Fairway leveling project

 Golf fairway construction  No Responses »
Aug 202009
 

Summary: Golf fairways suffering from uneven surfaces benefit from fairway leveling procedures.

A top golf course had two uneven fairways caused by subsurface peat and stump movement. The solution involved the following:

  • Removal of existing sod and irrigation
  • Bulldozer grading of subgrade peat
  • Installation of Mirafi geofabric under entire fairway fill
  • Importation of gravel fill
  • Drainage installation
  • Irrigation installation
  • Topsoil plating,fine grading, and new sod installation

The work area encompassed 7 acres. The subject holes included a long par-5 and a medium length par-4. The golf course had a large mound of gravel behind the par-5 tee; this gravel became the new fairway subgrade. An additional gravel source bordered the par-4.

After removal of the existing sod, irrigation stubbing began. The irrigation mains and lateral taps remained; the lateral pipe and sprinkler were removed. Large orange stakes marked the location of the live mainline taps.

Bulldozer grading of the peat subsoil created a smooth surface for the geofabric. We transported excess peat to a screening location for later use as topsoil.

The project was done in 10,000 square foot increments. We didn’t want to open up too much area. After placing a few thousand feet of geofabric on the subgrade, installation of a 24″ thick layer of gravel fill began. The work included construction of a haul road, 36″ by 11 feet wide, on the centerline of the fairway. The haul road permitted delivery of gravel fill to distant areas of fairway fill. After completion of the gravel fill operation, we removed the haul road by pushing the surplus material over the fairway.

The gravel fill provides a working drainage layer, intercepting water before it entered the peat layer. The mirafi cloth served as an additional water barrier while improving structural integrity to the fairway, preventing settling.

We shaped the leftover gravel into a new elevated tee box on the par-5. We also added two fairway bunkers.

The drainage system consists  of 4″ solid, double wall pipe, and 12″ inlets constructed of 12″ double wall solid pipe. Subtle swales directs water to inlets, and the pipe daylights at a bordering pond.

We used PVC lateral pipe for the irrigation system, 2″ fused HDPE would have been a better choice but the expense was too much for the owner. We installed new wire to the reused valve-in-head sprinklers.

We screener mixed the stockpiled peat with unscreened drainage sand. The six inch layer of home made topsoil provided an economical topsoil.

We installed fairway sod in strips, not rolls. The late New England weather caused muddy conditions, so we laid out plywood and this provided a suitable working platform.

Two years later the fairway looks good. A few areas have settled, but the settling is only a few inches, not the few feet seen before construction. We installed inlets in the low areas to remove pocketed water.

Additional information:

Golf course settled areas

Fairway renovations

Fairway grade modification

Fairway expansions

 Posted by Ray Richard at 6:55 am  Tagged with: , ,

Fairway grade modification

 Golf construction specifications, Golf fairway construction  No Responses »
Aug 172009
 

Summary: Resolve golf fairway visibility problems with engineering and grade modification.

Many golf courses have sight line problems caused by strong fairway mounds or depressions. Others have grade problems caused by bad design or cost-cutting during construction.

Grade modifications will improve playability and calm nervous insurance underwriters. This post will describe how to determine safe golf course sightlines and begin the specification process.

Use the following to convert survey data to graph paper:

  • Graph paper
  • Engineer’s scale (in decimals, not fractions)
  • Pencil
  • Laser
  • Survey rod (in tenths, not inches)
  • Marking paint
  • String line
  • Survey stakes
  • Helper who doesn’t mind waiting

I’ll use a fictitious golf hole. The fourth hole at John Doe Country Club is a par 4, 410 yards long. A fairway mound begins 140 yards off the tee. The mound rises about 10 feet in the center, and it tapers off at 240 yards off the tee.

The hole is unsafe. Golfers on the tee can’t see other golfers past the 240-yard mark. Golfers who don’t reach the 110-yard point cannot see their second shot landing. The slopes on the side of the mound direct golf shots away from the fairway.

Grade modification specifications  require new design grades. These grades indicate the shape and height of the modified fairway. Use this information to calculate cut quantities (the amount of fill removed) and finish work area.

A survey profile is a side view. Visualize a golf fairway viewed from the side. Your view includes a horizontal line that shows all the bumps and hollows of the surface from a side view. The highest points form the horizon.

Imagine cutting the side view of the fairway in two sections, along the centerline. The centerline is an imaginary line that begins in the middle of a tee and continues to the center of the target green. Slice the fairway along the centerline, and prop it up showing the side view, or profile. Don’t be concerned with dogleg bends in this example.

The graph paper should be engineering grade with ¼ inch squares. If needed tape two pieces together along the short side; you’ll have graph paper approximately 23” by 16”.

Determine the approximate work limits in the field. Walk the bottom of the mound slope. Visualize the area that will be modified to resolve the grade problem. Make an educated guess; the actual work limits will be established later in the process.

Install a stake at the beginning of the work limits. Place another stake at the high point of the mound. Install a third stake at the far point of the grade problem, the point closest to the green. The three stakes must be in a straight line; align the first and second stake, then install the third stake. Measure the distance from the first stake to the last stake. Let’s assume that the work limit is 100 yards long.

Assign a scale for the graph paper. The work limits are 100 yards long and you have around 120 grids on the horizontal plane. Let’s use 1-yard increments. Each ¼” box on the horizontal plane will indicate 1 yard in the field. Start on the left side and write 1,2,3….yards on the bottom of the page.

The vertical grids should be in feet. The grade problem is probably 10-20 feet high, not 10-20 yards high, so I’ll use 1 foot increments. Write 1,2, 3… feet in the vertical margin of the graph paper.

Connect the first, middle, and last stake with a string. Adjust to insure that the three stakes are in a straight line.

Starting at the stake closest to the tee, install a paint mark along the centerline string every 5 yards. Continue to the last stake closest to the green.

Use the laser to take an elevation shot at the first stake. This will be the base elevation; the reference point for all other elevations within the work limit. The bottom of the first stake is the height and location of the proposed fairway grade. Pencil a point in the lower left corner of the graph paper, up a few blocks from the edge of the paper.

Determine elevations along the centerline at 5-yard increments. At each centerline paint mark, calculate the elevation and distance from the baseline stake, and add this information to the graph paper. For example, assume that the second mark shows an elevation 1.5 feet higher than the base elevation. On the graph paper, count over five grids to signify 15 yards, than go up one and a half feet on the vertical scale to delineate the elevation. Be careful when writing elevations on the graph paper. Don’t confuse feet with yards.

Continue adding elevation and distance data to the graph paper. Connect the dots to form a side view of the fairway elevations. Draw a straight line from the point of the first stake to the last stake. This line will show the new fairway grade needed to resolve the visibility problem.  Determine preliminary cut or fill quantities by measuring up from the connecting line.

Obtain more precise fill calculations by repeating the staking process. Measure over 15 perpendicular feet from the original baseline stake. Establish additional centerlines parallel to the first string. Repeat the survey and graph paper processes using different pencil colors.

After completing the survey, add data about earthworks volume, irrigation impacts, fine grading, and sod quantities into a golf course construction narrative.

Additional information on specifications.

Fairway subsoil modification

Fairway leveling project

 Posted by Ray Richard at 12:46 pm  Tagged with: ,

Golf course fairway renovations

 Golf fairway construction  No Responses »
Aug 142009
 

Summary: Fairway modifications improve drainage and repair construction deficiencies. After developing a scope, create budget headings to develop a project budget.

Fairway renovations are done for the following reasons:

  • To improve landing area reception to a golf shot
  • To level playing surface
  • To improve visibility
  • To fix drainage problems
  • To replace inferior subsoil
  • To install new bunker and mound features.

Golf course fairways must allow a well-struck golf ball to land and roll in a straight line or be directed toward the center of the fairway by a side slope. Crowned fairway grades that direct well-struck shots toward rough or hazard areas are unacceptable.

A golfer must have good visibility from all places on a fairway. They must be able to see another golfer from the tee or when playing a second shot.

Fairway drainage problems are caused by inefficient swales or subsurface water. These problems are compounded by heavy subsoils that are incapable of draining water.

New fairway bunker and mound installations require fairway renovations. Existing fairway contours rarely blend with new features. This requires an expansion of the work limits to merge new features with fairway grades.

Fairway renovation projects include the following line items:

  • Work limit layout and staking
  • Stubbing of irrigation, removal and storage of reusable components
  • Removal of existing sod, transport to on site dump
  • Removal of unsuitable subsoil
  • Construction of new features
  • Purchase of new subsoil/topsoil
  • Fine grading
  • Installation of sod/seed
  • Post plant care

Additional information:

Fairway grade modification

Fairway expansions

Replacement of fairway subsoils.

 Posted by Ray Richard at 5:25 am  Tagged with: , , ,

Golf Fairway expansions

 Golf fairway construction  No Responses »
Aug 042009
 

Abstract: Fairway edge modification involves the following procedures.

Fairway edge details have changed in the past fifty years. In the 1970’s, the favored mowing pattern had straight fairway edges. The 1980’s saw a change to heavily contoured forms that curved around bunkers and mounds.

I’ve seen a trend toward straighter fairway edges. To convert from fairway to rough, many superintendents raise the height-of-cut. A good method, provided the taller version of your fairway turf fits into your turf management program. Hitting from 2″ cut bentgrass can be difficult. Overseeding into the fairway grass before raising the height of cut will introduce cultivars that perform at rough height.

Conversion from rough to fairway involves methodical lowering of height-of-cut increasing the potential for unsightly scalping. This process assumes that the rough turf will tolerate fairway height-of-cut. This is rare with contemporary fairway mowing heights.

This leads to removal of the existing rough sod and replacing it with low-cut fairway turf. You can purchase new sod or relocate existing fairway turf. The existing fairway turf  has the same mixture of grass cultivars and it will look better than newly purchased sod.

Measure the square footage, and develop a scenario for sod relocation. If you take out 2500 square feet of fairway sod, be sure to find a home for the same square footage. Assume that you will lose 15% of the sod in the cutting and transfer process. If the sod is in poor condition, buy new sod.

Don’t open up too much area. Cut the sod and store it in a shady area with the sod rolled out. Don’t make the sod rolls too long; 4 feet works for me. I know rolled sod is easy to rehandle but you may loose sod if you get delayed by weather. Rolled up sod only lasts a few days in New England. Roll it out and it will last for weeks if watered.

Fine grade the work area. This is a good time to remove water pockets, adjust irrigation head location, or create mounding.  Install soil additives and the sod. If you need to purchase new sod, install it along the fairway and rough transition line.

Additional information:

Golf course fairway construction

 Posted by Ray Richard at 6:14 am  Tagged with: ,
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