The golf course superintendent installed a major drainage system to address problems plaguing the course, such as frequent no-cart days. An extensive drainage system was installed over four years to drain the course and reduce standing water issues. The drainage system included over 9,000 feet of lateral pipes and cost over $200,000 but has significantly reduced problems and increased revenue by allowing more days of play each season.

1. DRAINAGE
SALVATION
THIS SUPERINTENDENT'S COURSE WAS PLAGUED
BY PROBLEMS, SUCH AS MANY NO-CART-DAYS, UNTIL
A MAJOR DRAINAGE SYSTEM WAS INSTALLED
BYJIMRIOPELLE
A view of the pond excavation on #15.
T,he Upper Canada Golf
Course in Eastern Ontario offers
golfers of all ages and handicap a
challenging and scenic 6,900
yard, 18-hole track. Operated by
the Parks of the St. Lawrence
and located near Morrisburg,
Ontario, the course was
designed by golf course architect
Robbie Robinson and opened in
1966. About 25,000 rounds of
golf are played there each sea-
son. Parks of the St. Lawrence
also operates other recreational
facilities including camp-
grounds, picnic areas, Upper
Canada Village and Fort Henry.
When I first arrived at Upper
Canada Golf Course in the
spring of 1986,1 immediately
fell in love with this magnificent
course. It had just about
everything, except
drainage. The headaches of
standing water well into
May and saturated soil will
be familiar to most who
read this article. Until
recently, I could only
dream about the many
benefits an extensive
drainage system would
bring to our golf course.
Many Problems
Due to this lack of
drainage, problems were
encountered with winter
damage from ice, constant
standing water, frequently can-
celled maintenance problems,
and most of all, lost cart and
greenfee revenue. In order to
ease the pressure, something
had to be done.
The course of action was to
pursue the funding for the
installation of a drainage sys-
tem. Accurate records were kept
regarding rain dates and addi-
tional maintenance costs
directly associated with our
drainage problem. At times, it
didn't seem like I was making
any headway, but then I realized
that I was using the wrong
approach. One day that magic
lightbulb flashed in my head.
The proper way to sell this pro-
ject was to show how much rev-
enue we were losing (carts not
permitted, lost greenfees etc),
the revenue to be gained, and
Removal of extra material, stockpiled,
and used later to topdress trenches.
20 GreenMaster SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 1992

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11111111111111111.11.111111111111111111
how a drainage system could pay
for itself in a relatively short
time.
The major breaking point
came in the summer of 1990.
From May to the end of October,
530 millimetres of rainfall
occurred, forcing the course to
close completely on three differ-
ent occasions. In total, there
were 63 days out of a possible
171 without carts on the course,
which amounted to approxi-
mately $35,000 as well as
$20,000 of other course revenues
lost.
Soil Not Problem
During that summer a firm was
hired to perform soil tests, pin-
point our main drainage prob-
lems and provide various options
to drain the course. As expected,
the main culprit was our high
water table, and not soil condi-
tions. Approximately 90 per cent
of the course is marine sand
with the remainder being made
up of glacial till. Soil conditions
turned out to be a blessing as
the trencher cut through the soil
with ease. This would allow a
large portion of the trenching to
proceed relatively quickly.
The plan was to start in the
fall and spread the project over
four years in order to achieve
minimal disruption to play on
the course. We were really
scrambling to have the project
tendered, awarded and started
in the fall. We got as far as the
site visit with interested con-
tractors, but no further in 1990.
Although it was somewhat dis-
appointing, not starting the pro-
ject right away turned out to be
the best thing that could have
happened.
Four-Year Plan
Throughout the winter months,
we worked on the four-year pro-
posal not even knowing if the
funding would be available in
the next fiscal year. During this
time, it was decided that a pro-
ject consultant would be hired to
provide a revised master
drainage plan and recommend a
contractor after reviewing the
proposals. The consultant would
also be retained to ensure pro-
ject specifications were followed
throughout the duration of the
contract. Regular weekly meet-
ings would be scheduled with
the successful bidder outlining
areas of the course that would
be affected during the following
week's work. Novatech
Engineering Consultants Ltd. of
Nepean were chosen to provide
consulting services, and I cannot
overstate what a good idea it
was to choose this avenue. Their
services were well worth the
additional costs involved.
The funding for the project
came through in the spring of
1991, not in parts as was
expected, but in its entirety, as a
major anti-recession capital
grant from the Ontario
Provincial Government. We
thought that the scrambling was
over, but it had just begun.
Fortunately, everything fell into
place and the contract was
awarded to Turf Drain Inc. of
Guelph, Ontario. Initial meet-
ings were set up between myself,
John Cottrill (Planning and
Development Officer for the St.
Lawrence Parks Commission),
Ted Phillips (Novatech
Engineering), and Geoff Corlett
(Turf Drain Inc).
Geoff outlined his plan of
attack, keeping in mind that the
course would be open for play
throughout the drainage instal-
lation. Our main goal was to
hinder playas little as possible.
At the same time it sounded
impossible, considering the mag-
nitude of the project, but it went
extremely well. There were
times when things got pretty
hectic, but as we all know, when
it comes to construction, things
tend to get worse before they get
better. In hindsight, I now real-
ize that our golfing guests were
more willing than I was to
accept the minor damage and
..
InconvenIence.
Scope of Work
Here is a review of the scope of
the work and related items. The
option was chosen to split the
course into two watersheds and
gravity drain down to two hold-
ing tanks on the lower half of
the course where the water
would be pumped to a creek.
The tanks were approximately
12 feet below grade with main
lines of ten-inch diameter
pipe(2,500 feet) and eight-inch
pipe (1,275 feet) laid out from
the two pumping chamber loca-
tions. The minimum depth of
these main lines is five feet
below grade. Laterals connected
to main lines step down in sizes
of six-inch (9,000) feet and four-
inch (56,000 feet), and are a
minimum of2.5 feet below
grade.
During the installation of all
lines, grades were checked con-
stantly to ensure positive flow
throughout the system using
laser technology. In general, all
laterals run parallel to the fair-
ways to reduce the number of
irrigation crossings. That is not
to say that there were not irriga-
tion breaks during this project,
but when a break did occur, the
contractor ensured that they
were promptly repaired. One
break that did cause problems
was to our underground tele-
phone cable. Although this cable
was located and marked prior to
trenching in this area, a mistake
was made and the cable was
trenched through. A further
point to note is that all tile
installed, including large mains,
was wrapped in filter cloth.
Other improvements
included: replacement of all
existing culverts; regrading of
existing ditches; a new ditch on
#16 to accommodate the outflow
of water from one of the pump-
ing chambers; riprap protection
along selected areas of Aultsville
Creek; cleaning of an existing
pond; and the creation of a
22 GreenMaster SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 1992

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1111111111111111111.iliiil.IIIIII!IIIIIIIII!
strategically located pond
between the eighth and
eleventh fairways. Both ponds
contain weir control structures
and are connected via the
drainage system. Because the
upper pond is fed by the irriga-
tion system, we can now safely
clean both ponds by allowing
overflow to travel through the
drainage system to the lower
pond and exit to Aultsville
Creek.
Uses for Fill
All this excavation work pro-
duced a tremendous amount of
fill, which was utilized to build a
new driving range complete with
a 15,000 square foot teeing area
and three target greens. Access
routes for equipment, delivery of
materials, and sand haul routes
for dump trucks were strictly
controlled. This was obviously
an excellent way to localize any
major damage, making it much
easier and less expensive for the
contractor to restore. In some
instances, even the truck drivers
suggested alternate access
routes, which showed that
everyone was involved in ensur-
ing the project was a success.
One minor problem encoun-
tered was how to avoid erosion
in the new ditch at the outlet for
one of the pumps. Two methods
were chosen here. First, rather
than outflowing directly into the
ditch, we would outlet directly
into a new culvert installed in
close proximity to the holding
tank. The culvert would take the
pounding, the ditch would carry
the water to the creek. The sec-
ond method was to line the ditch
with a geotextile liner and beau-
tifullandscaping stone acquired
from Nesbitt Aggregates of
Renfrew, Ontario.
Last summer's dry weather
conditions kept the work on
schedule and the damage to the
course minimal. The contractor
left the site one day before the
first snowfall. Although the pro-
ject was large in scope, it suc-
ceeded due to the cooperation of
all parties involved. Regular
meetings kept everyone up-to-
date and dealt with problems
quickly to minimize friction
between the contractor's crew
and the course operations staff.
No complaints were received
from either the members or
green fee players. Surprisingly,
the work was hardly noticed by
our customers. In fact, the
Upper Canada Golf Course even
saw an increase in revenue dur-
ing the 1991 season. A notice
board was placed near the first
SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 1992 GreenMaster 23

4. tee advising players where construction was taking
place, and was updated daily. The total budget for
the project, including construction, consultant's
fees, and spring restoration, came to $350,000.
Mter last winter's heavy snow accumulation and
large amounts of run-off, the new drainage system
was quickly put to the test. The Upper Canada Golf
Course opened for the 1992 season on April 25, ear-
lier than ever before, and the first weekend of oper-
ation was a huge success. We also anticipate an
overall improvement in turf quality as a result of
this project.
Jim Riopelle is Golf Course Superintendent, Upper
Canada Golf Course, located near Upper Canada
Village in Eastern Ontario. Input into this article
was also provided by John Cottrill, Planning and
Development Officer for the Parks of the St.
Lawrence.
Excavated ditch beside #17 tee for spring run off
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