Pinnacle Peak Country Club Agronomy: July 2017

Things are in full swing here within the Pinnacle Peak Agronomy Department. Aerification of the tees and aprons has been completed and the recovery has been very good. The first round of aerification has been completed on the rough, with the intention of making another pass within the next couple weeks. Plugs should be mulched and impact on play should be minimal. Last week, vertical mowing, aerification and application of topdressing sand was completed on the back 9 fairways. Similar to tees, recovery has been good.

On Monday, vertical mowing of the final fairways on the front was complete, and aerification work began on the front 9 fairways. Much like last week, this process will continue throughout the next couple of days with the intention of finishing holes 1-9 this week. Our goal is to apply another, lighter application of sand to all fairways within the next couple weeks, which should wrap up cultural practices on the course for the summer. While this process does cause some inevitable, temporary decline to fairways, this process is by far the best way to continue providing a healthy and firm playing surface throughout the year. We appreciate everyone's patience during this process.

Construction of the retaining wall on #10 black tee has been complete and was sodded last week. This tee will remain closed for the next few weeks while we work on growing in and smoothing the surface. Andy's Tree Service continues to trim the larger tree species on the course, and have completed most of the back 9. They will be on property for the next few Monday's until their contract is completed.

Work has completed on well number 2 located inside the pump house. The second acid treatment worked exceptionally well. There is an increase in productivity from the well while using less electricity to operate it. It is nice to have both well sites back up and running.

The humidity has been picking up substantially over the last couple weeks, and Sunday night we received our first monsoon rain of the season. We received just under .5 inch, and with the exception of a downed tree on 9 and a few lost branches throughout the course, everything held up well.

Greens continue to perform very well given the difficult heat and humidity we've been experiencing. Mowing heights and clipping yields have remained consistent, as have green speeds. Root depth continues to far exceed the old greens, with a healthy root mass 6-8 inches deep with runners pushing 10 inches in length. Ball marks remain, and we would like to refer our membership to the video posted last month explaining the correct way to fix a ball mark. Please remember it is the golfer's responsibility to fix your mark as well as at least one more to help alleviate this issue.