New Sod At 8 Green And A Drain

Another project that was done last Monday was at 8 green and involved a drain and some new sod.  This bank in front of the green was almost completely bentgrass. (You can see how much bentgrass is on the slope by comparing the color of the dew covered grass on the slope with the color of the grass in the fairway)  Bentgrass at green/tee/fairway height will create a fine playing surface, but at rough height will create and uneven mess.  Having this spot of bentgrass so close to the green after slogging the first 600 yards of the hole could result in a very difficult chip.  We decided to cut it out and replace it with bluegrass and install a drain in the approach and at the bottom of the valley while we were at it.

This valley in front of the green was abnormally wet for extended periods of time as well.  After trenching a little we noticed why.  The top layer of soil looks good, but under it was not.  This light brown and light gray under the top layer was very high in clay and will not drain well.  This drain should prove to be a great benefit to the area as well.

The drain extended out into the approach and a few laterals were installed to it as well.  This will help the approach drain better after rains also.

Here is the finish product a week later.  It will take a couple of weeks to get the seems to grow together and get the pieces rooted enough to allow foot traffic on it.  We do have signs up near this area to remind golfer to stay off.  This area should play much better this season compared to previous seasons.