, we also set some records during the month of September: On September 9th, we set a record cold temperature of 54 degrees; the old record of 66 degrees was set in 1907.

On September 10th, we set another record cold temperature of 56 degrees; the old record of 60 degrees was set in 1898.

2020 THIRD QUARTER WEATHER STATS

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Eli Sandoval is going on his third year as a Greenskeeper at The Country Club at Loch Lloyd.

He enjoys working outside alongside his fellow associates and takes great pride in his section work.

Andres Avendano has been with the Golf Course Maintenance team as Greenskeeper and Spray Technician for six years. His favorite part of his job is working outside, especially in the mornings.

A few of Eli’s hobbies include fishing and cheering on the Las Vegas Raiders.

He loves spending his free time with his family — wife, Lelena, and their two sons, Christopher (12) and Matthew (4). Their favorite family activity is summertime at the pool.

Eli and his wife, Rocio Pena, have three daughters and two sons: Hailey (12); Katie (10); Michaelangelo (8); Kaileigh (1) and Rocio (1).

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“Why do you aerate so often?”

AERATION BY THE NUMBERS A common question superintendents receive regarding aeration (especially greens) is, “Why do you aerate so often?” We’ve all heard it. Aerating again?

We’ve explained the benefits of aeration in many of the Club’s newsletters and reports. These benefits include alleviating compacting, removing organic matter, increasing water and air movement and more.

What isn’t often discussed, however, is how much of the surface area is actually impacted.

Of course, we aerate the entire playing surface and then bury in sand, so in theory, the entire area is impacted; however, you may find the following chart rather interesting. I have only included the figures associated with the most recent greens aeration here at Loch Lloyd. If the GCM team were to take a survey with the membership and ask the following question, “How much of the playing surface do you think is disturbed when we aerate?” you may be surprised (or maybe not) to hear the results. On average, most golfers think that a minimum of 50% of the area has holes … up to as high of 75%.

When in reality, we recently only pulled a core plug from less than 5% of the putting surface!

Tine Size Diameter (inches)

Spacing (inches)

Number of Holes Per Square Foot

1/4 inch

1x1

144

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Surface Area Percent of Impacted by Surface Area One Tine Impacted (square inches)

0.049

4.91%

The biggest goal for the GCM team this fall and into winter will be working on fairway drainage and improving isolated areas on the fairways throughout the property that continue to have drainage problems. Facts do not change feelings, but an interesting statistic is that only 0.05% of the fairway surface area is affected.

ADDITIONAL FALL PROJECTS:         

Irrigation repairs Trim work throughout property Overseeding roughs 100% Edging of paths All fall fertility and chemical applications Cart path repairs Walk path enhancement Tree work Pond/creek repairs

Overseeding in process.

The Sechrest Nine has been getting a lot more attention in the past several weeks. The following projects on the Sechrest Nine have been completed by the GCM team: GREENS AERATION TEE AERATION BUNKERS CLEANED, TRIMMED and RAKED DETAIL WORK to continue MOWING NATIVE AREAS  11 

We had an average of two irrigation leaks per week this year!

As mentioned in my first two quarterly reports, I want to extend an open invitation to stop by the maintenance yard and offices, meet the team, and see behind the scenes.

“Facts do not change feelings” has been a theme throughout this quarter’s report, but I encourage you to reach out if I can help in anyway. Whether you share your feelings, ask your questions or express your concerns, I encourage an open line of communication.

Let’s play some golf! I would love to get a round in with you this fall when your schedule allows.

Jeff Steen

Director of Golf Course Maintenance jeffs@lochlloyd.com

Gross Match Play.................... September 25th-27th Round Table Discussion ....... September 29th Ladies’ Closing Day ............... October 7th

16750 Country Club Drive Village of Loch Lloyd, MO 64012 816.322.1022 www.lochlloyd.com  12 