Grounds Maintenance Crew
Have you ever been in the middle of a round of golf and marveled at the beauty surrounding you? Olde Homestead Golf Club’s course doesn’t stay perfectly manicured all year round by itself. Olde Homestead’s maintenance crew, under the leadership of Brett Hauck, are the facilitators of the meticulously maintained course. From the wee morning hours to late evenings, they make sure the course is in tip-top shape for your tee time. Their day-to-day work life consists of mowing, irrigation, aeration, flattening, spraying, fertilizing, and fixing equipment. And oh yeah, fixing those divots you left behind. Yes, I’m talking to you.
Conditioning the Course
Maintaining a golf course requires a lot of knowledge about grass, turf, and equipment. There are three main types of grass at Olde Homestead; bentgrass, bluegrass, and ryegrass. Each grass has a different type of texture to create a perfect surface for golfing. One of the maintenance crew members, Jonathan Kuehner, has the knowledge and expertise needed to know exactly how to treat the grass and what to look out for when trying to keep the grass green and healthy. Such knowledge includes knowing what mower to use and how sharp the blades have to be so it doesn’t end up bruising the grass. He also is in charge of fixing equipment that was broken or isn’t working properly.
Maintaining the Greens
After mowing the grass, the crew will then do a lot of spraying and aeration. Spraying occurs normally at the beginning of the season to keep beetles, insects, and fungal diseases like dollar spot away. It also adds some nutrients to the grass as well. Spraying continues throughout the season on a bi-weekly basis to keep everything healthy. Aeration creates holes in the ground, allowing air, nutrients, and water to seep into the ground easily. Not only is ground maintenance in charge of aeration but they are also in charge of changing the cups multiple times per week. The changing of cups helps keep the grass from dying around the cup and it keeps the soil from drying up.
