2014 Yearly Weather Summary

The highest temperature recorded at Leslie Park Golf Course during 2014 was 92.2 degrees on September 5th. The lowest temperature was just - 12.6 degrees on January 6th. There was just one day where the high temperature was above 90 degrees. On the other hand, on 67 days, the high temperature did not get above freezing. The low temperature reached below 32 degrees on 126 days for the year, or nearly 35% of the time. Twenty days had low temperatures below zero. The previous four years combined had just nine days with negative temperatures.

For the year, the golf course received 33.37 inches of rain. The most rain in a single day was 2.28 inches on June 18th. June was also the month with the most rain at 5.33 inches. There were 109 days with at least a trace of rain, while six days had over an inch in a 24 hour period.

The average wind speed for the year was 2.6 mph. The highest sustained wind speed was 44.0 mph on July 1st.

December 2014 Weather Summary

The highest temperature for the month of December was 53.2 degrees. This happened on the 14th. The lowest temperature for the month was the morning of the 31st, where we saw a chilly 14.1 degrees.  The average temp was 33.6. There were 21 days where the low temperature was below the freezing point of 32 degrees. Five days had high temperatures below 32.

December also saw 1.78 inches of rain fall. This brings the yearly total to 33.37  inches. The most daily rainfall fell on the 24th (0.95 inches.)  Four days had more than a tenth of an inch, while eight days had at least a trace of rain.

The highest sustained windspeed was 25.0 mph (Dec 3.) The average windspeed for the month was 3.2 mph.

November 2014 Weather Summary

The highest temperature for the month of November was 61.3 degrees. This happened on the 11th. The lowest temperature for the month was the morning of the 21st, where we saw a chilly 6.9 degrees.  The average temp was 35.8. There were 19 days where the low temperature was below the freezing point of 32 degrees. Six days had high temperatures below 32.

November also saw 1.80 inches of rain fall. The yearly total is now 31.59 inches. The most daily rainfall fell on the 23rd (0.84 inches.)  Three days had more than a tenth of an inch, while 7 days had at least a trace of rain.

The highest sustained windspeed was 37.0 mph (Nov 24.) The average windspeed for the month was 3.9 mph.

October 2014 Weather Summary

The highest temperature for the month of October was 75.3 degrees. This happened on the 27th. The lowest temperature for the month was the morning of the 19th, where we saw a chilly 30.1 degrees.  The average temp was 51.2. There were three days where the low temperature was below the freezing point of 32 degrees.

October also saw 2.01 inches of rain fall. The yearly total is now 29.79 inches. The most daily rainfall fell on the 14th (0.40 inches.)  Seven days had more than a tenth of an inch, while eleven days had at least a trace of rain.

The highest sustained windspeed was 38.0 mph (Oct 14.) The average windspeed for the month was 2.7 mph.

September 2014 Weather Summary

The highest temperature for the month of September was 92.2 degrees. This happened on the 5th. It was also the only time this year we recorded a temperature above 90 on the weather station at Leslie Park Golf Course. The lowest temperature for the month was the morning of the 14th, where we saw a chilly 38.9 degrees. It was also the date of the first frost of the year. The frost can happen, even when the temperature is above freezing because the weather station is 15 feet above the ground. Closer to the turf level, the temperature can be significantly lower because colder air sinks. The average temp was 61.2. For reference, June, July and August were all in the upper 60's for mean temps.

September also saw 3.74 inches of rain fall. The yearly total is now 27.78 inches. The most daily rainfall fell on the 10th (1.25 inches) but the precipitation event that started on the 20th and ended the morning of the 21st had 1.45 inches. The 20th had 1.15 inches while the 21st finished with just 0.30 inches. There were only two days with over an inch of precipitation and six days had more than a tenth of an inch. Nine days had at least a trace of rain.

The highest sustained windspeed was 29.0 mph (Sept 5.) The average windspeed for the month was 1.5 mph.

Fall Aerification

We have completed the aerification of the greens at both golf courses. Leslie Park was done during the week of September 8th. We just finished Huron Hills yesterday (September 24th.) Completing the process this early will really allow the greens to recover and go into the winter at full strength.

Here is a video about why we aerate.

To review the process, first we use a mechanical aerator, a Toro Procore 648.  It is self-propelled, 48 inches wide and has 30 1/2 inch tines.  The speed we use puts the tines down every 2 inches.  Here is the machine in action.

The plugs of soil, grass and thatch removed from a green.

The playing surface after removing the plugs.

After these plugs are shoveled off the green, we use a mower attachment called a verti-cutter to break up any remaining plugs, as well as groom the playing surface of the green.

The verti-cutting units mounted on a tri-plex mower.

The verti-cuts in action

This is how the green looks after the verti-cutting.

At this point, we need to replace all of the material that we just removed. We do this with sand. Sand is a great medium to grow grass because it drains well and resists compaction. The sand is spread on the greens and then drug into the holes.

The top-dresser putting sand on #12 at Leslie Park a couple of years ago. The willow behind the green fell over during a windstorm in 2012.

Leslie Park's #18 green covered with sand.

A video of #10 green being drug in.

The finished product. Notice how all of the holes are filled with sand. This is the objective.

August 2014 Weather Summary

The highest temperature recorded at Leslie Park in August was 88.7 degrees (on the 26th.) The low temperature was 45.8 (Aug 15.) The average was 69.4 degrees.

The weather station at the golf course recorded 3.81 inches of rain. This brings the yearly total to 19.57 inches. The largest single day of rain was on the 11th, which saw 1.09 inches of rain. This was the only day with over an inch of precipitation, and 6 days had over a tenth of an inch. Eleven days saw more than a trace of rain.

The average wind speed was 1.4 mph. The highest sustained wind speed was 30 mph, on Aug 26.