Newly renovated bunker or sand trap at Dairy Creek courtesy of Cal Poly's turf students

Before classes let out for the summer at Cal Poly, we were approached by Dr. Jason Lewis and the turf Management Progam at Cal Poly. He had a number os students that were looking for a project to gain real world experience before they graduated and asked if we had any good ideas.  After Albert and I peppered him with our thoughts I think he wished he had not asked.  After some discussion we concluded our practice bunker renovation at Dairy Creek's practice area would be perfect for the amount of time they had to spend coupled with our needs. The students were great and put in the work and effort in between classes and on weekends to complete the project.  I have put together a montage here for your viewing pleasure to view the action as it happened.  Enjoy!



The two before photos that demonstrate the nearly 2 feet of sand that have accumulated

during the 16-year life of the practice bunker.

The first step is to remove the old sand.

Removing the sod proved to be a bigger challenge than anticipated.

We rolled the sod and saved it for later.  

 

Found the drainage!

It's always nice to have a good leader.  Dr. Jason Lewis will be missed as I enjoyed our time sharing golf stories, Kansas State wins and losses, and working to provide opportunities for students.  

Aha!  We new the original grade was there somewhere.

 Newly installed drainage and decomposed granite.

 

Let's put the puzzle back together

Ready for sand!

Final prep and watering the sod (have you ever seen such a blue sky?)

 



 

Finished product that will be beautiful in a few weeks.  We could have used new sod, but waste not want not is our motto.  We filled the stressed and dry areas with compost and seed mixture from our Zero Waste site and the germination was perfect!