Wow, what a year we battled thru in 2016. We had everything, but wildfires. The word I’ve heard in the past month from members is “I’m proud of the course”. Well, I agree. My staff and I were able to pull off PGA Tour conditions for the Pro AM and the course has never been better. Thanks for all the compliments. So how did we do it? Simple: Constant Never Ending Improvements!
In 2014, the board accepted my recommendation to invest $75,000 per year in improvements to enhance the golf course instead of regrassing the course and closing down for 6 to 7 months. This decision was based on our current infrastructure of irrigation and drainage systems were in really good shape. If I were to rate them based on letter grade I would say A- after 13 and 10 years. Your investment in the course is really paying dividends. A general guideline is to regrass greens every 10 years and total rebuild greens every 20 years in Florida. My current projection is that in 2026 the course should be rebuilt and regrassed. The strong infrastructure is evident how the course fared thru what I would consider the most extreme weather in my 22 year career.
The severe drought in July (0.25 inches with 90 degree temperatures) limited my bermudagrass treatment process because course was under extreme stress. This year I will start my treatments in April and run thru October. This is the optimum growth of paspalum to fill in as we thin out the bermudagrass. So how bad of a problem is the bermudagrass? Based on the current conditions, not a really big deal. There is no “pure” stand of turf on any golf course. The Northeast deals with poa annua invading the bent grass green and some just keep the greens poa annua. Fairways are bentgrass/poa blend and roughs fescue/kentucky bluegrass. Augusta National has 2 bentgrasses A1/A4 on their greens and overseed ryegrass everywhere else with bermudagrass as the base turf. We will continue to improve the course every summer to enhance your golfing experience. December marked my 12th year here at VBCC and thank you for being such great members!
Shane Wright, CGCS 