In my travels during the first few weeks of my tenure as a USGA agronomist, it is evident that fall has set in and the hustle and bustle of the growing season is lessening. With declining temperatures comes an opportunity for superintendents to accomplish some project work before winter sets in and freezes the soil. One frequently overlooked project is straightening rectangular teeing areas. This process improves aesthetics, provides consistent teeing width and orients golfers to the line of play.
It is important to ensure that a rectangular tee box is aimed at the golfer’s target, whether that is a green or fairway landing area. To ensure that tee boxes are oriented to the line of play, it is important to establish right angles on all corners. You want the sides of the tee parallel to the line of play and the front and back perpendicular.
So, how do you establish right angles in the field? One option is to use the Pythagorean theorem. In order to avoid flashbacks to algebra class I won’t break down the math, but those interested can find a guide here. If algebra isn’t your speed, tools like a double right-angle prism can be used to orient the tee to the target and square all the corners. Even if linear tees are rounded at the ends, finding square corners will ensure the long edges are parallel to the line of play.
Optimizing teeing widths to accommodate mowers and sprayers should be considered. If tees are being mowed with a triplex mower, consider resizing them to accommodate complete passes. For those who do not employ GPS sprayers with individual nozzle control, adjusting the widths of your tee boxes to accommodate a complete boom width of your sprayer will allow you to accurately apply plant protectants and minimize overspray.
If there are any questions about how realigning teeing areas will work at your course, reach out to your regional USGA agronomist for more information.
Central Region Agronomists:
Zach Nicoludis, regional director – znicoludis@usga.org
Tom Gould, agronomist – tgould@usga.org