Turf Wizards

With a wealth of new technology at their disposal, superintendents now have much more than soil probes and Stimpmeters in their toolkits to help keep courses in top-notch condition.

OK, so maybe superintendents still aren’t spending less time at the golf course. However, from smartphones and tablets to GPS and back-office software, the latest and greatest technological advances in the golf course maintenance field—including some borrowed from agriculture and other industries—are certainly making their lives quite a bit easier.

In an age of lean staffs and more pressure—as well as desire—to follow environmentally sound practices, superintendents must do more with less to keep their courses in top conditions. And as always, the bottom line looms large as well.

SUMMING IT UP Technological advances now allow superintendents to complete daily maintenance tasks more rapidly and efficiently. From blogs to text messages to daily e-mail blasts, social media technology has made it easier for golf course superintendents to communicate with golfers. Back-office software can help environmentally conscious superintendents run essentially paperless operations.

“There are some upfront costs to technology, but I’m looking at the long range—and long-term, it will reduce costs,” states Eric Foerster, Certified Golf Course Superintendent and Master Greenkeeper at Ironbridge Golf Club in Glenwood Springs, Colo.

Conservation is also important to Ironbridge’s private ownership group, adds Foerster, who has worked in golf course maintenance since 1995. And those owners support his efforts to employ the technology that facilitates eco-friendly inputs.

“I’ve been able to demonstrate savings on operational costs, and we can use that money elsewhere,” he explains. “I look at the stuff that we’re doing now, and it’s almost a no-brainer. It makes life a lot easier. We’re always looking for ways to conserve, and I think it’s the right thing to do.”

Water World

If there is one commodity that superintendents are intent on conserving—whether they are required by regulations to do so, or they just see it as smart public relations or critical to ensuring the all-important playability of their golf courses—it’s water. And when it comes to water issues, technology is keeping course managers afloat in a variety of ways.

Irrigation systems have been computerized for the last 15 to 20 years, and new technology continues to make them even more efficient to operate. Individual head controls of computerized irrigation systems now give superintendents much more flexibility for pinpointing water applications, and the ability to fine-tune settings from anywhere is a decided advantage as well.

Foerster now frequently relies on his smartphone and tablet to operate his irrigation system. “I can be off-site. I can operate my system from anywhere in the world. I can very easily make adjustments with it,” he says.

In Search of a Cutting Edge Golf course maintenance has made great strides with the development of ever-improving technology. However, Kevin Pryseski, Golf Course Superintendent at Marin Country Club in Novato, Calif., believes that mowing is the one area in golf course maintenance that is lagging behind when it comes to technological advances. “Mowing is still way behind. (Mowers) may look different and they’re powered differently, but they’re doing the same thing. Mowing needs to catch up with the times,” he explains. “We’re still mowing grass the same way we did in 1900. The mowers are driven by hydraulics instead of a horse, but you still have to have a reel. Eventually, they’ll have lasers.” In addition, he continues, robotic greens mowers may be the wave of the future. “I think there’s some real potential there. Everything is in its infancy now,” notes Pryseski. Andy Bates, Head Golf Course Superintendent at Nemacolin Woodlands Resort in Farmington, Pa., agrees that GPS-guided mowers have great potential as well. “We’re always trying to find ways to save time, save money, and be more efficient,” he adds. And while technology hasn’t necessarily improved the scores of the average golfer, Pryseski is grateful for another benefit that technology has created as far as equipment is concerned. “You don’t have the breakdowns that you used to have,” he says.

“It all runs off computer-based programs,” reports Andy Bates, Head Golf Course Superintendent at Nemacolin Woodlands Resort, Farmington, Pa., about his property’s irrigation system. Bates also has a smartphone app that allows him to control the system. “It’s nice to have in an emergency situation,” he reports.

Bates, who has been in golf course maintenance for 10 years, has seen a significant increase in the use of technology, particularly in the last five years. When he was an intern, the golf course where he worked had a dial-controlled irrigation system. “You had to be at the course when it rained to set it,” he notes. “We’ve definitely come a long way.”

Calling irrigation systems “much more advanced than they were 15 years ago,” Kevin Pryseski, Golf Course Superintendent at Marin Country Club in Novato, Calif., can now make adjustments to his irrigation system from home or in the field with a smartphone or a tablet. “I can change the run time or start time, or the percentage of water,” he notes.

Marin CC also has an underground aeration and moisture removal system that pulls water from the greens and injects air into the soil, according to the percentage of moisture in the greens. Although his region is now suffering drought conditions, Pryseski says the Marin grounds crew has used the system in the past primarily during the winter rainy season, when “we used to get a lot of rain.”

Moisture sensors now help superintendents monitor their water needs as well. At Marin CC, for instance, the grounds crew members upload information from their moisture sensors onto their smartphones, load it onto a computer, and create spreadsheets to monitor findings.

“You can read the information when you’re in the field,” says Pryseski. “I can look at the history of an area, see how long it takes to dry, or take a surface temperature,” he explains.

At Ironbridge GC, sensors were installed in each of four types of soil classifications—dry, drier, wet, and wetter—and irrigation heads were tied in with each soil type.

“We pinpointed the exact locations of the sensors in the fairways, and the sensors give me direct feedback about soil moisture content, so we can precision-water now,” notes Foerster. “Through this technology, we’ve seen water savings of about 30 percent. That’s millions of gallons of water saved.”

Marin CC has also used a pond-dredging vacuum system, which uses a state-of-the-art process that doesn’t tear up turf with heavy equipment, to remove silt from a pond and gain an additional 1.6 million gallons of water-holding capacity.

Up in the Sky

Golf course superintendents don’t just rely on underground systems to help them do their jobs, however. In fact, the industry has made great strides in recent years courtesy of global positioning system (GPS) technology. From giving golfers a tool to measure their yardage to a hole, to helping superintendents maintain their properties, these space-based satellite navigation systems have affected all aspects of the business.

The Nemacolin Woodlands Resort features GPS on all of the golf cars for its two 18-hole golf courses, Mystic Rock and The Links, as well as on golf cars used by some of the course maintenance staff members. “It allows us to monitor traffic,” Bates explains.

On cart path-only days, for example, golf cars can be programmed to shut off if anyone tries to drive onto the course.

At Marin CC, GPS allows staff members to know where their golf cars are at all times—and how to find a golfer in case of an emergency.

Marin also has a GPS system that helps the grounds crew select daily pin placements. “It generates pin locations on the greens each day,” notes Pryseski. “It spreads out the wear on the greens for us, and [golfers] are seeing locations that they’ve never seen before. We get a different setup every day.”

With satellite imagery and data that Ironbridge GC has provided to its vendors, the golf course has GPS-mapped and -inventoried features throughout the course, including square footages, trees, buildings, and the irrigation system.

“We use these products to help us keep accurate records of the golf course,” notes Foerster.

In June, Ironbridge also launched a precision-mapping exercise of its fairways, by installing sensors in the fairways and taking readings on soil moisture, temperature, salinity, and the normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI)— or, as Foerster explains, “measurements on how green things look.”

The NDVI readings are taken from space once a month. “A satellite flies over and takes a shot of the golf course and tells us how green it is,” Foerster says. “It tells us if something is going on.”

Ultimately, he wants to download NDVI data into his sprayer system, to further pinpoint fertilizer applications. Technicians at Ironbridge GC already use spray applicators equipped with GPS and an RTK (real-time kinematic) correction signal that allows them to spray with sub-inch accuracy.

“It’s new to the golf industry, but it’s been used in agriculture for the last 10 to 15 years,” Foerster notes. And as a result, Ironbridge has cut its spraying costs by 10 to 20 percent.

“Why apply things I may or may not need to apply?” Foerster asks.

Marin CC has also borrowed from the agricultural industry to use a spray-nozzle control system that allows for precise chemical applications, by reducing drift and creating consistent spray patterns in various conditions. A computer on the dashboard allows crew members to set the speed and amount of the application.

Back at the Office

Beyond helping superintendents out in the field, technology, through back-office software, can also be a huge timesaver—and a friend of the environment—for golf course maintenance staffs.

“It’s essentially a paperless operation,” Bates says of his personnel records system at Nemacolin, where a software program, synced with the accounting department, now keeps track of payroll. Staff members use a finger scan and a four-digit code to “clock in” and record their hours, without the need for paperwork or swipe cards. The staff also uses a computer-based program to request vacation time or personal days.

“I get an e-mail—then when I approve it, it goes to the human resources department,” Bates explains.

Some documents, such as annual reviews, still require a signature, he notes.

At Marin CC, grounds crew members “punch in” each day on a touch screen that reads their fingerprints for a payroll program that keeps track of their hours worked, as well as their vacation time.

At Ironbridge, Foerster uses a software package to help him document the staff hours it takes crew members to perform certain tasks, such as fairway mowing or bunker work. Another web-based program helps him keep spraying records and track costs and agronomic projects. “I can print out a sheet as a record for state compliance,” he notes.

With a small crew of three full-time and six seasonal employees, Ironbridge GC has found that the latest tools of the trade can help its course maintenance staff accomplish more with fewer people. “I need to look for ways to be more efficient,” Foerster notes.

Although technology can be a “headache” when things don’t work, he believes advances in the field have helped him become a better environmental steward. In addition, he reports, “Our playability has improved tremendously, because of the more consistent fairway conditions.”

And he relies on the latest technology to upgrade operations every chance he gets. “I’m trying to make better decisions,” says Foerster. “Technology allows me to move a lot faster.”

Tee sheets that are generated by a mobile golf information system help Bates, who also uses spreadsheets for inventory control, schedule maintenance jobs. Depending on the schedule of golf outings on a particular day, the grounds crew might need to start mowing on the back holes—and the tee sheets can take the guesswork out of any decision.

“We have the ability to look at the tee sheet [online], so we can see what the pro shop sees,” Bates notes.

Marin CC’s maintenance staff also has access to online tee sheets. “For us,  it’s just curiosity to see who’s [on the course], but we can also use it to see the first tee time, so we know how much time we have before the first player is out there,” notes Pryseski.

Marin’s grounds department also uses software that allows Pryseski to keep track of invoices. “You can put them in an Excel spreadsheet, and you can see where you are for that month,” he explains. “For each line item, you can see the vendor, amount, and date. You can watch your budget as you go.”

Pryseski can also generate computer reports for areas such as water usage, to send to the state. “We’re setting up a computer system that will show the water flow that comes into the property and what we release,” he reports. “We have to invest a lot of time in setting up spreadsheets, but it frees you up to think and plan things out. Technology has made my job easier and quicker, and it helps save money, because you’re moving labor to other projects you need to do.”

He has also found great tools for communicating with members through technology. Pryseski has a blog where he posts photographs and writes about golf course operations, and he sends a daily e-mail blast to members to share information such as course closings, frost delays, and cart path-only conditions.

“I can send them the same information in a text message,” he adds. “Members are more tech-savvy now.”

Contemplating all of the ways that he now relies on technology, Pryseski, a 34-year veteran of the course maintenance profession, asks simply, “What’s so ‘good’ about the ‘good ol’ days’ ?”