September is a great month for sport with both the AFL and NRL premiership race being hotly contested. The Rugby World Cup is under way and other great summer sporting activities are about to commence such as Cricket, Netball and Basketball. On top of that Spring is in the air and we say goodbye to the cold and wet weather.
A power of work has been completed on the course with details for all members as follows:
1.15th Lake – The area that has been filled in, has now had cores applied.
2. Course Renovations – The course renovations started well with most fairways cored by Wednesday. The bulk of the greens had also been cored and sanded at the same time. Then the rain came, and boy did it rain. All work had to cease due to the wet and windy weather for several hours. A lucky member’s 4 iron which was stuck in a tree on the 8th was dislodged and eventually reunited with its owner. The rain was so heavy that most greens had to be re-sanded. The rain also impacted our ability to collect the cores due to them being so wet and heavy. As a result of the rain the staff then had to blow the cores on the remaining two holes [17th & 18th] into the rough. Staff had to be reallocated to pick up broken branches and clean up all fairways due to the severity of the wind. A root pruner was hired to cut along the edge of all fairways to reduce root encroachment. All in all, the ground staff achieved their goal.
3.9th green – The 9th green will be out of action as per the following timeline:
- On Monday the 9th Oct the green will be taken out of play and sprayed with glyphosate. 13A will be in play for this day. The 9th will be back in play on the 10th Oct.
- Monday the 16th Oct the green will be out of play as the turf is cut and removed. 13A comes back into play.
- On Tuesday the 17th Oct the green is sprayed for nematodes and soil amendments will be added and rotary hoed in with the green levelled for turf relaying.
- Turf from the nursery will be relayed on Wednesday the 18th Oct.
We expect the green to be out of action for around 8 weeks. Hole 13A will be in play during this time.
4.Own a hole concept – Do you know the hole you now own? Have you been repairing additional divots, pitch marks and ensuring the bunkers are in good condition. Please respect your fellow members and do your bit to improve this great course.
5.Balls hitting houses or roads. – Signs have been located on all holes where members may hit the road or a house. I.E. [1st, 2nd, 3rd, 10th and 12th]. If you do hit the road or a house, please call the club immediately.
6.6th path – All stumps and roots have been removed; we shall now arrange for the retaining wall to be constructed ASAP subject to cost and funding.
7.Bare areas – The area in front of the 13th tee box, LHS of the ladies tee box on the 18th and a small portion on the LHS of the first fairway have all had cores applied followed by rotary hoeing and levelling. This will result in a more aesthetic appealing area.
8.Volunteers – The volunteers worked their butts off during September completing the following tasks:
- Removed all of the Melaleuca’s behind the 17th green. There is a line of Melaleucas left near the driveway. The area directly behind the 17th green and to the right closer to the 15th tee box will be converted to a low grass mound. The grass will be left high to make the shot back onto the green more difficult. During the clearing of these melaleuca’s we located over 320 golf balls plus a 52 degree wedge and a putter. The wedge has been claimed by a member, who if he was in the Olympics would have won Gold in the javelin as he threw his wedge from the 4th tee box. The putter belonged to one of the children of one of our most likeable and well-respected families who now reside in America. No names no pack drill. Refer photo attached of golf balls and the wedge.
- During the course renovations, the Volunteers assisted with the stump and root grinding from the 15th hole to the 18th hole. In all more than 400 roots or stumps were removed. This will greatly assist the Grounds staff with less likelihood of mower blades being blunted or broken by hitting exposed roots. In addition, grass will now grow in these areas.
9.Controlled burn – Greens and Match were concerned about the increasing fuel load located in the golden triangle. We sought the advice of the Gosnells Volunteer Bush fire brigade who indicated that if this area caught alight during summer, we would lose our pump shed and all pump stations and the likelihood of embers flying into the neighbourhood and smoke inhalation could be catastrophic. They also indicated that Controlled burns should occur around every 6 years. To my knowledge, no Controlled burn has ever occurred at GGC. As a result of the above the Board approved a Controlled burn which was carried out on Tuesday the 12th The controlled burn was successful. A number of wattles which are an introduced species and are recognized as a pest will be removed over the coming months.
10.Fairways & Greens – Fairways have been cut to a height of 6.5mm to assist with the recovery after coring. A growth retardant will be applied in due course and the height slowly raised to 8mm. In winter the height is around 10mm. Greens are presently being cut at a height of 4mm and will be reduced to 3.5mm over the coming weeks.
11.Second tee box – Most of the melaleucas behind the tee box and along the LHS will be removed in the coming weeks and a hedge planted. Hopefully, we can retain some of the melaleuca’s on the LHS whilst the hedge is growing to provide some privacy. The hedge will be similar to the hedge on the 3rd tee box. By removing the melaleucas and the fir trees the tee box will receive more direct light which will assist with grass growth and grass retention, especially during winter.
12.Tee Boxes – A number of tee boxes will be vertimowed and levelled over the next few months.
