Vertical mowing

We have completed an aggressive vertical mowing on the Greywalls and Heritge Greens and Approaches this month.  By vertical mowing and consistent sand topdressing we can keep our surface organic matter in check.  The yearly 'aggressive' vertical mowing eliminates the lip that can develop over time at the green/Approach transition.  This lip holds back surface water drainage and it does not allow for a smooth ball roll when one is putting from off the green surface.  Both are negative characteristics that we want to avoid.  

Moist year

The 2014 season was filled with plenty of moisture and excessively green golf courses.  True firm surfaces were only achieved a couple of times.  Mowing frequencies were increased over previous season to keep up with the turf growth.  We had several daily 1"+ rain events including the one seen below where we gathered 4" in the Greywalls rain gauge and 4.25" in the Heritage rain gauge in a 24 hour period!  Our last complete irrigation cycle was on August 10th.