December's Course Report from Derrick

I hope you are all well and, when the conditions allow, you have been out enjoying your golf.

I would firstly like to thank the members for your patience and understanding of the need to put golf course restrictions in place when the weather is against us or conditions are unsafe.

The big focus for the winter months is to protect the golf course with damage limitation and the aim of getting us in great condition for the start of the next golfing season. Thank you for all adhering to our posts and rope strategy to help spread the wear around the site.

The weather has been challenging at times, with lots of rain, wind and mild weather. This has provided us with saturated turf and very high disease pressure. The biggest challenge has been a severe outbreak of a disease called Fusarium on the tees, this has been particularly bad on the Longcross course. The mild, damp nights have provided the perfect conditions for this disease to thrive. It’s all under control now, however, recovery will be slow over the winter months. We will continue to protect, aerate, seed and soil, then disk overseed and topdress. With mild autumn/winters being the new ‘normal’, and with the ambition of raising standards, we will plan accordingly for preventative fungicide sprays to be included in our maintenance schedule. A few greens on Longcross have some disease scarring, but overall Bernard Hunt remains pretty clean. I feel I am coming to a conclusion regarding my nutrition by fertilising experiment on each set of greens. I have been working with two of the leading manufacturers in plant protection to see what products are best suited to this site. In the last 12 months, I feel that plant colour, health, playability and disease prevention has been more successful on the Bernhard Hunt course.

I list below the winter works that my team have in mind over the next few months. Weather conditions can hugely influence this list, but we will try our best to work through as many as we can.

LONGCROSS:

• Clear trees and scrub round 5^th ditch and pond
• Remove large Oaks on the right of the 5^th hole
• Remove rotted sleepers and steps on 6th green tee, renew with graded turf
• Re-new path left of 6^th green
• Re-new path left of 6^th tee
• Transplant Pine trees from 7th green area, to right of 8^th fairway
• Extend 8th Black tee
• Install Pine posts and rail at 9th green, 12th tee, 13th tee
• Drain 11th Gold tee
• Refurbish 11th tee flower bed
• Top off heather on 14th downslope, pull out scrub
• Clear trees and scrub down the right of the 14^th hole
• Plant Loral’s behind 14th green to screen unsightly sand piles
• Dig out ditch right of the 17^th fairway
• Tree removal right of 17th green to let more light in to green
• Continue ditch and scrub clearance throughout the course
• Pole saw work to crown lift trees

BERNARD HUNT:

• Tree work behind 4th green/5th tee area
• Remove branches of tree at 4th gold tee
• Remove large trunk at 4th tee
• Improve steps at 5th tee
• Finish clearing out 5th pond
• Renew bridges at 5th and 14th
• Tree thinning on the right of the 6th fairway
• More drainage and ditch work at 7th tee
• Tree work left of the 8th green
• Plant gorse behind 9th green to fill in walkway
• Clear scrub behind the 10th tee to enhance view
• Drain 12th Gold tee
• Tree removal at 17th tee
• Continue ditch and scrub clearance throughout the course
• Pole saw work to crown lift trees

MANOR COURSE:

• Fill in bunker on 2nd
• Fill in section of the ditch at the 3rd green
• Pole saw work to crown lift trees
• Re-edge bunkers and top up bunkers with sand
• Turf/seed areas round tee mats
• Woodchip woodland pathways

SHORT GAME AREA:

• Replace astroturf mats
• Work on bunker, brush banks, sand levels, protect, overseed
• Replace Loral’s surrounding the green

I would like to wish you all a wonderful festive season and a very healthy and successful 2025 on and off the golf course. The greenkeeping team are in a good place now and I am very confident that all the golf courses will in excellent condition next year for you all to enjoy.

Derrick Johnstone
Golf Course and Estate Manager