Joe,
I worked at Colonial CC in Ft Worth, TX from 2007-2009 where the Crown Plaza Invitational is hosted. The event is normally held the week BEFORE Memorial Day when the bentgrass greens are sort of giving their last wind and the bermudagrass is ready to take off.
We dryjected greens the first full week of March. We then would follow up the second full week of March with the 1/2" core aerification. This was about 2 months before the event. During the middle of the March, a PGA Tour agronomist would stop in for visit, usually the last visit before advance week in May.
By the first of April, the approaches, tees and fairways had all be verticut once and topdressed. The would happen 3-4 more times with the last time being 13 days before tournament week. We would groom, verticut greens as needed, with the last being 6 days before tournament week. Greens were topdressed every week, with the last topping being Monday of advance week.
Our irrigation system was never shut off. We handwatered greens in the mornings and evenings. Tees and approaches were handwatered, bunker faces, green surrounds and fairways were watered at night, as needed. IF fairways were watered, an Assistant stayed on property and made hourly runs throughout the property at night to make sure that nothing came on.
During Advance week, we would use the very far edges of the greens for pin located to allow old cups to heal and take the stresses off the middle of the green. Also, 3 weeks before the event, the gallery ropes were installed and ONLY carts with handicap flags were allowed inside. Everyone else had to stay outside the ropes to minimize wear.
We fertilized all bermudagrass 4-5x leading in the event, with the last being advance week. As thick, lush and dense we could make the turf, the better. We were never told heights on fairways, greens, tees, etc. In fact, it was different for all the tournaments I was there for. They told use a target speed on the greens and that dictated our height and growth regulation.
My old boss ALWAYS kept the membership in the back of his mind, meaning that there were 51 other weeks out of the year that we had to grow grass for them where the Tour was not involved. There were things that he stuck his heels in on and we did not break. In that regard, I agree with JR 100%. A weak personality could be steamrolled.
I think that so much of the prepartation are dictated on weather, timing and turf types.