Bunker Review

The annual fall maintenance week was a bit more exciting than past years with green-side bunker renovations on #'s 5, 6, and 7.  Earth Sculptures Inc., one of two companies responsible for our lake renovation on #17, did an excellent job in a very short amount of time transforming these three green complexes.

There were multiple problems that needed to be addressed during this project.  The existing bunkers are nearly 30 years old and the drain lines have stopped working, the sand is contaminated, and the edges are many feet away from the original dimensions.

 #5 was a dramatic change, completely reshaping the left side bunker and lowering the initial grade to show off more of the bunker.

The seventh hole received similar treatment, lowering the area in front of the left, front bunker by over 2 feet.  Before the renovation, this bunker could not be seen from the fairway.











The right green-side bunker was sloped back to front, had severely contaminated sand, and offered very little playing area between the turf after years of shrinking.

Below is a shot of the initial coring process.  Believe it or not, this bunker had nearly 2 feet of soil just like all the others.  Adding sand is not the answer once the sand gets contaminated.

The finished product is two pics below with Izzo enjoying some fresh, soft Tifway Bermuda.

 To the left are some of the problems we encountered.  Here, the contractors are trying to determine the original edge so they are not building on sand which could collapse under the weight of equipment.  Small scale renovation projects over the years have moved the edge and capped built up sand with clay.  This area is soon covered with more sand from golf shots blowing sand out of the bunkers.  The result is a layered mess which all needs to be removed so proper, long-lasting construction can be completed.



This photo is the right, green-side bunker on the sixth hole.  At some point, grass slopes were built on the face of the bunker to prevent plugged lies or to reduce bunker surface, I can only guess.  Once again, this all needs to be removed so we are building on a firm surface.

 Once the bunker is formed and matching the contours of the existing green complex, the edges are marked and carved in with an excavator.  The left, pot bunker on #7 was widened to provide a much larger playing surface.  The bunker had regressed to a v-shaped hole and all the balls would come to rest in the same spot as did irrigation and rain water that could not find a drain.

 I leave you with a portion of a USGA article dealing with bunker maintenance.  I shared the advice in the second paragraph many times, but it is hard for golfers to accept.  Eventually, bunker sand gets too old to serve its purpose and must be replaced.

 Sand Purity: This factor measures the level of contamination in the bunkers. The presence of silt, clay, and organic debris in the sand can act as an impediment to drainage by reducing the infiltration rate of the bunker sand. Contaminated sand is often hard. The appearance of rocks in the bunkers is distracting and disruptive to play. 

Little can be done to improve the purity of sand without taking out the old sand and replacing it with new sand. It is tempting to top off the bunkers with a few inches of new sand, but this process will not remedy the underlying problems. Within a short period of time, these new bunkers will look just like the old ones.