Fire at Cinnabar

This past Tuesday we had another fire on 9 Mountain tee. We had a fire in this exact spot last year as well and I have determined that the tree is the problem. The problem is that the tree is a "peeing" tree and either a cigarette or cigar was flicked out there.

The maintenance crews response to the fire was incredible as you can see only a small area that got fried. This is the fourth fire in four years that maintenance has handled and every time they have come through with flying colors. Our maintenance crew actually put out a much larger fire four years ago before CDF was able to get here. Not a knock on CDF, but rather a compliment to how responsive our guys are.

Let this serve as a reminder that we are in the driest months of the year. If you are a smoker, extinguish butts with liquid if possible.

The Great Debate: Bunker Rakes In or Out?

Since the beginning of golf, there has always been a wonderful debate about where a bunker rake should be placed. Those that want the rake in the bunker use the argument that a ball that hits a rake and goes in the bunker is unfair. Those with the opposing view point argue that it is possible to be stuck with an unfair lie.

While we will never settle the debate globally, employees at Cinnabar are instructed to place bunker rakes in the flats of the bunkers. Where the bunker rake goes from there is up to the golfer. This does provide a couple of advantages for us. One, the golfer is more likely to see it and use it (not always though), and two, it allows us to mow the bunker surround without having to get off the machine and move rakes.

If your ball does land in the bunker and is rested against a rake, follow USGA rules if your ball moves from its original spot.

Thanks to a previous commenter, Dave, for providing a great blog subject! Didn't necessarily provide the answer you were looking for, but we've certianly kept the Great Debate alive.

More Sand

This week we are "topping" off the greens that were just aerated last week. No matter how much sand goes on the green to fill the holes, they always settle out after water is applied. You'll notice that the greens will roll much better after this topdressing and more sand helps the last of the holes close up. The holes will close up even faster with more sand because you have a blade of grass that is trying to grow vertically, but with the weight of the sand on top, it is forced to grow laterally.

Greens Aeration

As most have seen or heard, the greens at Cinnabar have been aerated.  After all is said and done, I must say that it was one of our most successful aerations ever.  When I say successful, I don't mean how well it went for the maintenance staff, but rather the product we can give our customers.  

There were a few things we did this year to make it so successful.  One was the type of sand we used.  After speaking with the Superintendent at Crystal Springs Golf Course in Burlingame, we decided to go with a sand that goes through a kiln and comes  to us as dry as desert sand.  With the dry sand, we were then able to blow the sand into the holes versus using a metal drag mat.  I saw the blower technique used at Stonebrae TPC and was amazed with the results.  The advantage of the blower is that it doesn't create any physical damage which makes the healing time even quicker.  

The other technique we do is to make the hole size smaller, but increase the spacing.  Traditionally, greens were aerated with a .5" tine on 2"x2" spacing.  We have increased our spacing to 1.5 x 2" and decreased the hole size to 3/8".  The tighter spacing equals "better" roll and the smaller holes fill in quickly.  If you do the math, every green on average has approximately 240,000 holes.  After the math, I don't worry so much about the holes that don't get filled as the amount is minimal.