Rope a Dope

Way back in 1974 Muhammad Ali beat hard punching George Foreman using a defensive strategy famous trainer Angelo Dundee described and was later named "Rope a Dope." The idea was that Ali could cover up defensively while Mr. Foreman tired himself throwing unconnecting punches in early rounds. The plan worked perfectly as opportunistic Ali knocked out an exhausted Foreman in the eighth round.

Although not quite the same as the "Rumble in The Jungle," we are employing defensive strategies maintaining the golf course as advised by United States Golf Association Agronomist and good friend Stanley Zontek. (His July 2010 article is presented below.)

The summer heat, humidity and now four days of wet weather continues to throw punches at turfgrass, and we are using defensive-like Rope a Dope strategy to absorb the blows and produce a winning golf course.

During a twenty eight day stretch of late July into late August, the golf course saw only .28" of natural rainfall. This was one of the driest stretches of weather I have ever observed during my career in golf. Then, shocked that the raindances were actually answered, we had four days of constant wet weather from Sunday until Wednesday where we received 1.83".

A heavy disease punch landed during the last few days. Disease anthracnose came on very strong during the wet spell, especially on the 13th green. Between raindrops, affected greens have been sprayed five times this week and have already improved. The most disease laden greens (1,8,13) were spiked this week to get air into soil profiles. All remaining greens will be spiked before late next week. Also, heights of cut were raised .010" (ten thousandths of an inch) on all greens today, because of a very hot forecast for the next two weeks. They will be lowered again once the summer of 2010 tires a bit, like Mr. Foreman in 1974.

Tidbits.....Always replace any substantial divots as opposed to using the sand mixture! If your divot disintegrates, only then use the seed and sand mixture to repair your divot. Also, the seed in the bottles is appropriate for low grown fairway turfgrass only! DO NOT USE SEED BOTTLES IN THE ROUGH....Thank you....Repair your ballmark plus one other....Pumped 13.7 million gallons for irrigation to date.....Pond is again full....we have only purchased 125,000 gallons of water from the city of Warwick during our hot summer at a cost of $ 400....


Once again, here is Mr. Stanley Zontek's article written to Superintendents and golfers:

The summer of 2010 is on a pace to break all temperature records in most of the Mid-Atlantic region. As of today, the month of June was the warmest in history for Philadelphia. The Washington, D.C. area has had forty days of 90+ degree temperatures and we are still in July.

The agronomists of the Mid-Atlantic Region believe it is necessary and appropriate to send special letters to USGA member courses on “defensive maintenance and management programs” as long as these weather extremes continue. Obviously, extra care must be taken to pamper the grass through this difficult weather. Equally, extra understanding from golfers can help achieve that goal. It is a common problem for everyone. If we all work together and do what is best for the grass, the summer of 2010 will one day be nothing more than just a bad memory.

This letter also will be sent to golf associations and regional golf course superintendent organizations. In this way, information can be made available to all golf courses, whether or not they are USGA members (and we hope most are).

The letter follows:

WEATHER ALERT & TURF LOSS ADVISORY

Periodically, the agronomists of the Mid-Atlantic region send letters to USGA member courses pertaining to extraordinary weather conditions and turf-loss-related matters. The weather experienced during the summer of 2010 has prompted this letter.

Our goal is to alert golfers and turf managers alike that this extended period of heat and drought -- followed by heat, humidity and thunderstorms -- has caused and probably will continue to cause turf stress and turf loss problems throughout the region. No two golf courses are alike, having different grasses, soils, course features and golfer expectations. It is important that golf course superintendents use “defensive golf course maintenance and management programs.” That is, be conservative. Pamper the grass. The turfgrass is under intense weather stress, which is compounded by an increase in disease pressure. Be more concerned about plant health than green speed!!! There is an old adage in our industry -- “slow grass is better than no grass.” This is not a joke. It needs to be taken seriously.

Suggested “defensive” management programs include:

•Compress spray programs. With heat, humidity and thunderstorms, fungicides do not last as long and disease pressure is greater. There is no better money spent than to protect the grass from disease.
•Raise mowing heights and use sharp mowers. This can help the grass survive.
•Mow less…roll more. The goal is to reduce mechanical stress to the grass plant.
•Switch from grooved rollers to solid rollers, and protect collars from the turning of mowers.
•Spoonfeed the grass. Spray weekly with light rates of nutrients, iron (to keep the grass green), and growth regulators. Excessive grass growth depletes carbohydrates (plant food).
•Air drainage. On shaded or pocketed greens, prune limbs, use fans and generally keep the air moving. When you are hot, you stand in front of a fan to cool yourself. When the grass is stressed, it needs good air movement as well. Drier turf is also less prone to disease.
•DO NOT OVER-WATER. Hand water if possible. Lightly syringe the turf with the nozzle -- never going past horizontal. Any mid-day watering should be focused on cooling the canopy. If you are wetting the soil, it’s too much! Remember, you can always add more water, but wet, saturated soil can damage roots, increase disease and contribute to turf loss via the Wet Wilt Syndrome. If corrective watering needs to be done for dry spots, the extra water should be applied in the early morning or late in the evening. Do not over-water the grass in mid-day heat.
•Surface aerate the greens. This allows the soil to breath, excess moisture to escape, and roots to regrow, thereby helping the grass to survive.


In summary, be careful. This may be one of our hottest summers in decades. We all share the responsibility of keeping the turf on our golf courses as healthy as possible during this period of extreme weather. Again, be careful and have realistic expectations for golf course playability.

The Mid-Atlantic Region agronomists are part of your agronomic support team. If you have a question or concern, give us a call or send an e-mail.