Sunday, January 27, 2008

Loch Lloyd Country Club Maintenance Plan

Created By Nels A. Lindgren, CGCS

GOLF COURSE MAINTENANCE PLAN DEFINITION

The annual Golf Course Maintenance Plan is a comprehensive operating plan that will be implemented to fulfill the mission of creating a very positive and most enjoyable golf experience at Loch Lloyd for members and guests, and to accomplish the goals for the Loch Lloyd golf course. This mission and the golf course goals are supported by the approved operating and capital budgets, and are integral to the operating plans detailed in the following pages.

GOALS FOR LOCH LLOYD GOLF COURSE

There are three major goals for the Loch Lloyd Golf Course:
1. To provide the members of Loch Lloyd every day with a well maintained, championship-caliber golf course of which they are proud of and enjoy to play.
2. To be one of the two or three “Best Maintained” golf courses in the greater Kansas City area.
3. To carefully maintain and protect the golf course currently while anticipating future challenges, and doing so within the operating and capital budgets.

GOLF COURSE ATTRIBUTES

While recognizing that what constitutes a “best maintained, championship-caliber” golf course is somewhat subjective, most golfers would identify the following elements attributed to such a course:

• An educated and involved membership
• Smooth greens on which the ball tracks well
• Greens that are judged “faster” rather than “slower” and can be speeded up for championship play
• Greens that are judged “firmer” rather than “softer”
• Greens that are neatly and consistently mown
• Greens without a great amount of grain
• Fairways fairly closely mown, but upon which the ball sets up
• Fairways with consistent grass density and coverage
• Tees mown to near fairway height
• Tees with consistent grass density and coverage
• Roughs with fairly high grass and consistent grass density and coverage
• Minimal amounts of poa annua on the course and greens
• A generally “drier” rather than “wetter” average condition
• Bunkers with consistent sand depth and playability
• Bunkers that are raked daily during prime golf season
• Bunkers that are well-edged
• Hazards that are well-defined and well-marked
• Trees that are well-trimmed without dead limbs or branches
• Cart paths that are well-maintained and edged
• Tee markers, ball washers, drinking fountains, benches and other teeing area amenities that are conveniently placed and consistently maintained
• No visual or play inconsistencies, such as sink holes, consistently wet areas, burned out areas, weed patches and the like, anywhere on the course.

STAFFING

Loch Lloyd’s golf course maintenance staff is headed by Director of Grounds, Nels Lindgren. He has been in course management for over 29 years, and in the Director of Grounds position at Loch Lloyd even before the course opened in 1990. His First Assistant Superintendent is Judd Bearb, who came to Loch Lloyd as an intern in 1997. There are two Second Assistant Superintendents, Greg Wiggins, who came to Loch Lloyd in 2001, and Keith Templin who joined Loch Lloyd this spring from The Players Club course in St. Louis.

Other key course maintenance staff positions include:
• One mechanics who maintains golf course, HOA and developer equipment
• Seven State of Missouri Certified Spray Technicians
• One Irrigation Technician who maintains several thousand course and HOA sprinkler heads and three pump stations

A fairly unique and interesting part of Loch Lloyd’s course maintenance staff is its active intern program. Each year, four or five interns from agronomy programs around the country are hired to work as staff members. Not only do these interns provide a cost-effective, well educated, and highly motivated addition to the staff, they also provide a steady stream of potential future managers.

The primary component of any golf course maintenance budget is labor, and the overall condition of the golf course is directly related to how well that labor consistently performs. Generally, Loch Lloyd’s course maintenance staff consists of 11 to 12 full time, year round associates plus seasonal additions of the four or five interns and 18 seasonal workers.

Generally, labor costs run between 65% and 70% of any maintenance budget. Consequently, acquiring, training, motivating and monitoring a golf course maintenance staff is crucial to not only having a superb golf course, but to controlling the cost of doing so.

The work crews continually balance the need to prepare the course each day for the first golfers teeing off with the wishes of homeowners who do not like to be disturbed early in the morning. Consequently, except when weather demands otherwise, the daily work schedules are:
Off peak season 7:00 am to 3:30 pm
Mid-April to Mid-May 6:00 am to 2:30 pm
Mid-May to Mid-August 5:30 am to 2:00 pm
Mid-August to October 6:00 am to 2:30 pm
These schedules may be modified by weather or course demands, and it is not unusual to find fairway mowers busy at work at 4:00 am.
COURSE OVERVIEW

Loch Lloyd’s golf course sits on approximately 135 maintained acres. The front nine more closely resembles a links style course, while the back nine (actually ten) is set among steep hills, woods, and streams. An additional 40 acres of woods, natural areas and lakes are found adjacent to the course. A new 16 acre practice facility and 7 acres of clubhouse, tennis courts, parking and landscaping completes the total Loch Lloyd experience.

The golf course itself is comprised of (approximately):
• 4 acres of greens
• 2 and _ acres of tees
• 31 acres of fairways
• 90 acres of roughs
• 7 and _ acres of cartpaths and miscellaneous areas

Water is a key element for any golf course, and Loch Lloyd has three pump stations to deliver it. The main pump station provides 2,900 gallons per minute at 130 psi. Water is dispersed to the golf course through 2,400 irrigation heads, and to the common areas through another 800 landscape heads. A total of 9 lakes and ponds constitute our water features through which 250,000 gallons of water meanders for a mile through the golf course. Loch Lloyd also maintains around 1,200 nursery-grown trees as well as thousands of native trees on club grounds.

The 16 acre new practice facility is highlighted by 3 acres of bent grass tees, practice greens and target greens. There are also 5 and _ acres of zoysia tees and fairways, 7 acres of fescue roughs, and a half-acre of natural area. 900 golf and landscape sprinkler heads carefully distribute the water as needed.


GREENS MANAGEMENT

The greens at Loch Lloyd consist of Pennlinks bent grass. At the time of Loch Lloyd’s construction in 1989, this was the newest and finest quality hybrid available. It performs very well in our midwestern climatic zone and provides a smooth, consistent putting surface. The greens have aged fairly well. They still have a good sand base at depth, and a healthy root system that reaches four to seven inches in the surface layers.

From April through September, bent grass is prone to fungus problems. These can be controlled with regularly scheduled fungicide applications. During the hotter summer months, extreme temperatures and wind can cause bent grass green surfaces to wilt requiring hand watering or “syringing” of the greens. The maintenance staff does this only when necessary for plant recovery. During this period, new root growth ceases, and root depth can shrink to two to three inches by early September.

Loch Lloyd’s putting surfaces are walk mowed daily with state-of-the-art Toro Flex 21 walking greens mowers. They are mowed on a four-directional rotation –with the shot, against the shot, left to right, and right to left –to help prevent the buildup of grain. The cleanup passes around the outside edge of the greens are mowed every other day, a method that reduces wear and tear all season long on these high-traffic areas. Two two-man crews begin mowing greens at the start of each day. They first mow the putting greens near the golf shop, and then proceed in order around the course, leap-frogging each other as they go. This normally takes 3 to 3 _ hours to complete, depending on whether cleanup laps are mowed that day. Wet weather and equipment problems can sometimes delay timely completion of the mowing.

The putting green and two chipping greens at the new practice facility are mowed first thing each morning by another member of the course maintenance staff.

The greens are normally mowed at a height of .110 inches, less than 1/8 inch. Occasionally, the height is temporarily raised due to wet weather, aerification and/or disease pressure. Green speed is monitored daily. When needed, a light sand topdressing is applied and the greens verticut to increase green speed. The greens are rolled each Friday, weather permitting and in season, to provide consistent conditions and to increase speed. Loch Lloyd’s target green speed is between 8.5 and 9.0 feet as measured on a Stimpmeter. This is slightly faster than the speed recommended by the USGA Greens Section for regular daily play throughout the primary golf season. For short periods of time during major member tournaments, and with weather permitting, green speed will be made faster through a combination of intense maintenance, dryer greens surfaces, and more frequent mowings at a lightly reduced mower height. This schedule cannot be maintained for long without risking long-term damage to the greens.

Aeration of greens is an essential tool of proper course maintenance. Aeration penetrates both the thatch and compaction layers that buildup at the green’s surface providing three major benefits:
• allows oxygen to reach the roots for plant growth and soil microorganism balance and function
• allows water to penetrate deeper avoiding puddling and oversaturation of the green’s surface
• Lowers moisture content in the upper rootzone providing a firmer surface

Loch Lloyd will perform three types of aeration this year – core aeration in early-to-mid April to actually breakup and remove portions of the thatch layer, deep tine aeration in both the Spring and Fall, and regular hydroject aeration throughout the growing season. Appropriate levels of topdressing are applied following each aeration treatment.

The manual labor components of green maintenance – walking mowing, fungicide applications and water syringing – make this one of the largest elements of Loch Lloyd’s annual maintenance budget.

Fresh cup placements are cut daily throughout the golf season in accordance with the daily pin placement program and the rules of the USGA. They are also placed in a manner to allow old cup placements time to repair themselves. For aesthetic effect, the lip of the cups is painted white during member events. During late fall and winter, two cups are cut into each green and left for extended periods. When players alternate pin placements, wear and tear on any one area is reduced.


TEES

Loch Lloyd’s 2 and _ acres of tees are bent grass. In general, the tees adhere to the same characteristics and attributes as the greens, but require slightly less maintenance. Their root system is currently very healthy reaching lengths of five to six inches.

Just like greens, bent grass tees are vulnerable to fungi. During the high diseases pressure months of April through September, fungicides will be applied to minimize and control this problem. Because tees are mowed at higher grass heights and receive less traffic damage, they tolerate heat stress from hot, dry and windy conditions somewhat better than do the greens. However, they still can fall victim to heat stress. Hand watering or syringing will be done as needed to alleviate these problems during such high stress periods.

Weather permitting, tee boxes are mowed three times each week on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays at a height of 1/3 inch.
On pre-determined days in early spring and fall, all tees will be core aerified and top dressed with sand. The entire process usually takes approximately two days, and occurs with minimal disruption of member play.

Tee blocks are changed every morning in accordance with the daily pin placements and the rules of the USGA. Divot sand bottles are filled and broken tees removed on a daily basis. Beginning this year, as an aesthetic improvement, we will use green sand to replace tee divots. Members and guests will be encouraged to utilize the proper method for filling divots – slightly over-fill the divot and tamp down lightly on the sand with your foot.

The large tees at the new practice facility are mowed with the same frequency as those on the course. They are also swept each day (following a day of significant usage) to remove the broken tees, divots and debris from the tee surface.

FAIRWAYS, APPROACHES & COLLARS

Loch Lloyd’s fairways are primarily bent grass, making the course very unique in the greater Kansas City area where zoysia fairways are the norm. Bent grass is much more difficult and costly to manage than zoysia, but it provides a consistently good ball set-up, a softer turf for ball-striking, and a lush green color almost all year around. With careful attention, bent grass does well in our climate zone.

The bent grass attributes mentioned above make bent grass our fairway grass of choice. However, it is prone to fungus problems, which we control through good cultural practices and the periodic application of fungicides. Since bent grass is a cool season variety, it is also vulnerable to heat stress during hot, dry and windy conditions. At these times, hand watering or syringing of highly stressed areas, particularly around greens, must be performed. In extreme situations, and when multiple areas are under high stress and hand watering resources are inadequate, the irrigation system must be turned on. We resort to this method only in emergency situations, and we try to manage it so as to minimize the disruption of member play.

The nature of Loch Lloyd’s bent grass fairways leaves them prone to excessive divot making by golfers striking down on the ball. Replacing these divots is not advised, since they will not re-grow. Rather, sand from provided divot bottles must be placed in the divot and smoothed down. During the peak golf season, the creeping bent grass of the fairways will generally grow in these divots in about three weeks.

Loch Lloyd’s 31 acres of fairways are generally mowed at a height of 7/16” three to four times a week, usually on at least Monday, Wednesday and Friday. Only during periods of extreme heat will the mowing height be raised slightly. Two staff members and two fairway mowers are regularly assigned to this task.
Fairway collars are mowed at a height of 1 and 1/8 inches by a designated staff member three to four times per week. This mower also mows the hillside island in the middle of hole #12, and the steep hillsides on the right sides of #17 and #18.

Longer periods of rain can set back mowing schedules and allow excessive grass growth. Following such rainy periods, a third staff member and a back-up fairway mower are used to help catch up. Once the ground becomes dry enough, fairway mowing begins no matter the day of the week. Catch up work may also require crews to start as early as 4:00 am and work late into the evening. If excessive grass clippings or heavy dew remain on the fairways after mowing, the maintenance staff will drag them to help disperse debris. Mowing frequency and hours will also be increased during special member events.

As with greens, aeration of fairways is essential to fight thatch buildup and soil compaction. Weather permitting, Loch Lloyd will core aerify fairways one time in late March or early April, and then aerify again in late September with a solid tine aerifier. After fall aerification, we will overseed with bent grass in any areas suffering from summer heat stress or which have excessive amounts of perennial rye still existing.

The approaches at Loch Lloyd consist of the same grass varieties as the fairways, and receive the same cultural practices. The only difference is that they are mowed with a smaller triplex mower.


ROUGHS

Most of Loch Lloyd’s roughs are primarily bluegrass with a little rye mixed in. In some of the harder-to-reach fringe areas with less desirable growing potential, we have begun to use some fescue. This grass variety tolerates periodic heat and dryness better than bluegrass.

Roughs comprise approximately 2/3 of Loch Lloyd’s total acreage. Five staff members utilize five 72” mulching rough mowers twice weekly in prime growing season. Generally on Monday mornings, the rough mowers start on the front nine mowing the holes in reverse order so as not to inconvenience the same groups hole after hole. On Tuesdays, the back nine is mowed starting at #10 in order to give the slowest drying holes, #16-#18, as much time during the day to dry out before mowing. Additional mowing is done later in the week as needed to keep the roughs in playable shape.

The roughs are generally mowed at a height of 2 _ inches. Reducing the mowing height below that, given the many hills, crests and mounds incorporated into Loch Lloyd’s course design as integral features, leads to course damage from scraping and scalping.

Core aeration of the roughs is performed twice yearly, in early spring and fall, to break up the compaction that occurs from mowing equipment and cart usage. The staff also closely monitors the usage damage from excessive cart traffic in concentrated areas. Certain areas of the course may be periodically closed to cart traffic to enable the course to recover. Bluegrass roughs are especially vulnerable to this type of damage.


WEEKLY COURSE MAINTENANCE SCHEDULE*
PEAK SEASON

The planned weekly maintenance program is built around the primary needs of mowing and trap maintenance. It is designed to maintain the course in peak playing condition while minimizing the intrusions on member play. This is particularly true for the peak demands of weekend play. However, weather or event interruptions to the normal schedule can cause major disruptions to the planned maintenance times.

Generally speaking, Monday is the busiest day as the staff attempts to recover from the minimal weekend maintenance and heavy golf course use. Most mowing and trap maintenance is designed to take place in the mornings, but heavy dew and rains can delay each day’s start.


Activity No. of Mowers
Sun
Mon
Tues
Wed
Thu
Fri
Sat

Greens Mowing
4

Tees Mowing
2

Fairways Mowing
2 / 3

Fairways Collars Mowing
1

Approaches Mowing
1

Roughs Mowing
5

Trap Preparation


* Excludes New Practice Facility
BUNKERS

The nearly 50 bunkers at Loch Lloyd were designed and built as an integral part of course architect, Donald Sechrest’s, concept of a challenging, championship layout. Consistent with the time, many of these bunkers incorporate high faces which sweep upward for aesthetic effect. While visually appealing, they present several significant challenges for course maintenance and are a major expense for the club.

During periods of heavy rain, these bunker faces catch significant water runoff resulting in washouts of both the sand and the bunker edges. The sand becomes contaminated with soil, compromising its consistency and playability. Bunker drains become clogged, and significant labor is expended to make them playable again. The bunker edges need to be carefully edged two to three times each year, depending on the weather. Over time, the bunkers become larger from the edging, and shallower from the soil buildup at their bottoms. Following particularly hard rains, course maintenance removes the worst of the soil-contaminated sand to minimize deterioration of the bunker conditions, and replaces it with clean sand.

Traditionally, many courses in the Kansas City area, including Loch Lloyd, used a round sand from the Kansas River called Builders #8 brick sand. Recently, many of the newly built courses have used a Missouri River sand, Holiday brick, in their bunkers, and Loch Lloyd has begun switching over to Holiday brick. It is perceived to pack better, play more consistently, and hold up better under irrigation. It is also a little more economical to buy and have delivered, particularly when you consider that half of the cost of sand is its delivery charge. During this past winter, most of the silt-contaminated sand was removed from the bunkers, the drains cleaned out, and the bunkers topped up more than usual with Holiday brick sand. New Holiday brick sand is now being placed in all the bunkers. The front nine should be completed by mid-April, and the back nine by the middle of the summer. It generally takes a couple of weeks for new sand to “settle in.” Until that occurs, Loch Lloyd members will experience more soft and fluffy lies than normal. From mid-summer on, Loch Lloyd bunkers should experience an unprecidented degree of consistency.

The bunkers are raked daily, in season and weather permitting, by one staff member on a riding bunker rake. The bunkers are “finished” by one or two other staff members hand-raking the edges. Depending on the morning’s conditions, bunker preparation takes from three to four and one half hours to complete.


POA ANNUA CONTROL

One of the biggest headaches for golf course superintendents is the annual bluegrass called poa annua. Though innocuous appearing to the eye, when “poa” begins to have a significant presence on the golf course, and especially on the greens, major problems occur. Putting greens, mowed smooth each morning, begin to take on a rougher, bumpy appearance very quickly. By late afternoon, they can become unpleasant to putt. This is because the poa grows so much faster than does the bent grass. Few things can damage a course’s reputation for quality play and conditioning more quickly than having poa annua in the greens.

Poa annua exists on virtually every midwestern golf course to some degree, and golf course superintendents are judged on how well they contain and control it. At Loch Lloyd, poa has for the most part been kept well under control. The club has forgone the highly risky chemical treatments (and potentially lost greens) in favor of consistently digging and removing poa from the greens manually whenever it appears. Also, the club’s intensive grooming and topdressing practices that are so beneficial to bent grass, actually inhibits poa annua.

In 2004, as in the past, a watchful eye and quick response will be the staff’s primary tools to control poa annua.


RAIN RECOVERY PROGRAM

Nothing impacts a well-planned and executed golf course maintenance program more, in the short-term, than heavy rains. They wash out traps, carry debris onto the course, create wet, soft spots prone to damage, and delay and disrupt all mowing schedules. They can also be costly in lost work and in overtime pay needed to recover the course quickly for member play.

The first priority, after any fast and heavy rain of a half-inch or more, is to recover the bunkers and make them playable. A recovery crew of eight to fifteen staff members is assembled to undertake this task. The first crew to each bunker is the silt crew whose job it is to remove sand that has been significantly contaminated by soil. It is shoveled out and loaded into carts. When completed, two staff members on riding bunker rakes push the sand back to where it belongs. Following this, the rest of the crew follows up with shovels and maintenance rakes to even it up and create a smooth, finished bunker. Their goal is to ensure that there are five to six inches of sand in the bottoms and on flat portions of the bunkers, and approximately two or three inches on the up slopes. As a finishing touch, a staff member takes a garden rake and works over and loosens any wet sand remaining in the bunker. Depending on the extent of the damage, it takes this team from seven to twelve hours to complete the recovery.

A recovery program for mowing is much harder to define because the variables are greater. Normally, preparing greens is the highest priority, followed by tees and fairways, and finally roughs. However, that could change depending on when in the maintenance week the rains hit, and how long they lasted. The longer the wait to begin mowing, the longer the grass will be, and the more difficult and messy the process of recovery will be. Mowing equipment is generally large and heavy. Beginning to mow too quickly before the course has begun to dry out and firm up could cause significant damage to the grounds. But waiting too long can also result in grass that is too long to cut effectively and a course that is not in condition for the members to play.

Once the mowing equipment is able to get onto the course, the staff will work virtually non-stop, on any day of the week, to get the golf course back on track. The members playing the course during these times may be asked to bear with us a little. Certain, lower parts of the course may remain a little shaggy, the members may see mowers at times they normally don’t expect to, and the mowers may not pause or stop as much as is customary. As in all matters of course maintenance, the long-term health and viability of the golf course is the primary concern.

The next priority, after the course is gotten back into playing condition and any major damage repaired, is to work on the appearance of the course – removing debris, filling wash areas, removing broken branches and the like.

The primary objective of the rain recovery program is to have the golf course back into its normal, well-conditioned playing shape as quickly and as efficiently as possible. Often, until that state is achieved, cart usage off the cartpaths will be restricted. There are really only two reasons why carts are restricted -–to protect the integrity and playing condition of the course and to avoid areas where carts may not be safely operated. There is certainly no intent to make it any more difficult for any member or guest to get around the course than is necessary. However, unlimited access is at odds with the very characteristics that make Loch Lloyd a great golf course – the rough, natural topography of the land, and the design and sculpturing of many of the holes. This terrain makes the slopes very steep in spots, making walking difficult and cart usage risky and dangerous. It also creates low areas that catch and hold water runoff from both rains and course irrigation, and that consequently remain soft and soggy well after the higher parts of the course have dried.

After rains, players commonly ask “Why do we have to stay on the cart paths? I don’t see any water out there.” This common misconception develops because the players base their opinion on what they can see, and they’re often correct in that 85% to 90% of the course is dry enough for carts. However, the remaining 10% to 15% is still too wet and soft, and significant cart damage can occur in these areas. No one wants to keep carts on the paths unnecessarily, but when there’s a doubt, we always want to err of the conservative side to protect the longer-term integrity of the course.



IRRIGATION SYSTEM

Adequate water, and a dependable irrigation system that delivers it in a timely and controlled manner, is perhaps the most important element in golf course maintenance. At Loch Lloyd, we irrigate over one hundred fifty acres of golf course, practice area, clubhouse grounds and all Homes Association irrigated turf and ornamentals. Our irrigation system is over thirteen years old and comprised of several miles of underground pipe and several thousand joints and fittings. More than 1.600 Rainbird golf irrigation heads do the bulk of the course watering. 400 smaller spray heads and rotors take care of all the smaller areas. A central maintenance computer system provides input on cycle and soak times, flow capacities, and maximum efficiencies, and delivers watering instructions to the individual heads through 110 controllers located throughout the course. One Irrigation Technician works full time nine months of the year to keep the system serviced, repaired and dependable. During the peak golf season, other staff members assist him as needed. The irrigation system is prepared and charged in mid-March, and operates continually until winterized in early December.

The aging equipment of our system is the primary cause of most problems we have with our irrigation program. About once per week, an irrigation head sticks and remains on until a crew arrives near sunup. Another frequent problem occurs when one or more of the controllers fails and ignores programming instructions. We have been proactive in trying to reduce these occurrences by adding new controllers and by an aggressive program to rebuild all major sprinkler heads over a six year period rather than just fix the ones that fail. During this period, the internal assemblies of 1,400 heads will be rebuilt by a reputable irrigation company. When malfunctions of the irrigation system occur that lead to over-watering, the maintenance staff will notify the pro shop as soon as possible. This will enable the pro shop staff to inform members of current course conditions and help them avoid these soft spots.

Almost all watering is done during the night in amounts needed to replenish each day’s moisture loss on the course. The maintenance staff uses a very sophisticated weather station to help them determine the loss of water from evaporation, photosynthesis and plant respiration. The state-of-the-art software and hardware allows the staff to make numerous changes in the irrigation programs each day to compensate for dry or overly moist areas, and for anticipated weather conditions. The staff is very aware of the water restrictions faced by the Club, particularly in the drought years we have been experiencing, and has worked diligently to reduce water usage where and whenever they safely can. These efforts have led to a reduction in total daily irrigation use by 40% over the past two years. This is particularly important since we’ve now added the irrigation requirements of the new practice facility.

Post-application watering is also an essential part of chemical and fertilizer applications. These must be watered in to prevent foliar burn and to enhance their effectiveness. A listing of these chemicals, their purposes, and why they are watered in can be found posted each spring in the locker rooms. The pro shop staff will also let you know what pesticides, fungicides or fertilizers we are applying on any given day.

Water is delivered through the irrigation system by three pump stations. One is the transfer station that delivers water from the main lake to the pond at the old #10 hole. The main pump station is located at this point and supplies all of the irrigation lines and heads on the course with a flow of 2,900 gallons per minute at a sustaining pressure of 130 pounds per square inch. Because of this pressure, the main pump station was upgraded in 1999 from a fixed drive to a variable frequency drive. This allows us to slowly ramp up the pressure as the system needs more water rather than hitting the system with full pressure immediately. This modification significantly mitigates wear and tear on the system by reducing “water hammer,” an impact that wears out the system prematurely.

In addition, the water feature uses the water in the old #10 lake to gravity feed through the back nine. 250,000 gallons per day flow through six lakes and numerous streams until emptying into the hole #15 lake below the main lake dam. We then have the option of letting it flow into Mill Creek or returning it to the main lake with a third transfer pump station.

CART PATHS & OTHER PHYSICAL STRUCTURES

The cart paths at Loch Lloyd are asphalt, and except in a few critical areas, are not curbed. However, curbs are being incorporated into all new construction. The paths’ condition is continually monitored, and maintenance is performed on an as-needed basis. Most cart path maintenance consists of repairing holes and major cracks, cleaning, and, for safety reasons, scoring the downhill areas on the paths.

On many holes, there are primary exit and entrance points between the course and the cart paths. Heavy and repeated cart usage at these points significantly damages the grasses, and the staff will continue to use ropes and stakes to try to mitigate the ruts and damage to the course.

Loch Lloyd’s water feature is a signature element of Loch Lloyd Country Club. While most noticeable on the #18 finishing hole, it is actually a significant part of 5 holes on the back side. Because of this, and the large amount of water it uses, the water feature is closely monitored and controlled. It is timed to begin flowing each day when the first group of golfers approaches #18, and to turn off as the last group leaves the course. During the summer months, when the lake level is traditionally low, the water is conserved by pumping it back into the lake, running the feature at lower volumes, or in extreme cases, turning it off.

The bridges at Loch Lloyd were designed to be part of the natural look of the surrounding countryside. They are generally constructed of rough-cut oak timbers from southern Missouri. A few bridges have been rebuilt, and others have had individual boards replaced. Generally, when weather permits, the staff ties to perform its bridge work through the late fall and winter months. Current priorities for bridges are replacing the walking bridge over the water feature to the left rough on #18, replacing boards that have major deterioration in them, and sealing the oak lumber to increase longevity. Much of this work was delayed in early 2004 by the extensive snow and ice coverage throughout the month of February.


FLOWER BEDS & CLUBHOUSE GROUNDS

Loch Lloyd is justifiably proud of the overall natural beauty of its grounds, as well as the well-maintained landscaped areas that are an integral part of the course, clubhouse grounds and parking lots, and practice area. These areas are a high priority and are maintained on a daily basis. Whether this involves cutting grass, pulling weeds, hand watering, blowing leaves or sweeping back mulch depends on the time of the year.

January and February – Time not spent on snow removal around the clubhouse and parking lots or maintenance of equipment is generally spent in the areas adjacent to the course. Tree and brush removal, pruning, and cutting firewood for the clubhouse are primary winter tasks. Reviewing, planning and designing existing and potential new flower beds is done at this time. Summer annuals are also ordered. This is also the time when fulltime staff members take outstanding vacation time prior to the season.

March – The staff gets ready for spring by cleaning up all beds around the clubhouse and course. Pansies that didn’t survive the winter are replaced. Fresh mulch is added where needed. Ornamental grasses are burned off, as opposed to cutting, whenever possible. This saves time, replenishes the soil, and avoids hauling and dumping of cut grass. The irrigation system is charged, tested and repaired as necessary.

April – Grass starts to grow in earnest, and the weekly mowing schedule that goes on through September begins. Fertilizer and pre-emergents are applied. Tree wells are sprayed for weeds, and the turf treated for broadleaf weeds. Trees and shrubs are also treated for pest control (sawfly, larva, rust), and ground cover beds around the clubhouse and parking lots treated with pre-emergents.

May – May is the big planting month. Summer annuals are planted around the clubhouse, pool, golf course and practice facility. Pulling weeds in all the beds, including those with ornamental grass, is an ongoing task. Merit insecticide is applied on all turf areas to control the bugs. We begin to regularly blow off the tennis courts to keep the playing surface free of grass and leaves.

June, July, August – Ongoing maintenance on all the beds is performed as needed – hand watering, weeding, fertilizing, and dead heading flowers. Tree wells are spot sprayed for weeds, and trees and shrubs are treated with pest control, primarily for webworms and caterpillars. During periods of extreme heat and dry conditions, we will hand water at risk trees (particularly dogwoods and redbuds), shrubs and turf. We start to get ready for fall by ordering the pansies that will replace many of the summer annuals.

September – It is time to start getting ready for fall and winter. All turf areas are aerified and those that require it, over seeded. The pansies are generally planted near the middle of the month to allow growth before winter sets in. Hand watering continues as needed, and the bulbs are ordered for fall planting.

October – Much of the staff time is spent raking and picking up leaves from the parking lots, turf areas and beds. The pansy beds are mulched, and the other beds topped off as needed. The summer annuals are cleaned out after the first frost, and the beds prepared for bulbs.

November and December – The bulb planting is completed. Any fall tree planting and mulching is done early in this period. The irrigation system is blown out and winterized, and the winter maintenance of equipment is started. The process of cutting down dead trees and limbs is begun, with appropriate wood saved for clubhouse firewood.


GOLF COURSE TRANSISTION ZONE

Any area not regularly maintained as an integral part of the golf course is considered a transition zone. These grassy, rocky, brushy and treed areas are a natural part of the Loch Lloyd environmental landscape, and the staff works hard to preserve those areas while not allowing them to become too unsightly.

As a part of this transition zone management, for the past three years Loch Lloyd has affiliated itself with the Audubon International Society. The primary purpose of this affiliation is to help make Loch Lloyd an even more environmentally friendly golf course while also providing a sanctuary for wildlife and plants. Our goal was to become Audubon Certified, an accomplishment that would parallel the common environmental commitments of the Club, the Homeowners Association and the developers. To achieve this, Loch Lloyd had to meet certain criteria in six areas of environmental awareness as specified by the Audubon International Society:

• Environmental Planning
• Wildlife & Habitat Management
• Outreach and Education
• Chemical use Reduction and Safety
• Water Conservation
• Water Quality Management

As part of the staff’s efforts, wildlife sanctuaries were established in transition zones to provide good habitat for plant and wildlife species not normally seen on the golf course. These were designed to help reduce the amount of irrigation water and chemicals used throughout the season. Over one hundred bluebird houses were strategically placed throughout the course and transition areas. These are closely monitored almost all year by our member volunteer partners, and have resulted in a nesting success rate of more than two-thirds.

As a result of these and other efforts, Loch Lloyd Country Club has been notified this spring by the Audubon International Society that it has successfully achieved “Certified Audubon Cooperative Sanctuary” status. The staff sincerely thanks all the members and residents who volunteered their time to make this goal become a reality.

SAFETY PROGRAM

Safety training has always been an on-going part of the maintenance staff’s program. In 2004, we re-focused and re-emphasized on a regular basis the importance of safe practices in all aspects of golf course maintenance. We have developed a very specific and sternly enforced safety program supported by over 180 video and other training aids for the golf course and maintenance shop. Procedures covered in training and safety meetings include such topics as safe mowing angles on hills, awareness of the dangers of operating equipment, respect for wet and slippery surfaces, heeding the positions of fellow staff members when operating equipment, proper lifting techniques, and the like.

Ear, eye, back, head, and leg protection is made available to all workers, and the staff is encouraged to wear them when working on the course and in the maintenance shop.


LONG RANGE PLANNING

Loch Lloyd’s long range planning for course maintenance incorporates the staff’s commitment to keeping Loch Lloyd as on the best golfing environments in the Midwest. The major project currently underway involves the renovations of the bunkers. By late summer, all Loch Lloyd bunkers will have been cleaned out, the drains opened up and new sand put in place. This is the most extensive bunker program undertaken since the course opened.

Other projects planned include:
• Stabilization of all bunker faces to prevent future and continued deterioration
• Ongoing repair and maintenance of the water feature to ensure that no significant deterioration occurs
• Continue preventative maintenance program by re-building irrigation heads
• Carefully monitor the wear on pump shafts and meters, and try to repair them before breakdowns occur
• Increase the Poa Annua control program to mitigate golf course infestation

On the further horizon are three major capital improvement issues that will have to be addressed:
1. Rebuilding Greens. Loch Lloyd’s greens are 14 years old, and are in surprisingly good shape with a sand base not yet heavily contaminated with soil, and with grass having a strong, fairly deep root structure. However, many courses need to rebuild greens in the 15- to 25-year time period, and the Club will face this need at some future time.
2. Rebuilding Bridges. Loch Lloyd’s wooden bridges are aesthetically pleasing, but have fairly short lives and high maintenance costs. As more deteriorate, consideration should be given to replacing some, many or most of them with steel and concrete structures.
3. Rebuilding Cart Paths. Most state-of-the-art golf courses are constructed today with concrete cart paths. While initially more expensive, they generally age better, require less maintenance, provide a smoother ride, and have a neater appearance. This decision is probably not imminent, but will be faced at a future date.
4. Rebuilding Rock Walls and Features. Stacked rock walls are prevalent throughout Loch Lloyd, both as structural retaining walls and as decorative features. These tend to wash out, slide and deteriorate over time. Replacement requires heavy equipment and can be time-consuming and expensive. Several walls will need attention in the near future.
5. Dredging Ponds and Lakes: The eight ponds and lakes have become silted in to a point where they have only three feet of water at the surface. This project should be planned far enough in the future that adequate funding is in place. The project should be undertaken in the winter months. This project should combined with the rebuilding of the rock wall so that costs can be minimized.