Green &Grounds Blog – August – October 2022
Welcome to the 2022/2023 fall/winter season. We hope everyone
enjoyed their summer wherever you may have been. We are all welcoming back the
perfect weather.
It was a very busy and challenging summer. In early August
we were hit with a 100-year storm that devastated the North Scottsdale area and
2 weeks later hit with another large storm. The storm brought a lot of water in
a short amount of time. With that water came a lot of granite, debris, and
damage. The retention on #5 was filled with almost 4 additional feet of granite
and debris. Much of the wash on #2 was cut 4-6 feet deep. The wash behind #8
green had 4-6 feet of granite built up about 50 yards deep into the drainage
channel. In addition, the green and grounds building was flooded with several
inches of water and a few inches of mud. G&G department and several
contractors spent much of August and September repairing the damage. Not all
damage has been repaired yet, but we continue to work on the small things in
the desert areas and many of the areas along the homes on the golf course.
As many of you may have seen through club emails, well #1
had some major mechanical problems this past June. Well #1 is located about ½
mile SW of #15 green in the HOA to the west of PPCC. The pumping yield had
dropped about 50%. The well had been in the ground for 14 years, significantly past
its life expectancy of 8-10 years on average. We were able to quickly mobilize
our contractor to inspect and diagnose the problems. The bowl assembly at the
bottom of the well was in the early stages of failure. Well #1 was set at 900
ft deep so the entire assembly had to be pulled. Upon inspection visible
wearing, pits, and holes were discovered in the columns and drive shafts. The
entire pump assembly, inner column, and drive shaft have now been replaced. The
400 HP motor was also rebuilt. In addition, the entire perforated outer column
was scrubbed and cleaned, and inspected for structural damage. Fortunately, the
well casing and outer column were in very good condition and only required cleaning. The well was re-installed in mid-September and is back to operating
at full capacity. Well #2 was rebuilt in 2017 and continues to operate a full
capacity.
The septic tank at the G&G building has been replaced.
The hole is still open in our backyard, awaiting inspection from Maricopa
County. The septic tank at G&G building and #7 restroom had been failing
for some time now. A new road-grade tank was able to be installed and
positioned in the back yard of the G&G yard and will be able to be paved
over for future improvements to the G&G building.
Some additional work was performed on the lakes and pump station to ensure efficiency. The intake screen for the pump station has
been replaced. The intake screen is in the middle of the lake on #18 and had
failed. Allowing for excess debris to be sucked into the wet well below the
pump station. This debris was causing clogging issues in our irrigation heads
throughout the golf course. Additionally, a diver cleaned out the wet well
below the pump station, helping to alleviate the debris being sucked into the
irrigation system.
The small ponds next to #1 tee and #9 green were drained and
dredged to help improve the appearance of the pond. Several cubic yards of
sludge and aquatic weeds were removed from the ponds. Unfortunately, it was
discovered that the liner in the upper pond next to the #1 tee has failed. The
failed liner is seeping water, and the pond is being continuously contaminated
by native soil. The necessary improvements to the pond liner have been added to
the long-term capital improvement plan and is being priced out.
The summer monsoon was very hard on our bentgrass greens.
Sustained soil temperatures of 85-100 degrees, sustained humidity in the 60’s,
and sustained dew points in the upper 60’s and low 70’s from July into
mid-September took their toll on the bentgrass. For reference, ideal soil temps
for bentgrass are 50-65 degrees. The harsh conditions throughout the summer
took the root system from 10-12 inches down to about 3 inches by September.
Simply put, the bentgrass slowly boiled in the ground for the summer, leading
to some loss.
In mid-September, our fall aerification was performed. While
cultural practice went well, we had a few challenges with the smearing of the
sand on a few wet and dewy mornings that crusted up and caused some damage. Many
of these areas have been patched and repaired. #3, #5, #12, #16, and #17 had most
of the damage. G&G continues to hand water, hand roll, and hand top-dress
to help mend the repairs to the existing greens. The height of cut of the
greens remains higher than normal for this time of the year to help the repaired
areas mature and mend. We appreciate your patience and understanding while we
nurse these areas back to full health.
2022 overseed went very well. We dodged several storms
through overseeding. There were no major washouts or damage during overseeding due
to the storms. During the grow-in, G&G took advantage of that time to
depth check and fix all bunkers. We cleaned and polished all tee markers, trash
cans, and tees accessories. G&G
continues to play catch up in the deserts from the summer storms. Desert
cleaning and small detail work continue to be performed at every opportunity.
The height of the cut on all overseed surfaces will remain a
little tall for a few weeks as we let the new ryegrass mature. As the weather
cools and the Bermuda shrinks down, we will consistently lower the mowing
heights. Many players have commented on the non-overseeded roughs being
tall/thick and difficult. This is by design. We want the non-overseeded Bermuda as full and
thick as we can possibly get it before the cold weather sets in and shrinks it
down. This is to protect dormant Bermuda through the non-growing season of
the winter.
As many of you know, the Southwest United States and Arizona
continue to face water challenges. Currently, PPCC operates under water
management plan #3 adopted in 2000. This plan gave PPCC an annual allotment of 583-acre
feet of water for the golf course. On January 1st, 2023, PPCC will
take a state-mandated 3% cut in water under the legislated water management
plan #4 to 565-acre feet. On January 1st of 2025, PPCC will take
another state-mandated 7% cut in water under the legislated water management
plan #5 to 530-acre feet.
Since 2015 PPCC has averaged 541 acre feet per year. Plan #5
will make things tighter to manage. We are currently managing as if plan #5 has
already been implemented. Currently, there are no additional legislated cuts
after WMP #5. However, that may change as circumstances change. We continue
to manage our water as efficiently as possible. Water usage is monitored daily
to meet monthly and annual goals. PPCC water usage has been trending down
consistently since the mid-1980s. We continue to utilize state of the art irrigation
heads, computers, moisture meters, and wetting agents to help us conserve.
We hope you are enjoying the golf course and we look forward
to seeing your out there.
Regards
Green &Grounds Department
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Stucco Blown off G&G Building |
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Water in G&G Office |
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Water in G&G Storage Room |
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Mud & Debris in G&G Yard |
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Wash Out & Storm Water from #8 Green pushed onto #9 |
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Storm Damage #5 |
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Storm Damage #13/Driving Range |
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Granite washed onto course |
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#5 Basing next to PPCC Rd. |
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Well #1 Inner Column Ready for Install |
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Well #1 Reinstalled |
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Old Pump Station Intake Screen & New |
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Debris from wet well under the pump station |
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Large Debris from wet well clean out |
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Pond #1 Tee pumped out |
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Dredging Crew |
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Small Pond in fron of #9 Green being Dredged |
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Broken Liner on Large Pond #1 Tee |
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#1 Tee Pond |
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Excuvation for G&G Septic Tank |
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Drilling Leach Pit for Septic Tank - 6" Wide by 40 Ft Deep. |
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Crew performing Bunker Depths Checks
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