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USGA GREEN SECTION Weekly Update |
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| What The 'Hail' Was That? | |
By Bud White, director, Mid-Continent Region |
Mid-Continent Region |
Oklahoma received its share of terrible weather this winter, starting with the devastating bermudagrass winter kill due to extended freezing temperatures. This spring the area was hit by tornadoes, but, through it all, superintendents were able to quickly get their golf courses back in reasonably good playing condition. Now, to add insult to injury, just as the recovery was underway, a hail storm ravaged much of the Oklahoma City area on May 16, 2010. (Photos by Craig Elms, superintendent of the Oklahoma City Golf and Country Club).
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| Your Piece of the Revenue Pie | |
By Robert Vavrek, senior agronomist, North-Central Region |
Data from reliable sources, such as Golf Datatech and the National Golf Foundation, clearly indicate that fewer and fewer rounds of golf are being played in the United States. Only twice since 2000 have golf rounds increased from the previous year, and these marginal increases were overshadowed by much more significant decreases in play the other seven years.
The sluggish economy takes the lion's share of the blame for golf's decline, and poor weather has a significant effect on rounds played in specific regions of the country. Whatever the reasons, fewer rounds of golf are being played, and that tpically means less revenue generated for golf facilities, unless the price per round of golf greatly increases or a significant number of golf courses close.
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| Mower Setup and Surface Management Strategies for Ultradwarf Bermudagrass | |
Video recording of a webcast that took place on June 4th, 2010
by Brian Whitlark, agronomist, USGA Green Section Southwest Region and Mr. Rodney Lingle, CGCS, Memphis Country Club | |
Brian Whitlark from the Southwest Region of the USGA and Rodney Lingle, Golf Course Superintendent at the Memphis Country Club discuss the topic: Mower setup and Surface Management Strategies for Ultradwarf Bermudagrasses. Ultradwarf bermudagrasses are known for their aggressive thatch production, tendency to produce grain and dense turf canopy. Proper mowing setup, such as bedknife orientation and thickness, roller setup, and differences in height of cut among different mowers are discussed. Pros and cons of surface management tactics such as brushing, grooming, verticutting and more aggressive strategies such as verticutting with sand injection are covered as well.
You can view the recording of this webcast by clicking on the link below. No special software is required to view the recording.
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| Green Speed Issues And Annual Bluegrass Weevils | |
By Adam Moeller, agronomist, Northeast Region |
Northeast Region |
An early taste of summer brought about humid conditions that caused many golfers to complain about slower green speeds. Higher humidity and slower putting speeds go hand-in-hand in the summer, and are usually most noticeable after a few weeks of dry conditions.
Annual Bluegrass Weevil | Another common issue is putting green consistency, or lack thereof. Consistent playability on putting greens from one day to the next is impossible due to fluctuations in weather patterns. Poorly-draining, native soil greens with a mixed stand of Poa annua and creeping bentgrass will have inconsistent green speeds and firmness from time to time. Even well-built, sand-based greens with a pure stand of creeping bentgrass will vary in playability at times.
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| The USGA Green Section Portal | |
A Valuable Resource For All, And It's Free
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Be sure to take a minute to visit the Green Section's portal at http://gsportal.usga.org. There you will find information regarding upcoming live webcasts and links to recordings of more than 30 previously delivered webcasts, as well as announcements regarding upcoming USGA Green Section activities, education conferences, and meetings.
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| USGA Green Section
P.O. Box 0708
Far Hills, NJ 07931-0708 908.234.2300
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