Snow in May!

Back At It!

For new members at Tuscarora, welcome.  We hope the golf course brings you the enjoyment and relaxation you're looking for.  With your membership comes a monthly blog, by the Green Superintendent and Green Chairman, that addresses the latest happenings and news on the course.  This month we'll address course set-up questions, schedules, and give reports on upcoming, or ongoing projects. 

Upgrades
Development around the clubhouse and 9 green is coming to a close and has added improved aesthetics, play-ability and use-ability.

Flyover

 

  

    

More flowers will be added along the west side of the club next week.  Traffic bollards were installed today to help remind cart drivers that the walk behind 9 green is for foot traffic only.

Tuscarora Time
A beautiful clock tower was added between 9 green and 1 tee. The clock installer has been servicing these clocks for 17 years and of the golf ball impacts he's witnessed, he's never seen a clock damaged by a direct hit. Then again, we are an exceptional club.

  

New Traffic Pattern Around Club

 

9 Fairway - carts go to the right > > >

With the removal of the exit drive behind 9 green and the new walk path to clubhouse finished, there is exactly one direction we'd like all riding golf carts to travel - to the right! It puts you the closest to the bar/restaurant and bathrooms after the front 9.  To the right of the green -- this is where we want you.  Walkers and pull carts can continue doing what they've always done.

As you drive your cart to 10 tee, please come to a full stop before you cross the entrance driveway.  
Cars and trucks are coming in, usually too fast, and it's the golf cart drivers responsibility to yield to them.

Talk with the pro shop if you need to get your cart into non-cart areas on the course.  Blue cart flags are used to communicate to the grounds staff and pro shop that a cart is supposed to be in a restricted area or right up next to a green or tee where we normally don't see them.  We're happy to work with golfers who have a chronic condition or legitimate need to get their carts where they need to be. 

Finally, Thanks for your help in keeping this new area from getting beat up by carts.  it's a small cozy part of the property that will be a nice site for future gatherings and fun.  It's gone from a thoroughfare for automobiles to a beautiful front lawn and we can keep it that way by keeping carts where we need them to be.  Thanks!

Course News

5 tee

The rotting shed behind 5 tee was removed and a new rain shelter is in the planning stage and will reside in the wooded area to the left of 14 tee. The tee itself will remain unchanged for the season but the bare area where the shed resided will be seeded and grown in to rough. The tee suffers from being heavily shaded and too small for the amount of play.  The final placement of the tee, or addition of tee space, will address the shade problem and increase the surface area. It will also consider the landing areas down range to accommodate the new positions players will find themselves in.   This is slated for a fall project as of this writing. It's currently in the talking stage, so, opinions are still appreciated.

7 Green

 The work on 7 green was to remove a sand dam that had built up over years of topdressing (16 green has a similar problem). This slowed water from leaving the green and made for weak turf. Besides being the smallest green in Onondaga county, it didn't need the added stress.

Sod removal and sand buildup removal

 The green will drain properly now and have a new "false front" similar to 5 green that lets mowers turn easily.

Reclaiming lost green edges

Finishing up the project, we did a quick greens edge reclamation and gained some lost green space that shrinks over the years due to mowing and grass competition.

Marked trees

Trees along the left rough on 14/15 have been marked by the Superintendent and Green Chairman for removal last winter.  Criteria for removal was health of tree, overcrowding, and lack of grass due to shading.  The goal of removal is to let more sunlight into the area so we can get grass to grow. Currently the area is mud due to shade.  Removal will take place over the course of the next year as time and money allow. One of Tuscarora's strengths are it's mature trees, their management and protection is ongoing. 

Seeding 
Areas left bare due to winter construction, irrigation improvements, and tree removal around the course will be seeded over the coming weeks.  Weather is just about warm enough to germinate grass (unaided by turf blankets).  Over the next few weeks these areas will be fine raked and seeded and strawed.  Thanks for your patience


Maintenance Schedule
If you're someone who's interested in when we do things, here's an outline of our weekly practices. 
Some operations can only be completed in the rain while others need dry conditions.  It's changeable, obviously. 
Ultimately weather and daily events dictate what we do that day. Nothing in stone, but here's the program we use to plan our week.

• Saturdays, Sundays

1. Mow/roll greens
2. Change cups & tee service
3. Rake Bunkers

• Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays

1. Mow/Verticut greens(topdress Mondays only), roll
2. Chemical applications
3. Mow rough
4. Mow fairways

• Tuesdays, Thursdays

1. Mow greens
2. Cut Cups
3. Mow tees
4. Mow rough
5. Chemical applications