Golf Course Advisory Board Agenda and Packet 2013 08 19

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1 Polly Boyd From:Joe Stevens Sent:Monday, August 12, 2013 3:48 PM To:Polly Boyd Subject:FW: Coal Creek Bunker Renovation Please put Rick’s response in the August GCAB packet. Thanks, Joe Stevens Director of Parks and Recreation City of Louisville, Colorado (303) 335-4731 joes@louisvilleco.gov From: Rick Phelps [mailto:rick@phelpsgolfdesign.com] Sent: Monday, August 12, 2013 2:55 PM To: Joe Stevens Subject: Re: Coal Creek Bunker Renovation Hi Joe, Basically, I made the suggestion of possibly using sod as a lining material for the bunkers at Coal Creek due to three main reasons. First and foremost, the existing soil conditions under nearly all of the bunkers on the golf course are basically rock (the cobble/soil mixture that made up the sub-soil when the golf course was originally built). Over time, the cobble tends to work its way to the surface through erosion of the banks, frost heave from underneath and the act of mechanically raking the bunker sand where insufficient depths of sand exist. As such, some type of lining material would be a prudent investment to prevent the extensive migration of rock into the bunker sand. I have seen way too many failures in the use of fabric or geotextile bunker lining products to recommend them. Particularly at a municipal golf course where the bunkers are raked with machines, instead of by hand. The most common issue with fabric liners is that they get snagged in the raking equipment and once a snag starts, it is very labor intensive to fix it properly. The other alternative in terms of bunker lining material are the granulated epoxy or soil cement products that are on the market. From what I have seen, these products work great. However, at a cost of nearly $3.00 per square foot, they were not an option that would even come close to fitting within the budget at this time. Sod has been used as a bunker lining material in the United States and has been documented by the USGA as a viable alternative bunker liner. I am suggesting that we try it at Coal Creek as the research shows that it works well at separating rocky sub-soil from the bunker sand, without detrimentally affecting the drainage in the bunker. This will be the first time that I have used is on one of my projects, but I am confident enough in the research and in the positive reaction from Bobby Heath at Western Golf, that I am willing to recommend this solution. Please let me know if there are any other questions. Rick 23