Course Overview

The following is an overview of the current/upcoming projects and conditions at da 'Brook.  It was a rough season in respects to the heat, heavy rains and drought but the course came out on top.  Thanks are due to the excellent staff and I hope the golfers enjoyed the summer as much as we did. -Mike Edgerton

Weather:  Meadowbrook has just survived two of the hottest summer on records.  While there are definite signs of injury, the greens have held up well.  Other courses in the southeast Michigan area were not as fortunate as us and in some cases, lost entire greens.  Our hearts go out to those superintendents and members, and we hope that the cool autumn weather aids in your recovery process.     

Greens:  As mentioned above, the greens survived the summer in good condition.  A couple new management practices were used on the greens this year and positive results were observed.  For example, 

14 blade reels were used to mow the greens as compared to the old 11 blade mowers.  This resulted in higher clipping yield, which translates into a smoother surface and better green speed.  

Also, fewer ball marks were observed on greens this summer compared to previous years.  This is due to our new, coarser topdressing sand.  The large particles retain their shape and configuration better, resulting in less damage from traffic (i.e. ball marks).

We plan on aerifying our greens at the end of autumn.  The timing of this will allow for less disruption of the green surface during the fall playing season, along with the added benefit of not needing to aerify in the spring.  Deep tining is a cultural practice that can alleviate soil structure issues far beneath the reach of normal aerification machines.  Seeing as MCC's greens are native push-ups with about 4 inches of topdressing sand on top, we are considering deep tining at the end of October.  This project would not close the course and benefit the greens in terms of drainage and playability.  However, 2-3 weeks after deep tining, a heavy layer of sand will be applied to the greens for winter protection.  This would effectively close the course for the season. 

Fairways: We plan to aerify our fairways in October, weather permitting.  If Michigan does not see enough rain, than coring the fairways causes more harm than good.  This is an important process because it removes some of the thatch that accumulates over the summer months.  Hopefully we will not see too dry a fall. 

Golf Course Improvement Projects:

• The sodding of the green complexes continues and to date over 2400 yards of sod has been laid!  The crew has done an excellent job, tackling 1 complex a week (3 have been done so far).  While extremely labor intensive, the golfers will benefit greatly from the removal of annual bluegrass and creeping bentgrass in these areas. 
• Drainage installation on 14 green is scheduled for the end of October or early November.  This will temporarily close the green but allow it to retain its firmness and playability in the event of heavy rains.  
• Tree pruning will start at the beginning of November and continue on through the winter.  Also of note, the sickly Austrian pines behind 12 green will be replaced with White Pines in early winter.  The Austrians have not fared well and the native pines will provide adequate protection for the 13th tee.
• As some of the golfers may have noticed, the restoration of the pond off the first fairway is underway.  The muck and silt are being pumped into the geotextile bag placed by the creek in front of the 9th tee.  The sediment will be allowed to dry than can be shaped into a berm or hill at our leisure.  The alternative to this process, dredging, would have left a huge footprint and possibly required us to shut down the first fairway.  We hope to have the sediment dried, shaped and seeded by next June.  

Here is a slideshow highligting the sod project, pond restoration and some photos of the course.