Auchterader Golf Club

Golf Course Update - in order to keep members fully updated of developments on the golf course, we will be distributing a course update following every Committee Meeting.

Course Update - JULY 2026

As always mid-season course reports can seem a little repetitive as most work carried out is regular mowing and general maintenance with some subtle changes added in.
Leading on from May’s report we were in the middle of a settled period of drier, warmer weather which turned wetter in June. 30mm total rainfall in May, half of the average and 112mm in June compared to an average of 75mm. We did have a flash flood which was 22mm of rain in 10 minutes! Summer has arrived in July, and we are currently in a very dry, warm spell and this is forecast to continue. Over halfway through the month (written on 17th) we have only had 5mm of rain so far.

Greens

• Daily mowing @ 3.25mm with triple mower.
• Regular rolling with tru-turf roller.
• Spraying continues on summer program with seaweed, liquid fertiliser, plant growth regulator, wetting agents and some bio stimulants according to plan. This program has been slightly tweaked this year.
• Fungicide sprayed as and when required. Currently working towards reducing the need as much as possible and becoming more sustainable as more and more products become unavailable.
• Aeration with PlanetAir machine every second Monday.
• Verticutting every 2 weeks @ -1mm alternating weeks with the PlanetAir work.
• Regular light dressings of sand after each verticut (approx. 6 tonnes each time) Yearly total approx. 58 tonnes, down on last year mainly due to weather windows.
• The 11th green continues to be managed slightly differently as the turf becomes more familiar with the drier conditions.
• A 16-3-6 granular fertiliser will be applied early August.
• Regular green speed checks stimping consistently above 10 for general play, tournament and club champs measuring above 11 and closer to 12 at times.
• We had great recovery on some weak areas mentioned in the previous report that were being managed slightly different. These are now fully recovered and back to normal maintenance routines.
• Irrigation has been key through the dry spells and several programs have been used depending on requirements with double programs running through the night during the very warm days. On top of that, some hand watering with a wetting agent pellet has been carried out on hotspots.

The greens have been pushed hard this year as we try and provide the best possible surfaces on a daily basis with as little intrusive work as possible. On that note, its vital that some major work is carried out which will enable us to be able to continue to do so which lead us on to the upcoming hollow coring maintenance day. Hollow coring will be taking place on Monday 27th July. As in previous years carrying out this essential work at this time of year allows for the best recovery in the quickest time frame with conditions more favourable for getting as much sand down the holes as possible. The results have been clear to see over the last few years and has allowed us to produce very good surfaces right through the summer season and into the winter months.
An email has been sent out to request some help from volunteers. We have had a few replies but require some more help to allows us to core all greens in the quickest time frame so we can carry out the recovery process as soon as possible.

Tees, Approaches & Collars

• Tees and approaches regular mowing @ 8mm with triple mower.
• Collars regular mowing @ 6.75mm with pedestrian mower.
• Collars have been receiving the same maintenance processes and spray applications as the greens.
• Approaches sprayed twice with nitrogen, iron, seaweed, liquid fert and a PGR.
• Tees sprayed twice with nitrogen, iron, seaweed, liquid fert, PGR and wetting agent.
• Tees divoted daily to aid recovery.
• Both tees and approaches are due to be aerated once the hollow-coring work has been completed on the greens.
• Granular fertiliser will be applied in the coming weeks.

Bunkers & Paths

• Bunkers raked daily with spring rakes, back raked to level as required.
• Bunker sand levels checked and sand added as required. This is ongoing with some being done this week.
• Bunker banks fly mowed and strimmed every second week.
• Paths have been blown and tidied regularly.
• All main areas have been weeded and and this will continue as time allows.
• Potholes fixed and blaize added to some areas, again, this is ongoing.
• As you will be aware the blaize path at the 1st/18th has been replace with tarmac. This has made a big difference from a maintenance and presentation point of view and we hope everyone is enjoying having less blaize to blow off of shoes and trolleys!
• Similar work will be carried out elsewhere with the next area being the 6th tee.

Miscellaneous

• Most areas of the ‘in-play’ thick rough have been cut with the tractor deck in the last few weeks to help thin these areas out and improve the speed of play.
• Work is planned on the 7th fairway the same week as the greens hollow coring. This will consist of scarifying and hollow coring the fairway with top-dressing applied afterwards. This ties in with the work carried out on the drainage earlier in the season and planned winter work to try and improve what has become the most problematic area of the course in wet weather.
• With the course being busy on a daily basis we have seen an increase in pitchmarks and divots being unrepaired on the course. Just a gentle reminder that fixing pitchmarks immediately helps aid recovery in a much quicker timeframe helping to maintain better putting surfaces. Divot bags have been relatively successful and we will try and keep these topped up to match demand.
• Unfortunately, we are experiencing divots on the greens on a weekly basis at present. Sometimes 3-4 greens at a time. On top of this we have found marks like someone whacking the toe of the putter into the surface on several occasions. This behaviour is totally unacceptable and causes a lot of unnecessary work for the green staff. If anyone witnesses this happening, could you please report to the Club so that the appropriate action can be taken.

To end on a more positive note, feedback has been almost exclusively positive from members, visiting parties and individual guests. Again, the team including our weekend/holiday guys, deserve recognition and I’m continually impressed by the dedication in squeezing out marginal gains to elevate all aspects of the golf course.

As mentioned above we still require more volunteers to help with the intensive coring process and if anyone is available and can help could you please message or email me with your name and I can add you to the list. Rolls and tea/coffee are provided around 10:30/11am.
Mobile – 07901 002416
Email – greens@auchterardergolf.co.uk

Included are a some pics from the last few weeks.