The Blog of Darren J. Davis, CGCS Olde Florida Golf Club: 2021 Renovation Update #2

It has been a very productive two weeks since my last update, and although the region is in desperate need of rain, the weather has been phenomenal for the construction aspect of the Olde Florida renovation! I am pleased to report that the project is on schedule and almost everything is going exactly as planned.

In this update I am going to focus on one component of the project, the bunker renovation. A significant aspect of the project is the renovation of the 89 bunkers, which account for 3.27 acres on the golf course. Just shy of 20% of the total cost of the project will go towards the bunker renovation.

The bunkers at Olde Florida have never been renovated. In the last 29 years we have replaced all of the sand once, but the construction is original. Although the bunkers have played exceptionally well, it was decided to do a complete renovation of the bunkers this summer for two reasons.

First, a significant number of bunkers have lost the Rees Jones design features that were in place when the course opened in 1993. A second, and much more significant reason for the renovation is because of the bunker construction method. Since we built the bunkers almost three decades ago several new construction methods and liners have been developed that significantly reduce maintenance and improve playability. In particular, the bunker sand washing that routinely occurs after heavy rains is almost eliminated with these new construction methods and materials.

Left Greenside Bunker on #4 Prior to Renovation - 3/12/21

Left Greenside Bunker on #4 - 5/14/21

Greenside Bunker on #4 - 5/26/21

Over the last 10 years I have evaluated and performed on site testing of several bunker liners/construction methods. After significant consideration and analyzation of the aspects of each, the Better Billy Bunker Method was selected. The key component to this construction method is the polymer-coated gravel liner in the floor of the bunker which allows water to pass through at a rate that exceeds 1500 inches per hour. When water is properly diverted around bunkers, even during extremely heavy rain events the bunker sand hardly moves.

Bunker washout is a substantial issue for most golf courses and certainly at Olde Florida. Washouts contaminate sand and require staff to spend countless hours repairing bunkers after major rain events. After a heavy rain it’s not uncommon for us to assign as many as 16 employees, each spending 8-12 hours pumping water, removing silt and shoveling sand to repair bunkers. By installing the Better Billy Bunker Method we will almost eliminate washouts allowing us to reallocate a significant amount of labor to other tasks.

Developed in 2009, the Better Billy Bunker Method has been installed on over 1,200 golf courses worldwide. In the YouTube video here and below are testimonials on the method from Golf Course Superintendent’s at; The Country Club of Castle Pines, The Loxahatchee Club, St. George’s Golf and Country Club, Winged Foot Golf Club, The Robert Trent Jones Golf and Country Club and others.

Each facilities needs/desires, time frame and budget for a bunker renovation can be different. Therefore, the renovation process to the Better Billy Bunker Method can be slightly different.

Below is an explanation of the project at Olde Florida.

During our club closure in March (16th & 17th) Greg Muirhead, Senior Vice President / Senior Designer with Rees Jones, Inc., was onsite to define the features that have been lost. Greg and I were both on site in 1992 during construction, so in addition to the photographs I have from the early days, we both have first hand knowledge of the original shape of the bunkers. As Greg painted the outlines of each bunker on March 17th I took photos. The photos from that day are now being used to mark the edges for our construction/renovation.

Greg Muirhead Marking Right Greenside Bunker Hole 4 - 3/16/21

Right Greenside Bunker Hole 4 - 3/16/21

The physical aspect of the bunker renovation process at Olde Florida began with the removal of the existing bunker sand. The removed sand was stockpiled for later use as topdressing in historic wet areas. With the sand removed, the original drainage pipe and limestone gravel was removed from each bunker. Our original thought was we might try to reuse this pipe, but after inspection of the pipe it was determined new pipe would be the safer and wiser choice. After pipe and gravel removal, two crews from Leibold Construction began shaping the floor of the bunkers and moving soil to areas that needed features reestablished.

Sand Removal Greenside Bunker - Hole 4

Existing Drainage Pipe and Limestone Gravel Removal - Hole 7

Bunker Shaping - Hole 5

Adding Soil to Reestablish Bunker Features - Hole 3

The floor in each bunker is being shaped to increase the slope and subsequent rate of water infiltration into the drainage pipes. When the floor is shaped to the proper slope and 10" depth (explanation below), drainage is installed. The elevation and slope of each drain line is carefully inspected prior to new pipe and granite gravel being placed in the drainage trenches.

When drain pipe and gravel installation is complete an exact 3" layer of granite gravel is installed in the entire floor of each bunker and the Better Billy Bunker patented polymer is sprayed to a depth of 3/4". This secures the gavel in place. The gravel layer acts as both a liner between the subgrade and the bunker sand as well as a conduit for water to enter the drain pipe.

The final step is the installation of 7" of new, angular bunker sand. As was previously mentioned, since the gravel is an exact 3" depth and the sand is an exact 7" depth, the floor of the bunkers are carefully constructed to an exact 10" depth from the floor to the new grass line. The gravel slope/contour matches the sand slope/contour exactly.