“The Easiest Decision Ever”

Nathan Neumann grew up loving the game and, predictably, found himself a turf job at a local public course when he was in high school. He was hooked. Young Nathan was shocked when he found out you could make a career out of it. And he has done just that at great clubs in Texas and Oklahoma for the past three decades.

“It’s been a fun journey,” says Neumann.

He’s been at Oklahoma City G&CC for 7 years now. The bunkers this Mackenzie and Maxwell gem had been reworked a bit in 2012 and they used Bunker Solution for part of that redo. “They performed great but when I got here the infrastructure was old, the greens were old and the whole course needed some love.” They worked with a Tripp Davis on a master plan to renovate and rejuvenate the “whole nine yards” and did the work in ‘21-‘22.

“We had three goals. Preserve the good parts of the course – the routing, the design of the greens, all the good stuff. Renovate the infrastructure, which had to be done. And restore things that had been lost on the golf course.” That included more open space thanks to a tree removal plan and widened fairways. Mackenzie and Maxwell could shine again.

But how would the bunkers be restored but also be made to hold up better against unpredictable Oklahoma storms? “Choosing Bunker Solution again for our renovation was the easiest decision ever,” says Neumann. What influenced Neumann and his team the most was excavating the decade-old Bunker Solution liners installed by his predecessor. “The bunker liner was so clean, and the drain looked like it was put in yesterday. We were able to save and stockpile 80-90% of the old sand and reuse it. That’s a testament to liner. Honestly, if we hadn’t been completely rebuilding the bunkers we could have left those old liners in place.”

The project included every bunker on the course and 70,000 sq/ft of Bunker Solution. Neumann says the liner is simple and straightforward to install. “The construction team did the work in our case but, honestly, with the right staff in place you could do it yourself. If you’re not doing any major shaping or anything it’s pretty simple.” What did he learn from observing the install? “The biggest thing for me was the drain line. Our goal is to drain 7-8% of the square footage of the bunker. So instead of doing a bunch of Y’s and stuff we just did everything in 90-degree angles off the main trunk line. That made it much easier to fit in the liner and put it into place without a bunch of angles.”

One more thing he recommends: “I don’t think you can have too many staples. And Liquid Nails.”

What does he tell people about Bunker Solution versus other systems he’s encountered? “It just performs. The members say, ‘Nathan the bunkers are consistent’ and that’s the best compliment you can hear about your bunkers.”

He also likes the fact you can build it on grade. “You don’t have to excavate extra material to make it fit. And there’s no perched water table. You know the moisture is going to be at the bottom and not the top.

Finally, there’s no pea gravel to migrate to the surface. “I swear, if you put one piece of gravel at the bottom of a bunker it will find its way to the top!”

As for maintenance, it’s mostly power rakes. “We usually machine rake them once or twice a week. With this amount of play you almost have to just to make sure it smooths the floor back down. Plus, we have Arkansas Premier White crushed quartz sand, which is a little heavier.”

Neumann just had a 6” rain this weekend before we talked. Did he notice any washouts? “Not really. Just minor issues on a few steep faces. But we can get out and clean it up same day.”

What are Neumann’s final observations about choosing Bunker Solution for OCG&CC a second time? “It works. It does exactly what they say it will do. And when our members call and tell me the bunkers our good, that’s a big win.”