Weather Stations & Evapotranspiration (E.T.) Show me the money!

The benefits of using E.T. based run times and should you be doing so on your course.

By: Craig F. Zellers, Principal – Golf Irrigation Consultants

Golf Course Superintendents can be a curious and cautious group when it comes to utilizing technology. Weather stations have been in use for decades in the golf industry, so they can’t be considered “new” technology; however, many Superintendents today are hesitant to use them to their capacity. Most on site weather stations have software that is directly linked to the irrigation software. Not only can they compute the Evapotranspiration Rate (E.T.) but they use the E.T. in order to calculate individual station run times in the irrigation central.

The U.S. Open is one of golfing’s premier annual events hosted by the United States Golf Association (USGA). In 2016, Cordevalle Golf Club in San Martin, CA was the host golf course for this coveted event. An event of this magnitude is no small undertaking and preparation for this event begins at least one year prior. Our company, "Golf Irrigation Consultants" was contracted by OB Sports to help map, inventory, prepare, and manage the irrigation system prior and through the Open Championship. In this article, I am going to outline the events along with the many challenges we faced in an effort to produce an A+ product for the best women golfers in the world! The lessons learned will help Golf Irrigation Consultants provide better services for other clients, and share learned lessons with industry professionals should they encounter similar challenges.

By Gary Kaye & Craig Zellers

Irrigation is one of the most expensive and complex parts of any golf course construction or renovation project. Adding sprinklers or re-working small portions of the golf course is routine for most Superintendents but if the project approaches or exceeds $100,000, you should probably seek outside advice. Managers, Superintendents and Boards of Directors should consider the following: