What does a heathland greenkeeper do in summer?
This article was featured in the Spring 2019 edition of Your Course magazine
Heathland courses can be a golfer’s paradise. With heather in full bloom and firm, bouncy fairways, it’s many people’s idea of a perfect course.
But giving members and visitors that kind of experience doesn’t just happen naturally as the weather warms – it takes lots of work.
Matthew Brighton, deputy head greenkeeper at Alwoodley, accepts the team at the Leeds layout are fortunate to have the land they’ve got.
“We don’t end up having to worry about being wet and boggy,” he said. “We are predominantly fescue in the semi-rough and fairways so, when we get into the summer, we’re not cutting all that much.
“But it deflects your time into other areas. Fescue is a very hardy grass but, at the same time, it does need splashes of water. There is quite a lot of hand watering going on – especially for us being on USGA specification greens.
“We have got a top of the range irrigation system and it’s all well and good using it on an evening, but it is not as easy as just putting the sprinklers on. What you tend to find, especially when you are starting to dry out, is the water doesn’t necessarily penetrate the surface on the high spots.
“It ends up running off and into the low spots so you get an inconsistent coverage on greens.
“Things can start to look very patchy. While your low spots will look very lush and green, the high spots will go very brown.
“We use moisture meters a lot. There are different categories depending on your style of course. We aim to be 15 to 25 per cent on the moisture scale, which is a little bit of a crossover into the top five per cent of a links course and the early five per cent of a parkland course.”
With top tournaments held regularly at Alwoodley, including Open qualifying, the greenkeeping team must maintain a careful balance in summer to ensure the course is kept at the best possible condition, but doesn’t boil over under the pressure of being maintained to such a high level.
To do that, the club has invested in additional machinery as well as staff. But Matthew said the key to getting it right during the height of the season was ensuring communication was spot on with the members.
“It’s one of the key things,” he explained. “Sometimes the greens can be immaculate but we need to get some holes in and some air to help them breathe. At points through the summer, we can be cutting and ironing three times a week and it’s about trying to find that balance where you have quieter days and explaining it to members – so they have an understanding as well – that we can’t cut the greens every day.
“It’s all well and good getting the course into fantastic condition for the first couple of weeks in May but you’ve got to keep the balance there, otherwise the course will start to tail off in June.
“It’s about explaining to members so they understand we are keeping it in the best condition each day we possibly can but we also have that extra little bit in reserve to go a little bit further for things like Captain’s Day. We must keep in mind it’s a members’ golf club and that’s one of the most important days at the club.”
Alwoodley
Dr Alister MacKenzie’s architectural journey started at Leeds and his first course was the wonderful Alwoodley. Regarded as one of Britain’s finest inland courses, it is set on Wigton Moor and its springy fairways sweep through heather and gorse towards large and undulating greens. Alwoodley is a regular host of Open qualifying and England Golf amateur events.
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