surface hardness

Last December I collected OM246 samples from six greens at a 27 hole facility—two greens from each nine. This course has been rebuilding greens nine holes at a time, which is a great way to establish a gradient of total organic material at the surface of the greens.

The way we manage the turf affects playability. That’s obvious. Everyone knows that. Knowing that management affects playability is one thing. Doing something about it is another. When you see just how large the clipping volume and OM246 effects on playability actually are, the numbers will surprise you.

I brought my measuring tools to Fukuoka Raizan Golf Club last week. I measured green speed before and after tournament play with the stimpmeter, among other measurements. Here are some of the observations I made during the JLPGA’s Sky RKB Ladies Classic tournament.

One of the measurements I routinely make on putting greens is the surface hardness—or firmness—as measured by the sdi golf course firmness tester. What I provide to the golf course superintendent, at least during tournaments, is a summary chart like this one.

Here are three items that cover the topic of surface hardness, or the firmness of turfgrass surfaces, from all kinds of angles. Richard Forsyth is the director of courses at Royal Melbourne Golf Club.

This is a difficult problem—pitch mark scars—and the only long term solution I know of is firmer surfaces. I was reminded of that this week when I saw balls bouncing on the greens at a tournament in Japan (see videos below).

I spent a morning with Brad Revill at Nikanti GC last month. I wanted to see the course, get some measurements, see the clipping volume measurement, and talk about turf management with Brad.

Yesterday I wrote about tools used to measure surface hardness. I’ve used all of those tools, and I prefer the golf course firmness tester from SDI (a 500 g Clegg impact tester with a domed head) for its ease of use and reliability.

There are various tools available to measure surface firmness, or surface hardness, of turfgrass. For golf course putting greens, I’ve used four different tools, and my preferred method is the golf course firmness tester from SDI.

Last week I had a couple conversations about green speed. Green speed and surface hardness My column in the June 2018 issue of Golf Course Seminar magazine discusses the relationship between effective mowing height and green speed.