On The Course March 6th

Edge of Excelsior Cover on #12 Green

We have been eagerly awaiting a good snow melt after the big snow event from last week and it has started. Over half of the measured snow has compressed and melted and we are very please with what we have seen on the course to this point. We have some ice in some fairway spots but over all I believe the course is in pretty good shape. We have looked at a couple greens and there does not appear to be any ice on them and our Toro Turfguard sensors still show soil temperatures below 32 degrees. We will be monitoring these daily to see what the temperatures are reading and will also be taking daily checks of the golf course. The weather forecast looks to be really good for the weekend with a chance of some rain. That rain if warm enough could pull the rest of the frost out of the ground and helps us get a jump start on spring.

Cover Releases from the Turf Canopy.

The covers we looked at yesterday on 10 and 12 look really good. They are not frozen to the ground or encased in ice. We have lost a lot of the snow pack over night and will look at some greens later this afternoon. We do not want to interrupt the snow melt by tracking up areas around the greens. Footprints and shovel marks can re-freeze overnight and cause an ice dam when the snow starts to melt again. We will be watching some run off areas and if needed be clearing certain areas to help with the snow melt. With temperatures predicted to be in the middle 50's for the weekend I would imagine most of the snow will be gone by Monday of next week. We will be making a more frequent return to blogging about the course and what we are seeing as the snow melts.

Drainage Basins are Open and the Water is Flowing.