After six months of extremely wet conditions, we were hoping finally for a change in April. Unfortunately we ended up having a month with more rainfall than any of the previous six. Whilst the amount of rainfall was an obvious challenge, it was more the fact that only five out of the thirty days were dry days and three of those were when competitions were held, meaning finding any opportunity to complete desired work was impossible. Although most work can still be carried out in the wet, there are some tasks that need it to be dry for work to be most effective or even possible at all. Also par ..read more

Although we still haven’t broken free from the continued wet theme, March has at least been less severe and a big positive has been able to avoid any course closures.  The difficult conditions though have hampered our preparations for the season and as such we are a little behind what would be considered ideal. We have though, all but a few minor tasks, completed all project and repair works and most significantly connected up all sections of the irrigation installations so that the system can now be primed for use. In this months update I’ve mixed up the format with some video as well as ..read more

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As we leave 2023 behind, there is plenty of reason to look forward to another exciting season of golf in 2024. Firstly we can hope for a drier, warmer year, which after the wettest coolest year in my eleven at Hunley, should be a reasonable expectation.  Secondly with the facilities continuing to improve year on year, there is again positive improvements to both playing conditions as well as new course features to look forward to.  With this being the final update of 2023, I’ll summarise the last 12 months, as well as give a flavour of some of the exciting new changes to the course f ..read more

We had hoped for improved weather in November but unfortunately the wet theme has actually been worse. Also temperatures have dropped too as we see more typical winter conditions. In October we did have a dry start and took advantage with numerous construction projects completed and in November it was our aim to make progress with the next stage of the irrigation upgrade. This has been severely hampered though with only a handful of dry days with which to carry out work. Tough Times I often get asked how we cope during times of prolonged poor weather being a Greenkeeper. It isn’t easy for any ..read more

September has been a drier month than the previous two, but still with plenty of regular rainfall and warm temperatures growth has been as strong as ever. This has meant most of our maintenance has simply been lots of mowing but with conditions also favouring disease, we didn’t get through the month Scott free there either. In this month’s update I will briefly discuss September, but have then included the usual autumn report and schedule for winter work at the end. Growth Over the last decade it would be fair to say that one of the bigger challenges at Hunley has been getting sufficient growt ..read more

August again saw high precipitation levels, with only a fraction under the rainfall seen in July. This has presented the main challenge for the team over the last month. h k The courses ability to recover fortunately meant disruption was brief, aside from a few flooded bunkers that took a little longer to drain after each deluge. The main challenge has been with the increased growth caused by the warm, wet conditions throughout the month. The team have been doing there best to keep things under control, with good results on the whole and overall the course is still performing well. g Turf Con ..read more

It may have seemed more like October than July, however everything is going well in the daily setup of the course. For several weeks now we have been on top of maintenance and managing things in a way that we haven’t ever been able to previously.  Over the last decade the course has pretty much been in a constant stage of development, even during the main playing season, such has been the scale of improvements required. This season started in similar fashion, with the start of irrigation upgrades, but for several weeks now things have been much more routine. This has allowed us to develop ..read more

Sustainability and Golf. The Royal and Ancient (R&A) is the governing body of golf worldwide (except in the United States and Mexico) and is a leading body that engages and supports activities to make golf more accessible, appealing, and inclusive.  The R&A champions sustainability and provides a wealth of information on the subject. The R&A states that golf has a unique relationship with the natural environment and a responsibility to ensure that future generations are able to enjoy the game.  Not only is golf great for our health and well-being, but it can also pr ..read more