Page 10 - Green Master summer 2022

uFEATUREuDEAN BAKER, CGCS (COURSE SUPERINTENDENT), RYAN RICO MARANGONI (ASSISTANT SUPERINTENDENT), BURLINGTON GOLF AND COUNTRY CLUB
Sunrise on the new 17th hole.
Photo on the right: The flood of 2022.
golf course. Working everyday without a roof, our industry has taught us to expect the unexpected everyday. As we hear the words “climate change” more and more, the weather data we collect on a daily basis would suggest ... YES, the climate is changing. What we are seeing in our Ontario region is a shift from our known four-season calendar. Springs have been running late into June. The summer brings more sporadic intense weather events. The falls have been warmer, great for golf but a little wet. The winters have been milder in the last
The Ever ELIGIBLE ARTICLE
GORDON WITTEVEEN AWARD
Playing
One of the most important things Ryan and I do at the end of each year is
evaluate. What’s on the table? Everything! How did our course do? How did our staff do? Did we manage them well? How effective were our programs? Were we successful with member expectations? The important rule in all of these discussions is... finding what we can do better!
A clear success we have had to help answer these questions is through our data collection. Ryan has been a ferocious data collector since arriving at Burlington Golf and Country Club (BGCC), (his review to follow). Data has been collected on everything from grass clipping yields, soil temperature, moisture and firmness, fertility measurements, disease scouting, daily course play, the all-important green speed, and let us not forget the ever-changing weather. This daily data collection helps us map out a maintenance strategy in keeping the course healthy and playable. It also helps us better control course conditions through adverse weather.
As we have communicated to our membership, Mother Nature (the weather) holds a strong key to our day-to-day operation and playability of the
10 • CGSA • GreenMaster