Each and every day at the golf course, we stand in front of the dry erase board and determine how we will accomplish the most with what we have to work with.  The first thing we take into consideration is the schedule of play for that day.  What time does play start?  Is it a shotgun or tee times?  Front 9 or back 9?  Who's on first?  All these are pretty easy to answer and have been sorted out days in advance so we know how to instruct our staff. 

The next thing to consider is, 'what do we want to accomplish today.'  What needs to be mowed?  We mow certain items on certain days alternating most of the time.  We always mow greens when there is play and we've been rolling every day for the last two months.  The collars will need to be mowed at least twice a week, the green surrounds 2 or 3 times, the tees and approaches 3 times also.  Other jobs that are assigned every day include sand bunkers, course setup, irrigation duties, tee divots, and leaf blowing. After the initial course setup we will assign second jobs that include weedeating, mowing collars, tree work, cleaning restrooms, dragging fairways, and many more. 

There is a slew of jobs on the list every day and we have to pick and choose which we will do while keeping our priorities in check. 

Another factor is the personnel we have to work with.  If someone is off on vacation or calls in sick, we need to re-arrange our pieces to accomplish our highest priorities.  Obviously, we need to mow greens, change the cups, and complete our basic setup.  Many of our employees can handle all of the tasks here.  Some of the newer guys can only rake bunkers and mow greens.  If we have any special projects or cultural practices like fertilizer applications, that will take Rob or I off of irrigation so Richard will have to check the greens.  Somebody will have to fill in for Richard on a greens mower and that might take a person off of rough.

Does any of this make sense?  Sometimes when I stare at the board and cross off the staff I won't have or the machines that are down for repair or the split tee tee times with play before hand, I can't make much sense of it either.  It sure is fun though, and keeps things interesting.

Equipment is a major limiting factor for us especially without a mechanic.  We are accepting applications if you know anyone with golf course experience in Northern California.  We currently are down to one rough unit so we change the height on our green surround mower on the off days.  The hydraulic pump blew it's seal and was finished being repaired Friday so it will be nice to get that back in action. 

Every day at the course is a small logistical battle to make the most of what we have.  The upcoming weeks leave little room for error to maximize our efficiency.  We will start aerifying greens on Monday night and finish all of them on Tuesday, opening for play on Wednesday.  I was on the phone a lot this past week making sure everything would be here like fertilizer, aerification tines, sand, seed, repair parts, and staff to do all the hard work.  We also will coordinate the rest of aerification on fairways, tees, approaches and many areas in the rough.  Tees, green surrounds and approaches will need to be seeded.  Everything will get a shot of fertilizer.  Flower beds need to be cleaned, amended, rototilled, and planted.  The tree program will be put into action once I finish identifying which trees can be removed in-house and provide prices and plant selections to the committee.  The native area on #2 must be renovated and .............. 

Well there's more, but you get the picture.  This is one of the best parts of this job.  There is so much to manage and a never ending list of work that you're always busy and so is the crew.  We'll work very hard, have a bunch of fun, and have a great cookout when we get a chance to relax.  A month or two from now, when you're lining up your putt on 15 green and you smell the sweet scent of BBQ drifting out of the maintenance yard, swing in to say hello, there's always extra food. 

Thank you for your understanding during these few weeks that interfere with play.  We would not do any of this aerifying, sanding, or seeding if it was not completely necessary to achieve a better golf course.  Conditions will be back to normal quicker than you expect.