Turfgrass growth and recovery during winter months is slow, despite above-normal temperatures in the West so far this year. Although many courses overseed bermudagrass practice tees with perennial ryegrass, the germination and maturation process can take three to six weeks or more at this time of year when overnight temperatures reside below 45 F and soil temperatures hover below 55 F. The popularity of golf at this time of year in the Southwest – and the enthusiasm golfers have for hitting balls on the range – renders practice tees void of turf in a hurry, with tees less than an acre at greater risk for thin turf cover. These challenges result in a poor golfer experience on many practice tees.
If the practice tee at your course is small and cannot support the play it receives, consider the following options:
- Install a line of synthetic turf along the back portion of the practice tee. This is not just for lower-budget courses. Many high-end courses have gone this route too.
- Cover a portion of the tee when it’s not in use to expedite seed germination and growth. This is a labor-intensive practice and some golfers may gripe about how covers look, but they speed up germination and growth, which means better practice conditions.
- Install small, pop-up sprinklers to facilitate watering during the day to help accelerate seed germination in recovering areas without disrupting golfers.
If the desire is to practice on high-quality grass as much as possible and there is a willingness to spend additional money to make that happen, the best method is to repair large areas with sod as they become too damaged for play. Soil preparation work and sodding can be completed in one day with contract help. The process looks something like this:
- The golf course provides two or three laborers and equipment like tractors and trailers to assist the contractor with sod removal and hauling. This typically requires two to four hours depending on the size of the area.
- Following sod removal, the area will need to be cleaned and have any remnant material stripped away. Fill in low spots and clean around sprinklers to provide a smooth and level surface.
- After the area is clean, lay big-roll sod. This should not require any additional labor from the golf course as it will normally be handled by the contractor.
- At a conservative estimate, play can resume on the sodded surface within three weeks of installation.
Although sodding is more expensive than trying to repair grass practice tees with seed and sand, the stripping process described here has several advantages:
- This process is fast – contractors can strip and regrass several acres per day.
- The sod cutters used for stripping can be set to the same depth as the incoming sod – usually about ¾ of an inch – streamlining sod replacement and ensuring a smooth tie-in.
- The practice tee is leveled through the process of stripping and cleaning, and by installing big-roll sod – an entirely different experience than using a sod cutter and laying small rolls.
- Sodding results in a uniform surface that more closely resembles the fairways on the golf course.
During periods when soil and air temperatures do not support turf growth and seed germination, using big-roll sod to repair portions of the practice facility tee results in a uniform and dense turf surface for golfers to enjoy within a few weeks.
West Region Agronomists:
Brian Whitlark, regional director – bwhitlark@usga.org
Ross Niewola, agronomist - rniewola@usga.org