It’s that time of year again…
Statement: “We are under
a frost delay.”
Responses:
"Are you kidding me?"
"I have to get my round in before the game starts?"
"What's it going to hurt"
"What if I am careful?"
"The guy won't let us have any fun!!!!"
I get it, I know! I don't like it anymore than you do!
It’s that annoying email, call, check of the club website or
tweet that sends ripples of emotions down your back. You want to get out and
play and get on with your day. It’s getting light later and getting darker
earlier. The amount of time to get eighteen holes in is small. (Thankfully we
have not had any cover days to complicate this situation even more. By the way,
by this date last year we had covered the greens five times!)
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| Frost up close and personal |
So why do we
institute frost delays? Grass blades can crack and die when traffic is applied
to frozen turf. A more serious concern
is damage to the turfgrass crown (the base of the plant that produces new
leaves), which kills the entire plant. All species of turf are sensitive to
frost damage, including dormant bermudagrass.
The dead turf will persist until temperatures get warm enough in the
spring to encourage regrowth.
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| Cart traffic damage from frost. |
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| Even animals as small as geese can cause significant damage to grass under frosted conditions. |
It is our goal
to make the decision on how long a frost delay needs to be 45 minutes to 1 hour
before the first tee time. We also delay tee times for 30 minutes after the
frost melts to allow the GCM staff to prepare the course for play.
Check out this video from the USGA on Frost!
Remember to check the Peninsula Website, Penisula Turf Twitter account and with the Pro Shop before you arrive for your scheduled tee time.
