Joe from Glen Echo with a great article on thawing

I came across this article from Joe at Glen Echo in St. Louis. I think this lays it out perfectly on thawing greens and the issues of this past fall and how this winter effects everything. Well done Joe!!


This past fall and early winter we've had significant drought conditions which have not allowed the roots to grow properly. The fall and early winter are the 2nd best time of year for shoot (top growth) and root growth of cool season grass(Bentgrass) on our greens. This season, some of the root mass has been reduced because of drier than normal conditions. As you can see illustrated in the picture below, the late winter and spring are the prime time for root and shoot (top growth) so there is plenty of time for recovery as long as we don't create additional injury in winter.

Cycle of growth in cool season turf.(shoot) top growth and root growth balance for the time of year

. Pic credit Milorganite.

As greens begin to thaw in the profile, there is a thawed layer and then frozen. As golfers walk on the green surface, the surface moves under their feet and roots are torn or sheared off at the interval of thawed and frozen turf. The deeper the thaw goes into the turf, the less susceptible the turf is to this issue.

Another thing that happens is that the moisture that has built up on or near the surface needs to drain through the canopy. Our sand layer is approximately 6" deep. If the deeper area 4-6" deep is still frozen, water cannot evacuate from the surface area creating a significant sponge effect on the surface of the greens. High moisture on or near the surface leads to foot imprinting which can be very disruptive and noticeable for weeks.

All of the above is dependent upon how slowly/quickly the freeze comes out of the greens. It varies during every freeze/thaw cycle. We will check the greens daily and notify the pro shop of availability of play or no play. One of the things you could do if the course is not open is to come out and hit a few range balls to get some swings in.

With the potential of freezing rain and an ice layer forming on the greens, we might not get an opportunity during this thawing cycle to open for play.

Bunker Rake Storage

Yesterday the guys maximized our storage capacity for bunker rake storage. On this rack we have 152 bunker rakes that will be put back on the course in the next month or two. This is a great space saver compared to storing them in 55gal barrels and having the barrels in the way whenever you need to move a piece of equipment.

Jamie Stash is heading to the Farmers Insurance Open

Happy New Year!!! The off season is going very well so far for the Grounds staff. A lot of the winter work is nearing completion and I’m confident we will be ready to go once the weather clears up for spring. The winter though very cold has actually been a nice change from the past couple of years. With a good strong freeze in the ground I’m hoping we’ll see a lot fewer insects, and weeds plus I hope we also get a nice fracking of the soil during the thaw which will help with root development in the spring. Our moisture levels however are still concerning to me. The ponds are very close to full on the course but if anybody has been by Lake Springfield it is several feet below full pool. I’m hoping in the near future that we start to turn this trend and begin picking up more rain events especially once the course comes out of winter dormancy.

We have something exciting coming up for one of our staff members. Jaime Stash has been chosen by the TORO Company to participate in a week long tournament and education opportunity beginning on Sunday, Jan. 21^st and running until Sunday, Jan 28^th. After being nominated he was selected as one of 25 up and coming Assistant Superintendents nationwide to take part in the all-expenses paid week long Farmers Insurance Open PGA Tour event in San Diego, California. After I started looking at the list of courses being represented I am honored to see Panther Creek Country Club recognized with some of the most legendary and revered courses in the country.  It will be a lot of fun for Jaime and it will allow him to reach out to piers at other clubs and gleam information that hopefully he can bring back to Panther Creek for implementation. His week will comprise of getting up and on a bus by 4:15am, working and staying at the course all day as a guest of TORO and Torrey Pines and then return to his hotel following the afternoon work shift around 6:00pm. This is quite an honor for Jaime and I hope anyone on Twitter can follow his updates during the week. Once he returns home he will be posting a tournament wrap-up for the Turf Blog as well.

Have a great week!! I hope to catch up with everyone very soon at the Annual Meeting on January 30^th.