Trailblazer 2016

June 12, 2016

Every year Preston Trail has a member-guest golf tournament, which is known at the Trailblazer. This year it was June 4-6, 2016. The course needed to be in perfect condition, so the superintendents were working overtime throughout the week. After a busy week weed eating every tree, mowing every trap, green and tee, hand raking the bunkers, etc, the course was in nearly perfect condition. The members and guests were very happy about how the course looked for the tournament and had a great weekend. 

The usual schedule after the Trailblazer is to close the course for a week to aerate the greens, tees and fairways. As well as a heavy topdressing of sand. So early on Monday morning the pro-core started cutting holes into the fairways. Every sprinkler head and yardage marker had to be flagged off so they wouldn't be damaged. 

At the end of the second day all 18 fairways had been aerated with 1/8 in. x 4 in. length tines. The greens and tees were aerated next with 3/8 in. tines. After all the holes had been aerated and the sand was applied the course still needed to be dragged so all the holes in the fairway would be filled with sand. On the greens a brush and brooms were used to neatly fill in all the holes. It was a long process which is done bi-annually to remove 20% of the organic matter growing in the O horizon.

 Toro ProCore chewing up the fairways 

After the plugs had been removed from the green 

Close up of the plugs on #3 fairway

Two plugs

Cores on the fairway. Next to thick bermuda rough

After the plugs were removed from the green a heavy application of sand was added to all 18 greens

 Tractor and Tycrop adding sand to a fairway

Tycrop topdresser spitting sand onto the fairways

Tycrop on a fairway

Hole #4 green with a beautiful layer of white sand

 The sand used to top dress the fairways. Separate from the sand used on the greens

Sand being brushed into holes. After filling the holes a machine brush hit every green

Thanks for reading!!

Austin Pettit 

Preston Trail Golf Club Summer 2016

First two weeks at Preston Trail are done and the course looks great. Lots of rainy days recently are really going to help the course later in the summer when everything in Texas will be bone dry.

The first week here at the course consisted mostly of raking bunkers in the morning and various other jobs in the afternoon such as weed eating, mowing greens, spray painting the hazard areas, raking leaves and repairing/replacing the bunker rakes that are broken or faded. The traps at Preston trail are huge and a team of people hand rakes each one every day.

I learned the how the club sets up the course. They move the pin locations and tee markers every day. The markers are little arrows and the tips are called the "Nelson tees". Cutting the holes was somewhat difficult because the greens get rolled every day.

Also, I have been helping Fly mow the Rio, which is the river that runs through the course, as well as the traps. Most of the bunkers are deep and the grass slopes into it so fly mowing is really the only way to cut the grass consistently.

I also mowed my first putting green. I walk mowed the targets on the driving range which are basically putting greens.

I am really looking forward to the next couple weeks and all that I will be learning.

Raking the bunkers every morning. The rough is Bermuda

 

150 yards out on hole #1

Approach shot on #3. The approach areas are all Zoysiagrass

All of the putting greens are Bentgrass 

Hole #4

Facing the tee on hole #4, a short par 3

Approach shot on hole #12, fly mow along the water 

Facing the tees on hole #12, another one of the par 3's

Cart path on hole #14. The dark mulch gets replaced regularly and looks great with the dark green turf grass. 

Tee shot on #4 -par 3

Bridge over the White Rock Creek, which runs through the course. Also known as the "rio". 

Playing soccer during lunch break 

Picture of Bobby Jones, the late-great founder of the Masters Tournament

Setting up tee markers

Setting up the "Nelson" tee markers 

Thunderstorm in Dallas, Texas

Spraying away mud after another thunderstorm the night before

 

Washed out bunker

Toro greens mower 

The Walmart of herbicides and liquid fertilizer 

Very nice patio with beverage coolers, free of charge for members

 

Bent Tree Country Club. Across the street from Preston Trail. The superintendents both share equipment and discuss treatments of the greens regularly. 

Byron Nelson Memorial

Thanks for reading!! 

Austin Pettit