Turfing 12th Green

Returfing work on the 12th green has been completed. Many hours have been spent laying and adjusting the the individual turf pieces to ensure the surface is as level as possible. In a few days ironing and top dressing of the surface will commence to firm it up and correct any slight imperfections. The green cannot be walked on for the time being.

12th Green Bunker Revetting

The course team have spent the past few days building the faces of the five new bunkers around the new 12th green. All five have now been completed allowing the contractor to get on with laying down the top soil on the green collar.

12th Green Rootzone & Bunker Revetting

The new rootzone is now in place on hole 12. The material has been spread to the required depth and the architect has approved the contouring. The course team are busy revetting the faces of the new bunkers as this must be completed before the new rootzone can be added to the green collar. Once that is done we will be ready to lay turf onto the green.

Autumn Maintenance Update

Following the maintenance work carried out on the week beginning 26th September, I would like to consider the work done and the results so far. The solid tine work on greens was completed in a timely manner without creating too much disruption to the surfaces.

Seeding work was carried out next using our dedicated seeding unit.

The seeder was used twice, the first time with a fescue seed, then at a slightly shallower depth bent seed was used. The greens were ironed to improve firmness before top dressing was applied to improve smoothness.

Since the work was done the seedlings have germinated well. The new grass is infilling the patches of ryegrass that are dying off following the previous selective graminicide treatment.

Lines of new grass plants

11th Green Update

With all the clay gone from the 11th, work has started on filling the void with sand.

 The extent of the clay

The mounded area on the front left of the green has been stripped of turf as this will become a hollow and a bunker eventually.

The material from the old mound is being used to form part of the base of the new green.

The stripped dune turf

The blue line marks the front of the new green

Creating The New 12th Green 2

The images below show the latest work completed on the 12th green complex. The putting green surface has been completed subject to approval from our course architect on Monday. The two left hand bunkers have been shaped so far.

 The three posts show the centre line of the new green

Creating The New 12th Green

The sand base of the new 12th green is now almost all in place. We can start to see the size, shape and some of the contouring of the new green.

Clay Removal

So far this week the contractor has been busy removing the offending clay layer in the 11th and 12th greens.

Turf Stripping 11th Green

With all the turf now lifted from the 12th the course team have moved onto the 11th green complex to begin lifting the turf. The short video below shows Andrew cutting the sod.

Once lifted, the turf is taken to the flat area next to the reservoir where it is laid onto plastic sheeting. The sheeting is used to ensure the turf does not root into the ground beneath before we are ready to lift and relay it.

The 11th & 12th Greens!

 All the greens turf is gone

Project Contractor - MJ Abbott

Our project contractor - MJ Abbott Limited, have arrived on site along with a vast array of plant and equipment. MJ Abbott are one of the UK's leading sports and water engineering contractors. They operate throughout the UK and Europe with a client list featuring both Open Championship and Ryder Cup venues.

Some of the contractors machinery in the compound

They are responsible for carrying out all the earthworks on holes 10, 11 and 12 and for the realignment of the irrigation system. A team of up to 10 staff will be working on the project led by Site Manager Simon Peters. Weather permitting, the work is expected to be completed in 10 weeks.

Turf Stripping 12th Green

After months of planning we have finally begun the greens reconstruction project on holes 10, 11 & 12. Today we stripped the sod from the 12th green.

Before we starting we gave the surface one final mow. The sod was then cut before the course team began lifting the individual turf strips. The 12th green is 660m2 so we really had our work cut out!

The turf was loaded onto trailers and transported to areas in the valley where it was laid out onto plastic sheeting.