Course Update – Tuesday, 5 November 2025
Greetings all, as you are all aware Stage 3 of our Greens Resurfacing program has been completed, and we currently have 13 Greens growing in with Tif-Eagle as we speak. Leaving just the Putting Green, 14, 15 & 16 to be completed in the new year, having already completed 11, 12, 13, 19, 20 & 21.
We have had some storm activity the last few weekends which have brought on some welcomed rain to the course for the most part. A few showers of 5-10mm topped up Moolabin creek, before a few storms made it overflow. That being said, the course held up really well after the “hail” storm that passed through the city, only bringing in 20mm. It was the Tuesday afterwards which saw the course saturated with over 50mm falling over the day.
The Greens that were most recently stolonized, 10, 17 & 18, copped a bit of washout during rain having only been sprigged a few days prior but held their shape well. We lost a few sprigs with the wind which have been topped up but they are well on their way now coming up to 2 weeks down.
Greens 3, 4, 5 & 6 received their first mow this week, as well as a generous hand top-dress and are growing very nicely. Great signs of spread and after this top-dress, we should hope to see them smooth out.
Greens 2, 7 & 8 are coming up to 7 weeks down, and have received a machine top-dress and a level and are really starting to take shape. A few tie-in areas have been completed around the new greens with new turf going in around the collars to replace the areas that were shelled out for better water flow. Chipping Green is a week behind these 3 Greens but is rocketing along as well. The Bunker is getting a quick restoration, as we have dropped the lip of it slightly, it won’t be as steep and will get fresh sand before it opens back up again. We’ll be stockpiling the sand that was around the chipping complex, over between 1 & 9, in preparation for the putting green and 1st Tee works come January.
Some intensive drainage works have occurred on the 10th hole already, as we near the completion of the large drain at the beginning of the fairway before we move onto the bunker work out on hole 7.
Holes that are in play (11, 12, 13, 19, 20, 21) are improving all the time and have started to jump in terms of growth rate. They’ll continue to get better every day, especially when the sun is shining. We are holding off on applying any growth regulators to them as we don’t want to discourage them from growing just yet. The traffic they are receiving should mitigate this enough so they don’t get out of control.
As the wet season approaches, we will do our best to manage the bunkers that are prone to washing out and holding water. We are still hoping to address the bunker drainage on some of the holes that are closed, but this is likely going to spill into next year. With the course back fully operational, changing the course routing for a couple of weeks to do that sort of work will be ideal as we can do it without disrupting golf, as well as giving the new greens a much-needed rest during their infancy.
Tee to Green we are looking really good and have seen good results from our pre-emergent applications eliminating the weed germination during spring. After nearly 60 days of no rain, it was good to get some just to hydrate the fairways that are prone to drying out and flush out any of the salt build up from the irrigation. The Fairways and Roughs are still getting targeted for weeds and foreign grass and we are really happy with how that program is turning out. The rough in particular is starting to clean up really well, which will only make it easier to manage through the wet season if it’s free of pesty weeds. The main eye-sore at the moment that we are tackling is the “wire-grass” or parramatta grass that you will all be aware of. An intensely hard weed to control as it germinates thousands of seeds per plant and grows very quickly.
A really busy few months on course that we’ve had great weather for, and now that Atlas have finished stage 3 of the GRP, we are utilising that time to knock off a few projects that can be quite disruptive to play. The in-play Greens are still receiving their weekly foliar applications, we are managing the encroachment, Tees and Fairways remain at 10mm and will be cut twice this week as we manage growth. The new Tee on 13 is coming along well, and I think the additions to holes 6, 7 & 9 will be well received when play resumes as normal.
A reminder to take care out on the course as the weather picks up, whether it’s the heat, rain or wind, stay safe and happy golfing.
Alex Blakey
Assistant Course Superintendent
The Brisbane Golf Club
