Good Afternoon,
I toured the golf course late this morning to check on the turfgrass, standing water, and overall condition of the golf course. I’m very happy with the condition of the turfgrass throughout the golf course. The greens still have a lot of snow on most of them but some are completely clear. Some greens have a lot of standing water with the snow.
Snow is melting fast and surface drainage is happening everywhere with a lot of it ending up in the irrigation pond. There are quite a few areas that drain very poorly and the water is gathering in large puddles. I’ve had quite a few inquiries about golf with the warm temperatures. I don’t see that happening in the next week or so.
The frost depth is unknown at this time but starts at less than 1/4″ from the surface. The warmer days will slowly drop the frost level down but the golf course will not be safe to play until surface water will drain into the soil.
My biggest concern at this time of the year is the temperatures dropping and all of the standing water freezes on the greens and fairways. Or the wind picks up to high speeds and blows off the exposed turf for an extended period of time. Both conditions could severely damage the grass in these areas.
I would encourage people to be patient and the golf season will arrive once the course can handle the cart traffic. I’ve always opened the golf course as soon as conditions dictate and plan to do so again this year. Below are some pictures:
#17Green 3-3-21.jpeg
#3Fairway 3-3-21.jpeg
#12 Green 3-3-21.jpeg
#3Green 3-3-21.jpeg
#5Fairway 3-3-21.jpeg
Irrigation Pond3-3-21.jpeg
Please do not hesitate to contact me with any questions or concerns you might have at this time. I’m sharing this information with you to help educate people with questions.
—
Brian C Mohr
Director of Golf Operations
City of Spencer
101 W 5th Street
Spencer Municipal Golf Course
Spencer, Iowa 51301
712-260-5370
Spencer Municipal Golf Course 