Monday, November 14th, 2011

The good news is, I don't think there will be any frost delays this week, the bad news is, I see a bit of rain in the forecast. It was great to see so many players last week. I think we actually had two capacity days! Pat Jones from Golf Course Industry Magazine commented on Oregon's weather and wondered how people play golf out here. The answer is, we just do. The NW golfer is a hardy breed.
The course continues to play very well. Aside from a few soft fairways we were able to get the carts out a few times. I am happy to report that the carts by in large have been very well behaved.
We began the drainage along the 18th fairway this week. We trenched over 180 feet so far and may still have to do more. Given how soft the area is the crew has done a remarkable job. Our goal is to pipe and fill what we've done so far and add laterals as needed. The leaf removal continues. It has gone fairly well up to now. The wind Saturday night made a mess of things which will take some effort to get cleaned up.

Last Tuesday while I was at the Environmental meeting I got a call from Steve. He said he found a parrot. The guys heard someone laughing in the blackberry brambles and thought someone was playing a trick om them. Steve eventually identified the source of the noise and found the bird deep in the bushes. It didn't leave his shoulder all day. We still haven't found the owner but from the noise it makes you can wonder why.

This week I am taking some vacation time and will be away all week. The first half of the week I'm going to be participating at the Golfdom Summit at Pinehurst North Carolina. I have my camera so there will be lots of pics of the new #2! Yes I do get to play it!

GCSAA Presidents Award and the Michael Hindahl Environmental Stewardship Award of Excellence

On Tuesday, the GCSAA announced that our Board of Directors have selected me to receive the 2012 President's Award for Environmental Stewardship. This came as a complete surprise which I am honored beyond belief. I will be receiving the award at the 2012 Golf Industry Show in Las Vegas on February 28th.

 Dr. Michael Hindahl

Ironically, the awards didn't stop there. Also on Tuesday, while at the OGCSA's Annual Environmental Meeting, I was presented with the Michael Hindahl Environmental Stewardship Award of Excellence just minutes after the GCSAA sent out the press release. It was a little overwhelming to say the least. I would like to thank Oregon's Board of Directors for their recognition. Receiving the Hindahl Award means so much to me in that Michael was a close friend. He was also a friend of the OGCSA and an environmental advocate. Michael had a Ph.D. in Microbiology and worked for Oregon Health Science University researching AIDS. He had a passion for golf and desired to apply his skills to the industry. Prior to Michael's passing, he helped the OGCSA pioneer its Environmental Stewardship Guidelines which received the Presidents Award from GCSAA in 2005. He also played a pivotal roll in the permitting process here at Stone Creek. Without his help the construction could have been delayed considerably. To this day, Michael is still an inspiration. It is fitting that his award came along side of the Presidents Award because without Michael's influence and encouragement, I may not have had the inspiration to promote our incredible game and its relationship to the environment.

I cannot take all the credit for these awards. First and foremost I give credit to the golf course in which I am privileged to manage. Stone Creek has provided a venue in which I have been able to promote golf's environmental attributes through it's sheer beauty. I would also like thank my employer for their support and allowing me to pursue the many projects that have promoted golf's environmental benefits. Also, I give credit to my staff. With their skillful work, they are able to maintain Stone Creek in such a way that shows attention to detail without sacrificing the integrity of the land.

Finally, I would like to thank everyone from across the country and beyond who have sent notes, left voice mails and have commented on my Facebook page. Your congratulations have been incredibly humbling and have been an inspiration. With or without these awards, I am blessed to be part of such a wonderful group of peers called the GCSAA. On February 28th, I will accept The Presidents Award on behalf of all the it's members who are equally dedicated to their industry and the environment.

Monday, November 7th, 2011

Already the first week of November is under our belt. So far this fall has gone pretty much as expected with a few frost delays, some rain, some fog, and a fair amount of sunny days. One thing for sure, this fall has brought us some cool, but actually pretty nice golfing weather. We are still managing to get through the rough each week but it we are having to take extreme caution when navigating around the soft areas. We got the rough done early last week which enabled Pearce to get around the course with the trim mower on Friday which really put a nice finish on the course for the weekend.

We were finally able to get out our last Redox fertilizer application on the fairway for the season. We added less than .20 lbs of Nitrogen which should give the grass a boost going into the winter. In doing so it really gave me an opportunity to see first hand how the fairways are holding up. They are definitely getting wet, especially the back nine. I have asked the pro shop to restrict the carts to the paths on the back when we are allowing the carts out. In order to avoid further damage we will have to skip mowing a few areas until the conditions allow us to mow safely.

A reminder if you are golfing with a handicap flag on your cart. Please continue to obey the signs. We have placed "Wet Area" and directional signs on the course to make it easy for you to identify troubled areas. Many times the fairways will be firm and just off in the rough you may find your cart needing a tow to safety so please stay alert and watch where you are going.

We are beginning to see some disease on the tee boxes. This photo was taken from the black tee on number six. We have a few small patches here and there and will keep a close eye on it. On this particular tee we treated it locally instead of treating all of the tees on the entire course.

Speaking of pesticide applications, the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) has announced a new Clean Water Act permit requirement for certain pesticide applications in, over, or near waters of the State of Oregon, effective October 31, 2011. This new permit – a National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) pesticide general permit – is required by a Federal Court order and is implemented in Oregon by the DEQ under an agreement with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). I cannot give advise to other golf courses other than I would suggest downloading and printing off a copy of the Pesticide General Permit and reading through it thoroughly. In a nutshell, the permit regulates how chemicals are applied in and near the waters of the State of Oregon. It will probably take some time to understand the complexities as it relates to each property. I am sure this will be a subject at the Oregon GCSA's Environmental Meeting this Tuesday, November 8th, at The Oregon Golf Club. Greg Lyman from the GCSAA will be there to help clarify the permit as it relates to our industry.