Golf Course Maintenance Program
Grass Selection
Grass also popularly referred to as ‘Greens’ is the most crucial thing in a golf course. Many people do not know the different species of Turfgrass used in a golf course. The various species of grass have varying impact on the quality of the game. Apart from natural grass, some courses prefer artificial grass. There are four main types of grasses used as natural turf. They include Bentgrass, Bermudagrass, Zoysia, and Perennial Ryegrass.
Bentgrass – It is the most commonly used owing to its durability. It is shallow with a thick root system that allows it to sustain heavy traffic and grow consistently. It is seen to grow densely and remain healthy with grainless fine leaves.
Bermudagrass – It is generally used to make up the rough parts of a golf course mainly because of its robust root system and grows in clumps. It is tough and can withstand the damage caused by the divots of the golfer. It is to repair quickly and drought resistant; however, the weather isn’t favorable for this grass.
Zoysia – It creates a thick mat-like cover despite growing in clumps. It is also seen to have fine blades and deep roots. It is seen to thrive in all climates other than cold and desert areas.
Perennial Ryegrass – It grows in clumps and requires dense planting to provide a hole-free cover.
When choosing the type of grass, it is essential to understand how grass affects the golf course. For instance, two main things affect the putt, break, and grain. Grain refers to the direction which the grass grows while break refers to the effects of gravity on the putt (either going left or right). The grain of grass is dependent on the direction of the winds, water drainage, and direction of the setting sun.
For the Greens, the best grass to choose is Bentgrass since it grows vertically with zero grain.
For the fairways, the Bermuda grass would be best to use due to its ability to withstand damage, and it is easy to repair.
For the rough patches, Bermuda grass will be used.
The tees will have a mixed blend of Perennial ryegrass and Bermuda grass as they offer continuous hole-free cover.
Mowing
Greens
The greens need to be mowed regularly to ensure that there are short and dense. The Greens are to be mowed every day of the week if the weather permits and at least five days. The greens will be mowed at different heights depending on the time of year. The changing times have brought about the need for faster greens resulting in an optimal mowing height of 0.125 inches. It makes it faster but provides the challenge of regulating the growth of grass. The mowing entails the use of reel mowers to level the thick grass. The blades of the mower need to be sharpened regularly to ensure uniform cutting. The areas with Bentgrass require vertical mowing to cut into the turf perpendicular to the soil to control grain every ten-fourteen days. After heavy rainfall, the grass will be hand mowed to ensure minimal destruction and maintain the minimum speed requirements.
Fairways and Tees
During spring, the Tees and Fairways are to be mowed at 0.437 inches and lowered later to 0.375 inches. The quantity of growth will determine the mowing rate, with mowing ideally set to four days a week. The quality of the grass will take precedence over all other activities.
Roughs
Their mowing is done using the rotary mowers, and the ideal height is seen to be between 2.25 and 2.5 inches at least once a week. The primary cut ideally maintained at 1.75 inches and mowed twice a week.
Top Dressing
It entails the distribution of a thin sand layer on the thick turf. Its primary purpose is to provide a firm, tight putting surface by smoothing the surface and controlling thatch for modification of the surface soil. Topdressing should ideally be done every three weeks, especially in the months when the grass is actively growing. The procedure is to mow the grass then top dress it, brush the dressing, water it and finish with a final mowing.
Rolling
After the grass is mowed and top dressed, the next step is to roll it. The purpose of rolling is that it increases the speed of the green up to six inches. The other aspect of rolling is that it is essential to roll a minimum of twice a week without affecting the health of the turf. In the event conditions are not proper for rolling, it should be scheduled for a time when they are to reduce its negative effect on the turf. The green speed will be measured on Wednesday and Friday via the stimpmeter to ensure that the minimum speed objectives are maintained.
According to the United States Golf Association (USGA), the minimum green speeds are as follows (weather permitting):
Tournament play – 138 inches of roll
Weekend play – 132 inches of roll
Regular play – 120 inches of roll
Aeration
When the weather permits, all the holes will be aerated in the spring within three days using 0.25-inch hollow tines. In the late fall, the aeration will most likely consist of 10 deep drill tines measuring 0.5 inches. During the late fall, Tees will be aerated using the 0.75-inch Aerator using hollow tines, and the Topdressing included into aeration holes. As for the Fairways, their aeration is done using the 0.3-inch deep drill tines.
Growth Regulators
The high rate of growth seen in the different species of grass use brings about a necessity for growth regulators. The regulators like Trinexapac-ethyl are used on the greens, tees, and Fairways to control the growth of the turf. During the summer, the regulators are used daily on the turf, but they are less effective in the wet and warm seasons.
Wetting Agents
Every month, the greens are sprayed with wetting agents (non-ionic surfactants). Their core purpose is to eliminate/reduce the surface tension of the water molecules for better soil penetration. It then helps in managing and maintaining a firm putting surface and saves on the water during irrigation.
Fertilizer
The use of fertilizer is kept to a minimum to avoid rapid and uncontrollable growth of the grass. However, in the dry season, it is used in small amounts every week on the turf to ensure its continued growth.
Pesticides
Every fortnight, the greens are sprayed with pesticides to mitigate the damage resulting from small insects and fungi. The pesticides are generally used as a preventive measure aimed at ensuring the continued health of the turf. Care has to be taken not to use any harmful pesticides lest they destroy the quality of the greens.
Irrigation Systems
The irrigation of the entire course is dependent on various factors such as humidity, rainfall, aerification, soil moisture, fertilization, evapotranspiration rates, and top dressing. The main thing to note about irrigation is that it is not encouraged since too much will affect the firmness of the grass, especially the greens resulting in a grain that affects the players’ putt. Minimal irrigation helps in enhancing drought tolerance, disease resistance, and deep rooting.