Playing from our new bunkers

The weather has not allowed us great access to the course this year but one area of the course that can now be played on a regular basis is our bunkers.  They are draining nicely and the sand is fairly consistent.  There are a number of items that I need to address regarding the bunkers and ultimately their play-ability.

There is no doubt that they play much different than what we had in the past.  New sand in general is always different than older sand.  It does not have any silt or dirt in it and does not compact as well.  It does drain well and for the most part is the same consistency.  All the bunkers have drainage but some are in the sun more or in the open where wind can dry the surface out.  Sand that has a small bit of contamination in it does not drain as well but it does play firmer than new fresh sand.  Can't change the physiological makeup of the materials.  It takes time for this material to settle and for us to get familiar with how to play out of it.

I polled the green committee last night.  Some are not having an issue and some are.  I went out this morning and hit 3 balls out of the 18 left bunker. One hoped one off the stick for a gimme, 2nd within 8' and the third flew off the green.  Tried a couple of other bunkers and could only flip one out of the bunker of 3 and flipped three out of the bottom one but only one made it to the green.  Very inconsistent at best by me which is what you might be going through.  No doubt, our golf professional Barrett Martens can help you with some techniques or equipment/club changes to help your bunker play.  He has already been working with individuals and groups in improving their bunker play.

Below I've listed a few things we have been doing and will do in the future to improve the play-ability of the bunkers as best as we can.

1. We will continue to use our vibratory plate to help compact the bunkers.  This is a short term improvement and will continued every 4-6 weeks during the season. 
2.  We will begin to evaluate sand depths to make sure we have what is considered proper depth of 5-6".  During the building there could have been some increases in depth.   
3. As the rains subside, we will be apply some wetting product to the surfaces which will assist them in holding more moisture which will firm up the surface.  Also, as conditions begin to dry down, we will be using our surround irrigation which will keep the bunkers surface/subsurface a little more moist which helps with compaction.
4. We will be working with our new mechanic to make adjustments in our raking machine to reduce disruption of the surface which increases drying which contributes to fried egg lies.  Brooming sand, reducing the tines on the rake will dry the sand at the surface.
5. In time, some natural organic material will make its way into the bunkers and break down.  Grass clickings, tree debris, some small amounts of soil from time to time which.  We attempt to keep the bunkers clean but this is a natural process which occurs over the years the new sand is in place. 

Excuse my amateur attempt at video.  Used my cell phone this morning to talk about my effort at a bunker shot.