Turf Talk - Proof of Concept

In the spring of 2021, we renovated the two greenside bunkers on #18. During this work we installed a new type of liner in the base of the bunkers that is designed to allow water to infiltrate quickly and prevent washouts. It also creates a barrier that separates the clean bunker sand from the soil,silt and rocks used to shape the base of the bunker. 

This liner, called Capillary Concrete, (or CapCon) has been installed extensively in Florida where hurricanes bring rainfall amounts that may have never been recorded in our area. It has performed very well on many golf courses with consistent proven results over the last decade. 

Here at Whitevale, over the last two and a half seasons we closely watched how the liner performed, specifically at how well it prevented sand contamination during storm events. Over that time, we had some significant 1-inch-plus, (25+mm),storm events that washed out other bunkers, without causing contamination in the two bunkers at 18 green. We were seeing the functionality of the liner keeping the sand and subsoil separate.

After the recent storms on July 23rd and 24th the course received over 5 inches of rain - a ten-year storm event! 

The story here is how the bunkers, with the CapCon liners stood up. Yes, sand had washed down the faces, but at a much smaller amount than all other bunkers with similar faces, and virtually no contamination. There was no standing water, the sand that did move was easily and quickly shoveled back up. The work to get these two bunkers back in play was a fraction of the work in all other bunkers. 

Pictures speak volumes! Below are the two bunkers on the Tuesday morning before any work was done to them. 

The bunkers (other than the two on 18) here are now 20 years old, and have significant contamination mixed within the sand. The proposed bunker renovation plan would bring all bunkers up to conditioning levels equal to the rest of the property. There's no way to sugar coat this, current bunker conditioning is unacceptable. The way the two bunkers at 18 green came through the storm proved to me that the investment in our planned bunker renovation is the right plan, at the right time. 

Later this month, we will be holding a Town Hall meeting to present our plan to renovate the bunkers, and shortly after that a vote to approve the plan. For the record, I strongly support the initiative. This potential project is one of the most important we have ever addressed. The bunkers on 18 prove that short-term construction pain will give us long-term playability gain. Let's get this done.

Excerpted from Blair Rennie's August 2023 Sideline 30 Report.