SUMMING IT UP
• Remote controls, PDAs and cell phones with Internet access now let superintendents make irrigationsystem adjustments remotely and on a more real-time, targeted basis. |
No one can control precipitation. But a top-notch irrigation system can help golf course superintendents manage the amount and placement of water that comes from beneath the ground. And, as water becomes an increasingly precious commodity, the efficiency of golf course irrigation systems will become even more critical to maintenance operations.
“Irrigation is your number-one piece of equipment, and that’s why you spend so much time on it,” says Kevin Pryseski, Certified Golf Course Superintendent of Marin Country Club in Novato, Calif. “Without water, you don’t have grass. The efficiency of the system is extremely important.”
Upgraded Systems, Improved Efficiency
Marin CC, an 18-hole private facility just north of San Francisco, recently invested in a $1.3 million, state-of-the-art irrigation system. The entire course was shut down from June 2007 to this April for the renovation project, which grew out of the need to replace an irrigation system that had antiquated controls and malfunctioning heads.
“No matter what part of the country you’re in, water is the number-one issue,” Pryseski observes. “Even if you have money, you’re not going to be able to buy water in the future.”
Driven by two major droughts in 2002 and 2007, Old Chatham Golf Club, an 18-hole, private property in Durham, N.C. that opened in 2001, upgraded its irrigation system this year to increase its efficiency.
“We try to use water judiciously and only when necessary,” reports Brian Powell, Certified Golf Course Superintendent and Director of Golf Course Management. “It’s something we try to manage. We’re constantly looking for things we can do that allow us to use even less [water].”
The irrigation system at Marin CC (above) features new main lines, more than 1,600 heads and a computerized control system. The Lakes G&CC (below) replaced its irrigation system’s impact sprinklers with steadier, more consistent gear-drive technology. |
Before implementing the upgrades, Powell says he audited his irrigation system for uniformity and found it was operating at an 84 percent efficiency level.
“We felt like we had done everything we could do to get the system as efficient as possible,” he reveals.
After extensive research, Powell decided to measure his irrigation efficiency with a scheduling coefficient—a number that, rather than indicating average coverage area, calculates the amount of extra water required to irrigate a critical spot adequately.
“Based on our computer technology, we were able to actually get real numbers,” observes Powell.
In a field test in July 2007, he notes, the experimental heads used 4,000 fewer gallons than the pre-existing heads.
“Based on our results, we saved 30 to 40 percent of the amount of water by going to a more efficient scheduling coefficient,” Powell reports.
The Country Club at Woodloch Springs, an 18-hole, semi-private resort property in Hawley, Pa., recently completed a $60,000 irrigation system renovation by upgrading the pump house and replacing worn swing joints.
“Water is the largest nutrient you supply to the grass. If you have a good irrigation system, you have the potential of having a great golf course,” says Golf Course Superintendent Jeff Hugaboom.
Technology Rules
The updated irrigation system at Marin CC features new main lines, more than 1,600 heads and a computerized control system. A walkie-talkie remote control system and a personal digital assistant (PDA) with Internet access allow Pryseski to make adjustments to the sprinkler heads in the field—or, as more and more superintendents are now able to do, from the comfort of home or anywhere else they might happen to be.
Superintendents agree that this ability to not have to be on site to make adjustments is an invaluable feature of computer-controlled irrigation systems, since watering is done primarily overnight.
“The computer keeps track of what’s running, how many minutes, how many gallons,” notes Chris Haunty, Golf Course Superintendent at The Lakes Golf & Country Club in Westerville, Ohio. “I can recall that at any time.”
The private, 18-hole property has replaced its irrigation system’s impact sprinklers with steadier, more consistent gear-drive sprinklers in the last three years. He also has upgraded the central computer control system in his office two times, and plans to upgrade field controllers in the next two or three years.
The Lakes Golf & CC irrigates its course “wall-to-wall,” but each area on the golf course has its own design and watering needs. |
Haunty sets his watering schedule at the end of each day, but now frequently makes adjustments from home.
“It’s not anything that you can just set up and let it go,” he explains. “You’ve got to be on top of it at all times.”
The Old Chatham system features upgraded irrigation drives, more than 1,200 heads located by a global positioning system, and computer software controls. In addition, notes Powell, he can make adjustments in the field with two-way radios and hand-held units that feature maps of the course showing sprinkler head locations.
“I can check on just one [head] and make adjustments to it on the spot. [The hand-held device] downloads information and knows what to do,” Powell explains.
Pryseski says he can find a break in a pipe with his computer when it shows that too much water is being pumped at a time. He can shut down a pump from his computer at home, eliminating a return trip to the course during the night.
The 28-year superintendent also transmits data to his computer from his PDA, where he once used a pencil and pad of paper to record the information.
Overall, says Powell, in his 20 years as a golf course superintendent he’s seen “a greater move to higher technology, in that irrigation years ago was more about just getting some water over an area.”
But now, he says, improved technology allows superintendents to save water and electricity by irrigating areas only as needed, and at the same time giving golfers a better playing surface.
“It’s all about results and giving the grass what it needs,” Hugaboom says. “With the added software, it’s a better tool.”
“Irrigation is your number-one piece of equipment, and that’s why you spend so much time on it,” says Kevin Pryseski, Certified Golf Course Superintendent of Marin Country Club in Novato, Calif. “Without water, you don’t have grass. The efficiency of the system is extremely important.” |
Spaced Out
While computer-controlled irrigation systems have numerous advantages, superintendents say greater precision in sprinkler-head location is also a major contributing factor to more efficient watering practices.
“To have the proper coverage and total control over how much [water] you put out in any given area, sprinkler layout is the first part that’s important,” Haunty reports. “It’s the key to success and knowing how to control it.”
The Lakes Golf & CC superintendent, who irrigates his course “wall-to-wall,” says each area on a course golf has its own design and watering needs.
“The trend now is to go with smaller heads and more of them,” Haunty observes; where 100-foot coverage was once the norm, he says, 60-foot coverage is now seen as needed.
“If you have anything less than head-to-head spacing, you have wet spots and dry spots,” notes Hugaboom. However, he adds, “you get what you can afford.”
Pryseski advises against moving heads once they are in place. Instead, he says, superintendents should make adjustments by changing nozzles or by correcting water output or trajectory.
The ‘Go-To’ Guys
Keeping the irrigation system in top condition is also a vital part of golf course operations. While not every maintenance department has an irrigation technician by name (although more and more properties are bringing them on), nearly every operation has a crew member who is responsible for the system.
At Marin CC, the irrigation technician takes care of the nuts and bolts of the operation by fixing malfunctioning heads, broken pipes or nicked wires. “His main role is basically repairing things,” Pryseski notes.
Hugaboom calls his irrigation technician, who also serves as the golf course mechanic, his “go-to guy.” His irrigation tech’s primary responsibilities includes making repairs and keeping the system up and running, while Hugaboom is the decision-maker about the course’s irrigation needs.
Other superintendents such as Haunty and Powell turn irrigation responsibilities over to their assistant superintendents. Powell, whose two assistants share these duties, also relies on irrigation system vendors for their technical expertise.
Getting More for Less
Regardless of the division of duties, however, all superintendents have the same goals for their properties. In addition to finding ways to control water availability, quality and cost, they are striving to trim their labor and energy budgets—and to create the best possible playing surfaces.
“It all depends on playing conditions,” says Hugaboom. “Do you want everything green, or do you want it to play well?”
Powell agrees. “Golf course maintenance is all about conservation and environmentalism,” he reveals. “We’re not just after a ‘postcard’ look. We’re trying to give [golfers] something that plays well.”
Thanks to the improved irrigation technology now available, though, superintendents may indeed be able to have the best of both worlds.
“That’s how you’re going to be successful—using less water and having the same results,” says Marin CC’s Pryseski.
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