Golf course maintenance combines nature and sport

Colorado Springs Business Journal, Jun 11, 2004 by Becky Hurley

Golf course superintendents are challenged on many fronts. First, they are expected to maintain picture perfect greens and fairways even when weather and the environment don't cooperate. They work around drought conditions or poor soils and stave off insect invasions.

Adding to the challenge, golf courses from California to Florida have been under public scrutiny as maintenance teams rely heavily on insecticides, herbicides, soil conditioners and fertilizers to ensure healthy turf. Environmental groups encourage local government to crackdown on courses that promote heavy watering or over-use of soil- damaging chemicals which leach into rivers and ground water, destroying ecological systems.

Fortunately, researchers with the United States Golf Association's Green Section have studied golf course agronomy and maintenance for more than 80 years. Since 1983, the USGA has funded more than 290 projects to study improved turf and course conditions at a cost of $25 million - and the organization has established wildlife and Audubon preservation groups to balance strict emphasis on ultimate greens and turf.

Most importantly, responsible managers are expected to meet annual budget projections, even when a poor economy means fewer paying customers.

Dal Lockwood, golf manager for the City of Colorado Springs' Patty Jewett and Valley Hi courses, confirms national golf use trends have reached the Pikes Peak region. We've leveled off after seeing about a 5 percent drop-off in play in the last two or three years, he said. The economy definitely is a factor in budgeting.

The Country Club of Colorado course superintendent, David Grimes agrees. Seventy-five percent of the cost of maintenance comes from labor. The rest is from materials. We've been trimming our fairways and dedicating more area to rough - and are fortunate to use water from our own lake to irrigate the course, he said. When Pete Dye designed our holes 30 years ago, he didn't know we'd be in the middle of a drought. His smart design has really been key to our ability to maintain quality play.

Most superintendents have had to sharpen their pencils and look for ways to keep play consistent and turfgrass green while conserving water and protecting natural habitats.

In response to growing industry concern, Bob Brame, USGA Green Section regional director compiled a series of steps proactive superintendents can take to keep maintenance costs in line with a tough economy in his March/April 2004 report.

He notes that most of the suggested cuts can be made without compromising the quality of play, but that agronomics, economics and politics are also inter-related. He sees green turf and greens as the highest priority and outlines a series of steps managers can take to stay on budget.

These include:

n Add or expand no mow areas, predominately in out-of-play rough. The good news? Because natural areas don't have to be treated for weeds, there is no need for herbicides and mowing can be confined to once a year. This treatment also improves course definition and provides a more environmentally-friendly operation while budget dollars remain focused on in-play acreage.

n Add or expand buffer strips that don't require hand mowing or trimming around water features. In addition, leaving the buffer in a natural state reduces the chances of chemical insecticide or herbicide application entering the water. This also allows participation in the Audubon Cooperative Sanctuary Program - a win- win connection between the course and wildlife.

n Eliminate flower/ornamental beds. Brame said that especially when funding is tight, flowers and ornamental plantings should be reduced or eliminated.

n Reduce or eliminate bunker maintenance through good design. The best bunkers do not erode easily and in some cases, may be better off converted to natural grassy swales that do not require mowing.

n Pave cart paths. Agronomists admit that golfers don't like asphalt or concrete on a golf course, but know that golf carts are here to stay and a paved surface is the best means of controlling cart traffic wear. The use of gravel, brick chips, bark or similar materials may sound good, notes Brame, but maintenance costs normally will be higher over the intermediate and long haul.

Bunkers that frequently experience erosion should be renovated to correct the problem.

Golf meets biotech

Between 1983 and 1994 the USGA funded 90 research projects at 31 land-grant universities, at a cost to the organization of more than $11 million. Each of the projects addressed environmental issues related to golf course maintenance.

And there's more good news coming from the private sector. Any golf course manager today is familiar with microbial technology - an emerging technology that relies on the injection of millions or billions of active microbe cultures into the soil. Once embedded, these natural soil balancers increase consumption of thatch and other deterrents to water absorption.

Green Flash Technologies, headquartered in Huntington Beach, Calif., with a regional office in Colorado Springs and Pueblo, is one such company. The firm specializes in the scientific production of microbes useful in applications including oil spill clean-up, crop fertilizers, soil remediation and grease trap clean-out.