Project Update - September 28

We come to the end of another big week here at Isla. We continue to progress on multiple projects while also working to maintain the golf course and grounds.


The most exciting aspect for many is the new sand going into the bunkers. Early in the week we sprayed the grass on the bunker floors with RoundUp to minimize future issues of grass growing up through the sand. After the bunker floors were sprayed, we began hauling sand. The sand was spread to a consistent depth of six inches across the entire bunker floor, then compacted to approximately 4 inches using a plate compactor. We compact the sand to minimize the chances of having plugged or fried egg lies. Once compacted, the sand is then redistributed as necessary to maintain the proper depth and slope. Finally, the bunkers are hand-raked to perfection. The bunkers on holes 4, 5 and 14 are complete. You are to play them as you would any bunker. The bunkers on 6 and 13 will have sand installed next week. Once sand is installed, those bunkers will also be in play.


Fernando, Phil, Cristino and Glen are shoveling sand into place in the #14 greenside bunker.



Phil is using a plate compactor to pack the bunker sand.



The finished bunker on 14.


It is important to understand that these are new bunkers. New bunkers have the potential to get soft, especially without rain. Soft bunkers are prone to plugged and fried egg lies. While bunkers are a hazard, we do hope to minimize this extra penalty of a bad lie by keeping the sand compacted. I am happy to say that the shots witnessed so far have all had good lies and were very playable. I have even witnessed some excellent recovery shots by our members!


This shot was executed nicely to about 5 feet!


Many of you have asked about whether or not any of the sod is Ground Under Repair. At this time, only the bunkers on 6 and 13 are Ground Under Repair, along with #1 tee. All other locations are in play unless marked otherwise. This includes the paspalum sod around the greens. However, if your ball comes to rest in a seam between two pieces of sod, you may take relief without penalty. The first tee is coming along nicely and will be ready to open once it can be mowed without scalping.


Jason is mowing the new paspalum sod surrounding #14 green. This sod will be mowed as a collar throughout the upcoming winter. As the temperatures increase next spring, we will look to regain lost square footage from our greens where applicable.


Another major project kicked off this week. Construction of a new privacy fence between the first tee and the shopping center has begun. This is the first step in beautifying this area. Once the fence is complete, new landscaping will be installed to enhance the first impression of our golf course.


New fence along #1 tee.


Another major project nears completion. The lake bank project on #9 is in its final stages. We are ready to grade the soil and lay sod. This work is scheduled to take place the week of October 8th.


Looking at the 9th hole from the 18th fairway.

Project Update - September 14

After much delay, the teeing grounds on hole #1 are complete! We faced several delays due to rain at the sod farms, but were finally able to get the sod installed yesterday and today. While all the previous sod was installed by our employees by hand, the sod on number one was installed by a contractor. We used roll sod on the first tee. Almost like carpet, the sod comes in a big roll. A machine then rolls the sod out flat. While this is difficult to do on green slopes due to the bunkers, roll sod is ideal for a tee location. There are much fewer seams with the rolls which makes it easier to get the tee surface flat and smooth.

The new tees are quite remarkable in terms of making the golf hole feel more connected from tee to green. There is significantly more square footage which will be helpful in managing wear during the busy winter season.

Once the sod on #1 tee has sufficiently established roots, we will begin mowing it. It will take a few weeks to get it established, but we hope to be playing off the new tees by the first part of October.

The work completed on the rest of the golf course is maturing nicely. We continue to mow the new sod and will begin lowering the heights of cut next week. The bunkers and surrounding slopes are holding strong and we are also lowering mowing heights in these areas. You may notice some scalping of the grass in some areas. While not ideal, it is common to see some of this as we lower cutting heights.

We plan to open hole #15 later next week.

The bunker sand is scheduled to be installed in the new bunkers the the week of September 24th.


The newly completed first tee. Now with three tee boxes!


A machine is being used to unroll new sod onto the first tee.


As always, we get an early start in the morning.

Project Update - September 6

We continue to move towards the finish line on the bunker and tee project. The new forward tee on #15 was grassed today. This means the only sod installation remaining for the project is on #1 tee. We were scheduled to install the sod on Friday but heavy rain at the sod farm has delayed the installation date until this coming Monday. Fortunately, this gives our employees a little extra time to finalize irrigation installation and final grading.

We mowed the sod on holes 4, 5, 6, 13 and 14 yesterday. After further examination, our current plan is to reopen those holes to play beginning this weekend. The bunkers are marked and will be played as MANDATORY Ground Under Repair. We don't want anyone to walk on the bunker slopes at this time and ask that you do not remove the ropes or stakes for any reason. Because of this, the ground under repair will extend vertically to allow relief if your next shot might be interfered by the ropes and stakes. If your ball or stance lies within the marked area, if your swing is impacted by a rope or stake, or if your next shot might be impacted by the ropes and stakes you may take relief. To take relief you must drop within one club length of the nearest point of relief no closer to the hole. We will be restricting all cart traffic from the newly installed sod including those players with blue flags. This is important in minimizing the stress on the new grass. Thank you for following the restricted guidelines.


Chris can be seen leveling the new forward tee in the distance.


Phil, Cristino, Pedro and Placido work hard to install the new irrigation on #1 tee.


Ground Under Repair (GUR) has been clearly marked for all new bunkers. Please take relief from all marked areas.

Project Update - September 5

The light at the end of the tunnel is becoming clearer! We have had a good couple of days following the Labor Day holiday.

On #15 we completed installation of the sod surrounding the green today. The new forward tee on #15 has been final graded and will be grassed on Thursday.

The new tees on #1 are taking shape. It is immediately noticeable how much additional square footage is available for the forward tees. The final shaping and irrigation installation on #1 will be completed on Thursday. The tee will be grassed on Friday. For most of the project we have been using piece sod which comes stacked on pallets. Each piece has to be picked up and placed one at a time by a worker. Instead of this method, will be using roll sod for the 1st tee. This sod comes in a large roll and is installed using a machine. It's difficult to use roll sod in and around bunkers and green contours but it is ideal for the long, straight runs like the first tee area. This method is faster and will enable all three truckloads of sod to be installed on Friday.

The sod on holes 4, 5, 6, 13 and 14 was mowed for the first time today. It is mowed at a higher height to start. The mowing height will gradually be reduced until it matches the height of our normal fairways and surrounds. While the grass will not currently play as good as normal, I am hoping to open play back to the regular greens on all holes except #15 by the weekend. This decision will be based on health of the turf and safety for the golfers. I will keep you posted after further evaluation.


#15 green in the distance behind the new forward tee in the foreground.


New tees on #1 are taking shape.


Jason mows the sod on #4 for the first time.