15 PURE SEED Pure Eclipse provides the finishing touch for Raleigh CC Raleigh Country Club in North Carolina reopened for member play in November 2020 following a renovation by Kyle Franz. The project included work on greens, bunkers and the irrigation system, as well as tree removal and new tees to add length to the course. Billy Cole, RCC’s superintendent for the past 18 years, needed to choose a grass for the new greens. He decided that they should remain bentgrass, even though most of the clubs in the region have converted to bermuda, as he felt it would prove to be a better surface for RCC’s members. He was then faced with the choice of which bentgrass variety to choose. Cole made several visits to Dr Melodee Fraser at the Pure-Seed Testing (PST) East facility in Rolesville, North Carolina, to study bentgrass variety trials. He needed a bentgrass that would stand up to the heat and disease pressure of a North Carolina summer. After much research, Cole chose Pure Eclipse. “We chose it largely because I knew it was developed in the region where I would be growing it,” he says. Cole’s project would be the first golf course to plant Pure Eclipse. Cole says “we wanted to be trendsetters”. Pure Eclipse creeping bentgrass is available exclusively from Pure Seed, powered by Tee-2-Green, and was developed by PST in Canby, Oregon, from plants obtained from Penn State University. The parents of Pure Eclipse were selected for their heat tolerance and disease resistance. Cole continues to reply to other golf course superintendents who want to learn more about Pure Eclipse and how he’s managing it. “The new greens at RCC were seeded beginning in late spring 2020, through late July,” says Cole. “The grow-in went well and the first year has been very successful.” Cole says the membership likes the firm, consistent surface of Pure Eclipse and he’s able to mow it low. “Management wise, I can only build on the foundation of the great genetics of this bentgrass,” he says. “I look forward to seeing how it performs as it matures in years to come.” For more on Pure Seed, turn to page 45 or visit www.pureseed.com New bentgrass from Pure Seed is the final piece of the jigsaw for North Carolina layout Photo: Pure Seed
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