One of the biggest questions I've received over the past few days- "Is the driving range really ready to open? I think we need to keep it closed for another week, or 2, or 3!"
In this case, "ready to open" and "ready to mow" are two entirely different things. A golf hole, that has playability standards, would require much more down time for the grow in process. But because the driving range floor does not have these playability requirements, just "walk-ability" requirements (for Matt's staff to handpick the range), we are able to open the facility much sooner.
So, what should expectations be in the coming weeks and months? For the next few weeks, you will see the driving range floor irrigation running frequently during the day. This will not only keep the young grass alive, but will also promote faster establishment and lateral growth. In addition, there will be brief range closures throughout the day, to allow Matt's team the ability to safely hand pick balls off the range. Our goal is to have the range established well enough to begin mowing by the first week of August, at that point irrigation will more to solely at night. This timeline mirrors the growth rate we saw last summer on the course.
I will continue to update in the coming weeks, but in the mean time- let'er rip tomorrow!